There's a severe disconnect in "Black Phone 2," and it's more than just a malfunctioning phone line.

This entirely unnecessary sequel to 2021's engrossing horror hit ignores just about everything that was effective in the original, most notably its moody atmosphere and its grounding in a recognizable reality. Of course, the child kidnapper known as the Grabber — played by Ethan Hawke in a scarily effective turn — died at the end of the first movie and returns here, so any connection to the real world is tossed out early on.

The Grabber now exists in a dream world, which renders him something of a Freddy Krueger type. And "Black Phone 2" becomes a sort of variant on "A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors," with characters fighting the bad guy from inside their dreams, which just d

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