Tales from the Hood 2 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.0

Tales from the Hood 2 Blu-ray Movie Review

"Welcome to hell!"

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown December 2, 2023

What the what? Why did no one tell me Tales from the Hood 2 was such devilishly delightful fun? Never judge a Blu-ray by its cover I suppose, and never judge a premise by its cheesier elements. And the sequel does love its cheese, but with so much enthusiasm and readily eager ease that it only makes the result that much more entertaining. Funny even. Like, laugh out loud funny, which is the last thing I expected from a direct-to-video anthology flick. (Especially after my last Universal DTV outing was... less than enjoyable.) Oh, it's not that good. It's pretty bad at times, actually. But if you shut off your brain and take it on its own terms, you can still have a low-budget blast with its hit-or-miss horror comedy. So sit back, sink in and prepare your souls for not one but five (sometimes hit or miss) short tales of racially charged, satirical macabre brimming with some diabolical twists and turns.

Official synopsis: Horror is back in the hood! The sequel to the ground-breaking original film 'Tales from the Hood' (1995) reunites executive producer Spike Lee and writers/directors/producers Rusty Cundieff and Darin Scott for an all-new gripping, horrifying and oftentimes hilarious anthology. Keith David stars as Mr. Simms, here to tell bloodcurdling stories of lust, greed, pride and politics through tales full of demonic dolls, possessed psychics, vengeful vixens and historical ghosts. Mr. Simms's haunting stories will make you laugh... while you scream. The sequel stars Jay Huguley, Alexandria DeBerry, Bryan Batt, Greg Tarzan Davis, Kendrick Cross, Wayne Dehart and many more.

Stepping in for Clarence Williams III (who first played the series' devious Crypt Keeper-esque host, Mr. Simms, in the 1995 original), Keith David has never grinned so wide, wild and wicked a grin. He stars in the film's bookended two-parter, "Robo Hell", set in a not-so-distant future in which prison warden Dumass Beach (Bill Martin Williams) is introducing a prototype law enforcement droid dubbed the Robo-Patriot, a killer bot programmed to utilize Black Lives Matter news feeds and body-cam footage to identify criminals in a crowd. (You can guess where that one's going.) That's when Mr. Simms steps up and, for reasons thinly explained, begins to tell the first of four campfire horror stories.

"Good Golly" is first, introducing Zoe (Jasmine Akakpo) and her white friends, siblings Philip (Andy Cohen) and Audrey (Alexandria DeBerry); a trio who stumble upon The Museum of Negrosity and venture inside. Racist relics adorn the museum, which is overseen by an aging curator (Lou Beatty Jr.) tasked with keeping watch over some truly dangerous racist historical artifacts (ahem, propaganda). But when the three friends later break into the museum to steal an evil doll, they unleash the Golliwog, among other possessed toys. Gore ensues and a stomach-churning fate awaits the friends' ringleader.

Next, Mr. Simms tells Dumass the tale of "The Medium", wherein a former pimp named Cliff (Creighton Thomas) finds himself at the vengeful end of three thieves out for a quick and easy payday: Brian (Martin Bats Bradford), Booze (Kedrick Brown) and Gore (Chad L. Chambers). But when things don't go as planned, the partners-in-crime kidnap a TV psychic (Bryan Batt) and his girlfriend (Sandra Gutierrez), hoping for an even bigger score. Things go awry again, though, this time with disastrous supernatural consequences that summon spirits of justice from the underworld.

Wrapping things up is twist on classic horror with "Date Night", where two sleazy would-be pornographers (Alexander Biglane and Greg Tarzan Davis) drug a pair of girls (Alexandria Ponce and Cat Limket) with plans to film all sorts of nastiness while they're unconscious, and "The Sacrifice", a potentially offensive short featuring Emmett Till (Christopher Paul Horne) visiting a pregnant white woman (Jillian Batherson) in her dreams, while the unborn baby's black father, councilman Henry Bradley (Kendrick Cross), who is actively supporting a Republican political candidate (Cotton Yancey, dressed at one point as, I kid you not, Colonel Sanders). And it only gets even more topical, slamming on hot button after hot button, once Emmett brings with him a variety of historic black victims of white violence.

How much of it works? All of it if you're in on the joke, dig the satire and are along for the ride, wherever it swerves. But realistically "Good Golly" and "The Medium" are the best of the bunch; "Date Night" is predictable and lame; "The Sacrifice" is convoluted and too long; and the "Robo Hell" bookends are a blast... if you can swallow some wonky CG robo-chases and cartoonish devilry. All together, though, it's merely a decent anthology that peaks too early and falls too far. The performances are a blast, as over the top as they go, and the practical FX are much more effective than the CG monstrosities that pop up on occasion. In the end, the creepy dolls of "Good Golly" represent the best of the bunch, leaving the full film to struggle with what direct-to-video scares remain.

Tales from the Hood 2 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Razor sharp but as digital as digital gets, Universal's terrific 1080p/AVC-encoded video presentation doesn't feature a speck of grain or an ounce of cinematic flair, relying instead on cable TV-like production values with a high gloss sheen. Detail is excellent, and the first thing you'll notice right out of the gate. Edge definition will slice a hair in two, and you'll see every fiber of the hair as it does. Textures are crisp and refined, delineation is revealing, and contrast keeps it all popping off the screen with vivid, 21st century digitally filmed clarity. Colors are beautiful too, with plenty of primary power and vibrancy to make even the gnarliest of visuals that much more striking. Blood splatters across the screen in striking swaths of bright, gummy reds, black levels are deep and inky, and fleshtones are suitably warm and sensual. There is a bit of digital noise when lighting lowers, and a touch of banding here and there if you keep your eyes peeled. But none of it amounts to anything significant. Tales from the Hood 2 looks great.

Tales from the Hood 2 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Universal's Tales from the Hood 2 DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is par for the direct-to-video horror course. Low-end output is withdrawn until it pounces, adding weighty thunks to kill shots, whip strikes, possession roars and cleaver drops. Rear speaker activity is light for the bulk of each story, until the horror ramps up and chaos swirls. Directional effects are at least convincing throughout, and channel pans are slick enough to sneak right up on ya. Dialogue is precise, distinct and grounded in the mix as well, without anything in the way of issues to report. It's all rather two-dimensional and too often a front-heavy affair, but it does a good job with the sound design it has to work with.

Tales from the Hood 2 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Blu-ray release of Tales from the Hood 2 doesn't include any special features.

Tales from the Hood 2 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Tales from the Hood 2 is a fun, silly but ultimately lesser direct-to-video sequel to a higher budgeted, theatrically released fan-favorite horror anthology flick from 1995. You'll have a good laugh or two (or more), but it doesn't offer much else other than Keith David, who's the real standout here. Fortunately, Universal's Blu-ray release features a terrific video presentation and a strong DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track. There aren't any extras but so it goes with most DTV cash-ins. For series fans only.