Massive improvement of picture quality from the Blu-ray disc is the main reason to pick up this 25th anniversary edition of Scream 2, but an added incentive is the collectible steelbook as well. Out tomorrow!
“Away at college, Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) thought she’d finally put the shocking murders that shattered her life behind her…until a copycat killer begins acting out a real-life sequel. Now, as history eerily repeats itself, ambitious reporter Gale Weathers (Courtney Cox), Deputy Dewey (David Arquette) and other SCREAM survivors find themselves trapped in a terrifyingly clever plotline where no one is safe or beyond suspicion.”
Master of horror Wes Craven, and writer Kevin Williamson return to helm Scream 2, one of the most eagerly anticipated horror sequels that I can remember. If there was one thing that these films were able to capture, it’s the theater experience of watching films like this with a crowd of people, hearing the screams, the shrieks, and the always ensuing laughter of people scared to death. With the smash success that the first became, it’s astonishing that it took less than a year for the sequel to be released, now in it’s 25th anniversary and presented for the first time in 4k UHD.
What the Scream franchise also did well was play the ‘whodunit’ game with the audience. The fun of each film is to try and guess who is the killer(s) and then be ultimately disappointed as nothing can top the original. That seems to be the common theme in each (maybe not so much part four), but revisiting this one so soon after seeing the 5th and most recent film, the similarities in reasonings for becoming a psychopathic murderer left me feeling a bit disappointed in the direction the franchise has taken. A lot of this, especially regarding this film, can have the blame placed upon the script leaking on to the internet, revealing the identity of the killers, causing extensive and last-minute re-writes. Interestingly, there were four killers originally, but all this had to be changed to keep the suspense and surprise of the final killer reveal. Despite whatever flaws the film has, it’s one of the better ones in the franchise, and great to get to revisit after all this time.
As much as I admire a lot of things that Paramount has done over the past couple years in terms of physical releases, there is a lot I strongly question as well. Much like the Star Trek 1-4 original films being released in a 4k set, then releasing all 6 in 4k just a year later, not releasing the entire Scream franchise in 4k just doesn’t make sense, and if we have to wait for anniversaries for each one, it could take a while. One can probably assume that they will eventually come, then a giant box set to tempt people to buy them all over again. Despite the marketing techniques, it honestly is good to get the 2nd film out on 4k to go along with the first, especially in the collectible steelbook.
Fans of the franchise don’t need me telling them why they should pick up this 4k release, so let’s get into the technical details.
Video
Scream 2 is presented in 2160p 4k Ultra High Definition Widescreen featuring Dolby Vision and HDR10. The dynamic metadata of the Dolby Vision ensures that each sequence is calibrated to look its absolute best. Colors are rich, vibrant and lifelike, with deep darks that make the colors pop. The film looks excellent in terms of clarity, and film grain is kept consistent and not reduced in any way that I can tell, and looks as natural as it did during its original release.
Audio
The audio is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. This track is the same as previous released Blu-ray, so if you were expecting an equally impressive fully immersive Atmos track, you’ll be disappointed. Despite that, this track does sound quite good. Dialogue is clear and concise, with a very deep and full range of atmospheric sounds/noises, as well as a nice sounding score that includes some pretty good 90s music.
Special Features
Another disappointment for those hoping for something new. These extras are all transferred from the original Blu-ray release. However, the steelbook packaging makes it a special feature in itself for those obsessed steelbook collectors out there, and this one looks really nice.
Additionally, unlike the first Scream 4k steelbook, this one comes with the Blu-ray disc.
- Audio Commentary by Director Wes Craven, Producer Marianne Maddalena and Editor Patrick Lussier
- Outtakes
- Deleted Scenes
- Theatrical Trailer
- TV Spots
- Music Videos
- Featurette
This one isn’t a question of do you want Scream 2 in 4k, it’s about the inevitable box set that will surely come out at some future date that includes them all. For those who want to play it safe and pick up a really nice steelbook in the process, you can’t lose on Paramount’s release of Scream 2 for it’s 25th anniversary.
