5.6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
Mutant great white sharks target surfers in Cape Town, South Africa in the vicious second installment of the "Shark Attack" saga.
Starring: Thorsten Kaye, Nikita Ager, Dan Metcalfe, Danny Keogh, Warrick GrierHorror | 100% |
Thriller | 31% |
Sci-Fi | 3% |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 2.0
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 2.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
'Shark Attack 2' is currently only available as part of a two-disc, eight-film 'Meg-A-Shark' collection from Echo Bridge. The set also includes 'Toxic Shark,' 'Shark in Venice,' 'Malibu Shark Attack,' 'Hammerhead,' 'Shark Attack,' 'Shark Attack 3: Megalodon,' and 'Shark Zone.'
The picture looks good, but there's a problem with it. More on that in a moment. Generally speaking, though, the film-sourced image appears to be in
very nice shape, maintaining a film-like aesthetic and holding to a light and complimentary grain structure. A few errant splotches and speckles
interfere but are never really dense or distracting enough to warrant more than a passing mention. Details fare well. Facial features are adequately
complex in close-up, and various environments -- from a boat on the ocean to park attraction locations -- are crisp and pleasantly revealing. Colors
enjoy a healthy depth and contrast that seems dialed down just a little to give the movie a lighter feel, but essential primaries pop with pleasing
definition and saturation. Black levels and skin tones are fine.
The problem is that the image occasionally slows down, with various scenes appearing to
go into some choppy slow-motion cadence while audio -- music, dialogue -- remains flowing at regular speed. There are several first-act timestamps to
share where this occurs: 8:54, 10:20, 11:00, 11:40, 15:50, 23:33, and so on...it got to the point that each instance wasn't worth writing down when it
became painfully apparent
that the problem would persist. It was replicated exactly at the same timestamps on a different player connected to a different television than the
primary review
setup, so it's not an issue with playback on a particular device. It all but ruins an otherwise strong viewing experience; the score would have been
around 3.5 had it not been for the jitters.
The 5.1 track is active and much more agreeable than the mess of a listen that was the Shark Attack presentation. Surrounds pick up a good deal of information, even if clarity and definition are not stellar. Music is appropriately loud and engaging, offering good foundational clarity but not much intimate detail. Action scenes don't have much to offer in terms of precision detail, but essential clarity is good and the effects are fine when paired with the aggressive music. There is also surprisingly good depth. Some ambient effects filter through the fronts and rears alike. Dialogue is clear and nicely detailed from the front-center position.
No extras are included.
Shark Attack 2 isn't bad for the genre and Echo Bridge's Blu-ray would rate highly were it not for the unfortunate jittery video presentation. It's difficult to recommend with such a fundamental flaw getting in the way of an otherwise good presentation.
(Still not reliable for this title)
1999
2002
2003
Collector's Edition
1996
2012
2012
2010
20th Anniversary Edition
1998
2012
1978
1999
Roger Corman's Cult Classics
1980
2006
2009
1957
Kino Cult #11
1977
1977
1988
Collector's Edition
1978
2013