Just Chat.

Here's the thing, I actually like the trashy sequels far more than the original film

Don't get me wrong, the original one is good but it feels like it's pulling back its punches too much and comes off as a bit too indecisive on where it sits on the "Dark Melodrama vs. Erotic Thriller" divide. It's not quite an erotic thriller per se (even the uncut version has no real nudity to speak of) but more of a "romantic thriller", for lack of a better term. But there's those seedy B-Movie aesthetic elements despite the relatively tamer content and it feels kinda off, I guess?

Poison Ivy 2 is also a bit muddled on what kind of film it wants to be but it does push a bit more towards the Erotic Thriller lane, as this is the first one where the series' infamous rep for nudity and sex scenes begins. There isn't as much as you'd think given the franchise's infamy for nudity as a whole but it's there. The wild and sudden swerve the movie takes in its last act is even more jarring but that honestly adds to the entertainment value.

Poison Ivy 3 is honestly my favorite despite being the most sexually explicit. In fact, that's a big point in its favor. And no, not for those kinds of reason, but because Poison Ivy 3 picked a lane and stuck with that for the entire film. It even has some legit horror vibes in the latter half that really help its favor too.

Poison Ivy 4 is a fun Great Recession-era cheapo romp and at times feels like an original movie that was tacked with the Poison Ivy name for rights reasons but I do like the idea of a Skull & Bones/Illuminati-esque all-female secret society that the femme fatales of the first three films may have belonged to.