Released two years after the first film, Ghoulies II shifts the rubbery and demotic mini monsters to a travelling fairground setting- for a very 80’s blend of comedy & horror- with touches of heart & cheesiness added into the mix. From MVD's Rewind series here is a Blu-Ray release of the film taking in a new HD scan, and a good selection of archive extras.

Ghoulies II appeared in the year 1987- like the first film it was released by Charles Band’s Empire Studios- filmed in & around their just outside Rome studios, though of course the film is meant to be set in the US. Taking the director's chair for this one was Charles's father Albert.  Between the mid-fifties and the early two thousands he helmed fourteen features- these went from western The Young Guns (1956), onto creepy chiller I Bury The Dead (1958), though to vampiric dog horror of Dracula’s Dog (1977).  Onto a fair few Empire/ Full Moon films such as Doctor Mordrid (1992),  Robot Wars ( 1993),  and Aliens Gone Wild (2006).

The film opens with us seeing a man with a twitching sack running through the night- behind him is a group of red-gowned figures. He hides out in a garage trying to open the bags twitching & chuckling contents in a very conventionally placed open drum of bubbling acid, we hear a few plops- but the man topples in himself.  Outside up rolls a huge truck- with the words Satan’s Din written on its outside- inside is boozed up and ageing magician Ned (Royal Dano), and his younger malleted nephew Larry( Damon Martin).  There’s something wrong with the truck, so Larry goes inside the garage- just as our five Ghoulies- one green & bald-headed, one that looks like an alligator meets demon,  a cat demon crossbreed, a snot-nosed demon, and snappy teeth winged one-  sneak into the back of the truck.

We roll onto the next morning and Satan’s Din has set up with the rest of the traveling fairground setting. We find out the horror walk-through is not doing well, and smug suited/shade-wearing P. Hardin(J. Downing) the son of the owner- is putting on pressure for it to make money otherwise Ned, Larry, and little person thespian Nigel (Phil Fondacro) who plays a masked demon in the walkthrough- will all be out of work.

As opening time rolls around the fairgoers start going through Satan’s Din- with the Ghoulies grabbing & attacking people- as onlookers think it’s all part of the ride, so more & more people go in. They stab & slash, wrap them in bandages, strap folk down to a pit & pendulum table, and sneeze out lots of green snot.

The film slides in just under the hour & a half mark- so I guess it's a touch longer than normal Empire features lengths. But it wizzes by entertaining enough- moving towards a finale that finds the Ghoulies causing murderous mayhem on the midway. Added to the horror-comedy mix, we have a romantic interest for Larry from blond-haired dancer Nicole(Kerry Remsen).

As sequels go Ghoulies II is an entraining ride- with the focus moving away from the cheesy ritual & mini monster of the first films- primally homing in on the rubbery demons themselves, and the mayhem they create. The effects are on par for this time- the Ghoulies look good, and we get more walking/ flying shots. The gory side of things moves from stabbing ‘n’ slashings, the occasional limp ripped off, and similar fare.

This Blu-Ray region A locked- the new HD scan looks nicely bright & bold throughout- with the effects still largely looking fairly good. No new extras on the disc, though we do get a good selection of stuff from past releases. There’s More Toilets, More Terror- The Making of Ghoulies II (16.50) this takes in interviews with Charles Band, one of the younger male actors,  actress Kerry Remsen, and one of the FX artists.  We find out the whole thing- even the seemingly outside funfair footage was shot on a sound stage. The film took seven weeks to film near, with one of the priciest elements of the film being the hiring of the rides. It’s a decent short making of. There’s Under A Magic Moon: Interview with Dennis Paoli (33.36) which is a filmed interview with the film's screenwriter, and he also gives a separate intro( 1.15). We get deleted scenes(2.43), a photo gallery & trailer.

It's great to see Ghoulies II getting a Blu-Ray treatment from MVD's Rewind series- with the print looking very good here. It’s a pity there were no new extras, but the archive ones are decent/ well worth a watch…here’s hoping we get reissues of the other two Ghoulies films!.