Saw II 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.0

Saw II 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman November 21, 2025

Maybe just a little hilariously, this is now the second time I get to joke, Nothing screams the holiday season like the Saw franchise, am I right? (At least if the emphasis is on screaming.) That is in fact exactly how I began my Saw: The Ultimate Collection 4K Blu-ray review three years ago almost to the day when I was tasked with reviewing an extravagantly packaged release from Australia's Via Vision Entertainment that may have made some fan an extremely gruesome gift. Despite that "4K" in its title, only Jigsaw and Spiral were offered in that format (the rest were 1080 presentations). Lionsgate has partnered with Amazon for three exclusive SteelBooks presenting the second, third and fourth films in the series with both 1080 and 4K presentations, though rather interestingly with different cuts offered on the 1080 and 4K discs.

As mentioned above, Saw III has had previous 1080 releases. Martin Liebman's Saw II Blu-ray review of Lionsgate's original 1080 release provides plot information, a list of supplements and Marty's reaction to the technical presentation. (That 1080 disc is so old it's number 136 in our database!) My own Saw II Blu-ray review of the Australian edition offers a bit more information as well.

Saw II 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: This is an interesting combo format release from Lionsgate in that the 1080 presentation is in 1.78:1 and offers the Unrated Cut (1:34:29), whereas the 4K disc is in 1.85:1 and offers the Theatrical Cut (1:33:01). Screenshots 1 through 5 are from the 1080 disc, since per my usual verbiage 1080 screenshots offer a more accurate account of the palette in particular than screenshots taken directly from the 4K disc and then downscaled to 1080 and SDR. That said, due to the difference in aspect ratio and work done on the Theatrical Cut, I've included two screenshots in positions 6 and 7 directly from the 4K disc.

Saw II is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in 1.85:1. The included 1080 disc offers an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1 (fans will know the original Lionsgate release and the Australian release had "quaint" video and audio codecs). This is a substantial upgrade, and the 4K UHD's Dolby Vision / HDR grades noticeably enhance the often lurid colors that are offered throughout. One of the newly produced supplements offers Darren Lynn Bousman in a mastering suite overtly discussing grading choices, and so in a way this is "not your father's Saw II", though that said, I would say the broad outlines of the palette are maintained here, as can be seen by comparing the screenshots in this review with some of the screenshots in the older reviews. Where Bousman is shown making changes it can tend to be in terms of where highlights are either upped or downed, typically because he wants to draw attention to certain areas of the frame where in older versions things may have been more uniform, so to speak. This may annoy purists, but even after watching the supplement, I didn't find changes that were so huge they drew attention to themselves. More diehard fans of this franchise may have varying mileage in that regard. With an acceptance that part of the intentional aesthetic of this series is its almost 16mm grittiness, grain is, yes, very heavy (especially in 4K), but actually resolves organically. Some darker moments may not have huge improvements in shadow definition, which might be jokingly thought of as a good thing considering what's going on some of the time.

Saw II 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

While the 1080 disc in this package upgrades the older 1080 codec to Dolby TrueHD 5.1, what will probably excite franchise fans the most is the new Dolby Atmos track on the 4K UHD disc. It is quite impressive a lot of the time, with a surprising amount of immersion even in the most claustrophobic environments, which of course this entire franchise tends to specialize in. Some of the horrifying sound effects accompanying various immolations are audibly directional. Scoring tends to be widely splayed around the side and rear channels. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.

Saw II 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Note: Both the 4K and 1080 discs in this package sport the same slate of supplements.

• New Blood: Darren Lynn Bousman Looks Back (HD; 12:15) offers the co-writer and director's thoughts.


• Appreciating Life: Tobin Bell on Saw II (HD; 12:46) features the actor in a new interview.


• Establishing Shot with Darren Lynn Bousman (HD; 6:52) looks at some really interesting contextual information from Bousman and his efforts in tweaking things with the technology available to him now.


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 1:15)


• Legacy Special Features

Audio Commentary with Director Darren Lynn Bousman, Actors Donny Wahlberg and Beverly Mitchell




Audio Commentary with Director Darren Lynn Bousman, Production Designer David Hackl and Editor Kevin Greutert




Audio Commentary with Executive Producer James Wan and Writer / Executive Producer Leigh Whannel




The Scott Tibbs Documentary (HD; 15:57)




The Story Behind the Story (HD; 3:43)




Gregg Hoffman: In Memoriam (HD; 6:32)




Bits and Pieces: The Props of Saw II (HD; 4:35)




Zombie: A Short Student Film by Darren Lynn Bousman (HD; 2:14)

This Amazon exclusive is packaged in a SteelBook intentionally designed to be part of a "set" with its two siblings. The front panel offers a striking version of Tobin Bell as a disassembled jigsaw puzzle, with the back panel offering two syringes. The interior panels offer an illustration of even more "adventures" with syringes. A Mylar O ring interestingly "masks" Bell's image in more than one way on the front, and offers the typical synopsis and credits on the back. A digital copy is also enclosed.

Saw II 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As is probably clear to anyone who has read my reviews of previous releases of the various Saw films, this franchise is simply not my cup of horror tea. That said, this franchise obviously has a huge and devoted fan base, and folks in that particular demographic should be generally very well pleased with both the technical presentation and the supplements offered, including the evocative SteelBook packaging.