For this much-delayed sequel, director Tim Burton has hewed close to the strengths of the original, repeating them when appropriate and acknowledging them when not.

The primary narrative is hijacked by a series of too-long flashbacks and a questionable decision to insert a late-in-the-proceedings twist.

The characters have no humanity, the romance has no sizzle, and the whole thing turns into a slog where style overwhelms substance to such a degree that there’s too little left of the latter to matter.

A collage of Hitchcockian elements baked into a story with a more graphic approach than anything the Master of Suspense ever achieved.