Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		0.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

Meg 2: The Trench 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Shut up, Meg.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III October 22, 2023

Who would win: a deadly species of shark, one of the largest and most powerful predators to have ever lived... or one bald boi? That's the question asked again in Meg 2: The Trench, a sequel that very few people probably asked for but we got anyway. The original 2018 film wasn't exactly a critical darling (the linked 4K review by Michael Reuben makes mention of our site's own split opinions) but it fared well at the box office... and as harmlessly fun as this copy of a copy of Jaws was, its flagrant pacing problems almost felt like we already got a sequel during the third act.

But money equals more movies, so I guess no one was surprised when Meg 2 splashed down in theaters last summer and made another decent run at the box office. It's actually based on the second entry in the Meg book series by sci-fi author Steve Alten and, though I'm not here for a novel-to-film comparison (and neither are you), that's just something we have to say in movie reviews by law. As such, its story picks up several years after the events of the first film, with one major character -- oceanographer Suyin Zhang, who's the daughter of late researcher Dr. Minway Zhang, mother to young Meiying, and former wife of explorer Jonas Taylor (Jason Statham) -- killed off-screen in the interim.

Almost everyone else returns (with a few newcomers) and they follow the lead of Jonas, who continues his crusade against environmental crimes alongside a crew that includes operations manager Mac (Cliff Curtis) engineer DJ (Page Kennedy), tech worker Jess (Skyler Samuels), and others. They now work for Suyin's brother and new company owner Jiuming Zhang (Wu Jing), with primary funding provided by investor Dr. Hillary Driscoll (Sienna Guillory). Then there's young Meiying (Sophia Cai), who's now a precocious 14 year-old scientist-in-training and provides a renewed but still unsteady father-daughter dynamic when she stows away on their latest deep-sea exploration of the Mariana Trench, from which the original "Meg" surfaced. The crew notices strange behavior from semi-tame Haiqi, a female megalodon discovered as a pup and trained by Jiuming (who obviously didn't see Jurassic Park); she escapes captivity and goes further below, where two undiscovered megalodons -- including one of record size -- are waiting. Yet perhaps an even greater threat arrives when the crew discovers an illegal mining expedition led by the mercenary Montes (Sergio Peris Mencheta), who's secretly working with someone inside Jiuming's company to sabotage their mission.

Let's cut to the chase here: Meg 2 isn't high art, and it's just as needlessly complex as the first film with paper-thin "bad guys". Even so, there's a necessary layer of cheesy self-awareness that keeps the plot fun, lightweight, and linear as we follow the crew along their underwater journey to an extended stay inside a secret base and a tropical island where raging megalodons and a new surprise guest terrorize another group of unsuspecting tourists during a third act that goes into full-tilt mode and includes a jet-ski and exploding spears. It's once again an international production and features several prominent Chinese characters, which my optimistic side calls a nice "flavor boost" but my pessimistic side sees as mandatory appeasement of the foreign market. Ultimately it's a frivolous, forgettable ride that borrows too much from previous entries in this surprisingly deep subgenre, from the aforementioned Jaws to guilty pleasures like Deep Blue Sea and even Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus. (Oops... so much for the surprise guest.)

Even so, I've got a sizable soft spot for underwater action and that alone makes Meg 2 worth a once-over. It's even light enough to enjoy without being overly familiar with the first film, although character dynamics and relationships, such as they are, will be stronger with a fresh watch of the 2018 original. It's one of those "if you've made it this far, you probably might as well" movies... but since this franchise already started in "borderline ridiculous" territory (think Die Hard 4), I can't see where another installment might take us. (I'm guessing eighteen year-old Meiying in the lead with aging Jonas on communications duty.) For now, Warner Bros. offers Meg 2 on 4K and Blu-ray editions (no 3D this time, sadly), both of which offer proportionately solid A/V presentations and very limited bonus features.

Meg 2: The Trench 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

NOTE: These screenshots are sourced the Blu-ray edition, available separately and reviewed here.

Meg 2 offers the usual all-around upgrades you'll find on a WB 4K disc in that most of its fundamental benefits arrive more in the form of color value and better encoding than a huge jump in detail. Both plusses are occasionally crucial during the film's lengthy underwater sequences, which can unsurprisingly look somewhat murky and muddled on Blu-ray in direct comparison. And while select passages still appear slightly cloudy with less-than-perfect fine detail, this is an overall more refined and deliberate presentation that boasts greater depth, contrast, and color variance. Take, for example, an unplanned 3km underwater walk where the crew encounters rare plant species who light the background with bioluminescence; though attractive enough on the Blu-ray's 1080p presentation with vivid highlights, this impact of 4K/HDR gives their light a much more convincingly smooth and organic appearance. The same holds true for above-ground footage, from dark interiors lit mostly by computer displays to the sun-soaked exterior of Fun Island -- yes, "Fun Island" -- and other tropical locales that look lush and inviting. (Except for those deadly creatures.)

From start to finish, it's a tack-sharp presentation that rarely falters, with my only mild complaint being that a few examples of less-than-optimal CGI don't exactly blend well with their surroundings and, surprise surprising, actually show fewer immediately seams on the Blu-ray. Yet it's a fair trade-off for 4K's numerous benefits which also extend to its tighter encoding that ensures no real signs of banding, macro blocking, or other compression artifacts.

Meg 2: The Trench 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Meg 2's full-bodied Dolby Atmos mix features all the swirling activity, visceral thrills, and low frequency response you might expect from a recent big-budget production of this type, where fierce underwater action, screaming crowds, and claustrophobic interiors create a nice sonic range than keeps things aurally interesting from start to finish. Explosions below and above sea level carry different but equally impressive levels of weight, discrete activity is ample, the height channels are put to good use in different locals, and the original score blends in nicely while leaving plenty of room for dialogue and background effects. In short, it doesn't exactly break new ground but what's here has a true big-screen size and presence that amplifies the action and suspense at key moments. Turn it up and enjoy.

Optional subtitles, including English (SDH), are included during the main feature and all extras listed below.

Meg 2: The Trench 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release ships in a standard keepcase with poster-themed cover artwork, a matching slipcover, and a Digital Copy redemption code. Bonus features are limited to just two brief behind-the-scenes featurettes.

• The Making of Meg 2: The Trench (13:02) - This short promotional-style piece offers a quick overview of the production with clips of on-set footage and interview segments featuring director Ben Wheatley, producer Belle Avery, producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, SFX supervisor Domonic Tuohy, production designer Chris Lowe, and actors actor Felix Mayr, Skyler Samuels, Kiran Sonia Sawar, Cliff Curtis, Wu Jing, Page Kennedy, Sophia Kai, Melissanthi Mahut, and Whoopie van Raam. (Basically, everyone except Jason Statham.)

• Up From the Depths: Even More Beasts (9:40) - This similar behind-the-scenes piece features concept artwork, more on-set footage, and many of the same participants (as well as a few new ones) that collectively shed some light on the brand-new creatures and action set-pieces conceived for this sequel.

Meg 2: The Trench 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

New director Ben Wheatley attempts to infuse Meg 2: The Trench with a fresh perspective and style... but this sequel can't help but feel a bit overworked and it relies on too many tropes and clichés from earlier genre entries, including the first film. Even so, this is a mostly lightweight adventure and has its moments, so I'm betting that anyone with a soft spot for the original will enjoy at least a once-over. Warner Bros.' 4K and Blu-ray editions offer mostly solid A/V merits (the latter wins out, obviously), but their surface-level bonus features leave much to be desired.