‘The It’s Alive baby is back… Only now there are three of them.’
It Lives Again – aka It’s Alive II – is a 1978 American horror film written, produced and directed by Larry Cohen (The Stuff; Q: The Winged Serpent; God Told Me To). It is the sequel to his 1974 film It’s Alive. The Larco production stars Frederic Forrest, Kathleen Lloyd, John P. Ryan, John Marley, Andrew Duggan and Eddie Constantine.
Plot:
Frank Davis (John P. Ryan) is still reeling from the death of his child and the part he played in it, seeing his chance to atone by assisting other would-be parents of mutant children.
Davis tries to warn soon-to-be parents Jody (Kathleen Lloyd) and Eugene Scott (Frederic Forrest) of the vast and dangerous conspiracy to murder their baby and the other unborn mutant children who are being born around the country. They are convinced when they are met by Malory (John Marley) and a strong force of police officers at the hospital as Jody is about to go into labour…
Reviews:
“With strange pacing, questionable character actions, and not enough mutant baby appearances, It Lives Again just doesn’t quite reach It’s Alive which was only so-so to begin with… but hey, it does have a killer baby.” Basement Rejects
“While there are plenty of fresh situations, the carnage is slow to kick in, with very few glimpses of now three monster babies. The camerawork is often so poor as to be mystifying. The drama is uneven and often implausible…” Black Hole
“Part 2 is a watchable, though pretty mediocre, follow-up. It’s at its best in the beginning dealing with the warring factions of the baby sympathizers vs. the baby destroyers; a sort-of parallel to the opposing Pro Life and Pro Choice movements.” The Bloody Pit of Horror
“At times, It Lives Again plays more like a serious drama than a horror film, but then at other junctures, it lunges into cheap thrills, bloody set pieces, and silly special effects. This is a mix that isn’t particularly successful, and one has the feeling that Cohen was trying to serve two masters.” John Kenneth Muir, Horror Films of the 1970s
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“Essentially a retread of the first film, with another couple drifting through the same story. Though some interesting issues remain, little new light is shed on them here.” Videohound’s Complete Guide to Cult Flicks and Trash Pics
“Although the sequel begins with a paranoid premise of government surveillance of pregnant women, the atmosphere and acting are too laid back to sustain it.” Mike Mayo, The Horror Show Guide
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“The cast includes venerable Eddie Constantine, the American‐born‐and bred French film star, as a doctor who walks as if he were wearing a cement corset. The other actors have less assurance than p*rn performers attempting to play a scene of straight dramatic exposition.” Vincent Canby, The New York Times, May 10, 1978
