Horror Movie Month: The Last Exorcism Part II / Chernobyl Diaries

The Last Exorcism Part II
The Stars: Ashley Bell
The Plot: After the events of the chilling and surprisingly well done original, Nell has been living in the woods live a rabid animal. She eventually moves into a home for troubled girls where she tries to move on from her possession and have a normal life, but of course, the demon isn't quite done with her.
The Scares: Besides the cold open, this movie is the absolute opposite of scary. The first five minutes or so are pretty creepy but then it just proceeds to become more and more stupid. I actually kind of liked the first movie. I thought it was pretty creative and creepy, but, once again, people can't leave well enough alone. If you make a decent movie that makes a lot of money, of course, you have to make a crappy sequel with none of the charm or scares of the first.
The Body Count: I have no idea. It may or may not be five. A lot of people seemingly come back to life. And then there is a fire at the end where everyone may or may not die.
The Grade: F

Chernobyl Diaries
The Stars: Jesse McCartney (!!!), Jonathan Sadowski, Devin Kelley
The Plot: A group of friends backpacking through Europe decide to do a bit of "extreme tourism" which includes taking a rickety old van to a now deserted town (or is it??) right next to the Chernobyl reactors.
The Scares: If nothing else about this movie, the set design is crazy good. The film makers have managed to create a very creepy empty town and that's a definite plus for the movie. But the movie isn't so bad either, even if it's not necessarily scary. The best decision they make is to not show us whatever creatures are moving around in the night until the very end. I hate when movies show you some sort of stupid looking monster or whatever half way through. It totally ruins it for me. I'd rather spend the movie not knowing what is after the characters. I find it more scary and effective and Chernobyl Diaries gets that right, at least.
The Body Count: 7
The Grade: C+