Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

The ABCs of Death 2 Blu-ray Movie Review

They're B-a-a-c-c-k-k!

Reviewed by Michael Reuben February 4, 2015

In the breathless language of PR:

In 2013 the most ambitious anthology ever created was released to an unsuspecting public. It divided audiences. Some claimed it was a much needed adrenaline shot to the heart of horror. Many others claimed it was reprehensible and vile.

After its release on home-video and especially Netflix, the film evolved into the equivalent of a cinematic boogeyman with teenagers daring each other via social media to watch the film.

In 2014 it's happening all over again.

In more realistic terms, producers Ant Timson (who also produced Housebound) and Tim League (CEO of Drafthouse) have returned with a second anthology of horror shorts organized alphabetically. As with their first collection, reviewed here by Casey Broadwater, twenty-six directors (or, in some cases, directing teams) were recruited from around the world, each given a small budget, assigned a letter of the alphabet and allowed a running time of around three minutes. The rest was up to them.

The results are wildly erratic, with only one constant: someone always dies. Some shorts tell complete stories; others leave you wondering what the hell you just saw; some are animated; some drip with gore while others feature full frontal nudity. A few of the directors are well-known, but most are up-and-coming. The best way to watch ABCs 2 is simply to put it on and let it wash over you. Twenty-six shorts may sound like a lot, but it's amazing how fast they go by. This is horror for the ADD generation. There's no time to get bored.

A complete listing by letter and director(s) is provided below.

A Is for Amateur: An aspiring hitman plans the perfect hit in his movie-addled imagination. Reality is far different. Witty and gross. Directed by E. L. Katz (Cheap Thrills).

B Is for Badger: An imperious journalist is shooting a report on how a nuclear plant has decimated the local English countryside, killing off the wild badger population. Nature has a comment for the record. For all its lengthy setup, this is really an elaborate joke with a killer punchline. Directed by Julian Barratt (who starred in A Field in England).

C Is for Capital Punishment: A cautionary tale about vigilante justice. Messy and heavy-handed, but effective. Directed by Julian Gilbey (A Lonely Place to Die).

D Is for Deloused: This stop-motion animated short involves bugs and revenge, but it plays like a bad dream; indeed, the director was inspired by a childhood fever dream. A Freudian field day, but not much of a story. Directed by Robert Morgan.

E Is for Equilibrium: Two male castaways on a desert island discover a third washed up on the beach: a woman. Establishing a new balance among the three proves challenging. The ending is perhaps too flippant, but the story is ingeniously told without dialogue. Directed by Alejandro Brugués (Juan of the Dead).

F Is for Falling: A female Israeli paratrooper is hanging from a tree in which her chute is entangled. An Arab boy finds her, and she agrees to become his prisoner, if he will just cut her down. It's a reasonable bargain, but it doesn't work. Sadness pervades this segment, which distinguishes it from any other short in the collection. Directed by Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushado (Big Bad Wolves).

G Is for Grandad: A young man resents his grandfather for clinging to his life and wealth, and the grandfather resents the young man for being young. What starts as humor ends in grotesquerie. Directed by Jim Hosking.

H Is for Head Games: In this surreal cartoon, a simple kiss transforms into a deadly battle between the sexes, fought entirely face to face. The animation is inventive and inspired. Directed by Bill Plympton.

I Is for Invincible: In a nod to a certain style of Mexican horror comedy, a family tries to kill their 120-year-old mother for her property. Unfortunately, she's a witch who cannot die, even though she says she wants to, unless one of her heirs accepts the curse of eternal life along with the inheritance. This segment might be considered gory, if it weren't so over-the-top. Directed by Erik Matti.

J Is for Jesus: A wealthy and traditional Brazilian father, who is shocked to discover that his son is gay, engages a priest and a violent "deprogrammer" to cast out the demon of homosexuality. So extreme is the suffering inflicted on the son that heaven intervenes in an unlikely form. Guaranteed to offend some viewers. Directed by Dennison Ramalho.

K Is for Knell: A woman witnesses an unexplained phenomenon that may signal the End of Days or possibly an alien invasion. An intriguing premise that ends just when it seems to be getting started. Directed by Kristina Buozyte and Bruno Samper.

L Is for Legacy: In Africa, tribesmen prepare to perform a ritual sacrifice, but one of them has second thoughts. At least, I think that's what happens, because the dialogue is sketchy. In the aftermath, a monster appears. Directed by Lancelot Odawa Imasuen.

M Is for Masticate: This is a clever and stylish take on the zombie/cannibalism genre, shot almost entirely in extreme slow motion, except for the end, which serves as a parting shot and a kind of comic explanation for all the mayhem. Directed by Robert Boocheck.

N Is for Nexus: In a triumph of editing, Halloween, a date between Frankenstein and his bride, a manic taxi ride through Manhattan and too much texting all intersect in tragedy. As a New Yorker, I was terrified, because it all seemed perfectly believeable. Directed by Larry Fessenden (Wendigo).

O Is for Ochlocracy (mob rule): What would happen if someone invented a drug to cure zombie-ism? How would former zombies returned to their normal state regard fellow citizens who had so recently been hunting them? This segment explores one possibility by way of a courtroom proceeding. Directed by Hajime Ohata.

P Is for P-P-P-P SCARY!: For me, this qualifies as the weirdest of the bunch. It's in black-and-white and is obviously meant as a homage to early comedies, but it doesn't feel like a throwback. Three men in prison uniforms and long fake noses wander through an empty space that looks like the set from a Samuel Beckett play. All of them stutter. They encounter a man in a rocking chair holding a baby. He does terrible things to them. Directed by Todd Rohal.

Q Is for Questionnaire: This story has a simple moral: Don't take a random intelligence test offered by an attractive woman at a sidewalk booth. You never know what they may be screening you for. Directed by Rodney Ascher (Room 237).

R Is for Roulette: The roulette of the title is, of course, Russian roulette, and this is one of the most tensely directed renditions I have seen in a long time. Who are the three players and why are they playing? Just as we're about to find out, the segment ends. Directed by Marven Kren.

S Is for Split: This nasty little tale begins with a man on a business trip abroad calling his wife to check in. Suddenly he is horrified to hear a home invasion in progress. He calls the local police, but is it too late? The ending is straight out of O. Henry. Directed by Juan Martinez Moreno.

T Is for Torture Porn: A model auditioning for a role in what appears to be a sado-masochistic skin flick has a big surprise for the crew filming her audition. Directed by Jen and Sylvia Soska (American Mary).

U Is for Utopia: In a brilliant parody, the world and everyone in it looks as glossy and perfect as a high-fashion magazine ad. Into its midst clomps an ordinary-looking guy who is overweight, balding and clumsy. We very quickly discover how this elegant domain maintains its perfection. Directed by Vincenzo Natali (Cube and Splice).

V Is for Vacation: Here's a tip: While taking a "guys only" vacation, do not video chat with your girlfriend so that you can show her the view from your terrace. You may not be able to control what else slips into view, and terrible consequences may result. Directed by Jerome Sable (Stage Fright).

W Is for Wish: Be careful what you wish for, as two kids successfully wish themselves into Champions of Zorb, the violent fantasy world of their favorite action hero. Unfortunately, this segment ends just as it's getting really interesting. Directed by Steven Kostanski.

X Is for Xylophone: What does a filmmaker do if he's unlucky enough to be stuck with the letter "x"? This disgusting tale takes every parent's worst nightmare about leaving their child with a babysitter and pushes it to unimaginable extremes. The kid's favorite toy is, naturally, a xylophone. Directed by Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo.

Y Is for Youth: Youth is a curse, when your mother and stepfather are so busy fighting that they ignore and mistreat you. In this elaborate revenge fantasy, part live-action, part stop-motion, a young Japanese girl plots her revenge with great inventiveness. Directed by Soichi Umezawa.

Z Is for Zygote: It's hard to know whether to laugh or vomit at the film's concluding segment, in which a woman manages to prevent herself from giving birth for thirteen years. During that time, she "raises" the child inside her to the point where they converse and develop a relationship. Eventually, though, there isn't enough room for both of them. The most extreme case of mother-child amalgamation since Norman Bates. Directed by Chris Nash.

Stay after the credits for a "button" that isn't exactly death-related but fits with the film's generally sick sense of humor.

The ABCs of Death 2 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Each segment had its own cinematographer, and different cameras were used by each filmmaker, but all of them appear to have been shot digitally. (Whenever a camera is visible in any of the "making of" extras, it's a digital unit.) As with the first installment of The ABCs of Death, the quality and texture of the image on Magnolia Home Entertainment's 1080p, AVC-encoded Blu-ray varies widely, according to the shooting style and visual design. However, since the disc was almost certainly sourced directly from digital files, these variations are no doubt inherent in the source. Some segments, which were shot on professional-level equipment like the Red system, look spiffy, sharp and detailed. Others are somewhat less so, but even the "found video" style of a segment like "V Is for Vacation" looks remarkably clean and clear compared to the digital video captures of yesteryear. Especially given the tight budgets and the do-it-yourself spirit of the ABCs project, one should probably cut the filmmakers some slack. It's a tribute to their efforts that so many of the segments look as good as they do.

Minor video noise intrudes occasionally, and some light banding appears momentarily here and there. Again, all of this may be source-related. The average bitrate clocks in at 24.47 Mbps, which is generally adequate for digitally originated material.

The ABCs of Death 2 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The soundtrack is encoded in lossless DTS-HD MA 5.1, and the sonic character varies widely from short to short. Given the limited budget for each segment, the mixes are not especially elaborate, although for the most part they sound professional, with much of the sound spread across the front soundstage. A variety of musical styles can be heard in the scoring. The dialogue is in English, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Hebrew and Arabic. (The disc defaults to English subtitles for all non-English languages.) The dynamic range is broad and the bass extension is generally deep, except in situations where the sound design is aiming for something different, e.g., "W Is for Wish", part of which uses a retro TV commercial style.

The ABCs of Death 2 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Filmmaker Commentary: Timson and League introduce the individual filmmakers, including Wolfgang Matzl, who directed the introduction, closing credits and interstitials. A few of the directors were unavailable, so that Timson and League must fill in for them. Most of the filmmakers are serious, but a few are utterly facetious, notably Julian Barrett, who begins by pronouncing himself and all the actors to have died shortly after filming and describes how the production spent millions on digital effects. Special mention goes to Kristina Buozyte and Bruno Samper for interrupting their commentary on "K Is for Knell" with an otherworldly reading of Edgar Allen Poe's poem "The Bells" that sounds like an alien broadcast; it could easily have been an alternate soundtrack to their segment.



• A Is for Amateur: Making Of (1080i; 1.78:1; 5:01). Hosted by producer Don Lee, this short was shot on the air duct set.



• C Is for Capital Punishment: Production Stills Gallery (1080p).



• D Is for Deloused
• Meet the Puppets (1080p; 1.78:1; 2:08): They're in a drawer.
• Production Stills Photo Gallery (1080p).



• E Is for Equilibrium
• Behind the Scenes (1080i; 1.78:1; 2:36): In Spanish, with optional English subtitles.
• Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).



• F Is for Falling: Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).



• I Is for Invincible: Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).



• J Is for Jesus: Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).



• L Is for Legacy
• Behind the Scenes (1080p; 1.78:1; 3:35): Making up the monster.
• Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).



• N Is for Nexus
• Making of: Day One of Twelve (1080p; 1.78:1; 3:59): Director Fessenden at work.
• On the Set Photo Gallery (1080p).



• O Is for Ochlocracy: Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).



• Q Is for Questionnaire
• Make-Up & FX: Brain (480i; 1.33:1; 0:19).
• Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).
• Questionnaire Storyboards (1080p).



• R Is for Roulette: Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).



• S Is for Split
• Behind the Scenes (1080i; 1.78:1; 5:03): Everything from stunts to makeup effects.
• Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).



• T Is for Torture Porn
• Making Of (1080i; 1.78:1; 28:44): Trust the Soska twins to make a behind-the-scenes that's eight or nine times the length of their segment. Jen holds the camera, while Sylvia gives a tour of the production offices. Much attention is lavished on the anatomical prosthetics.
• Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).



• U Is for Utopia
• Behind the Scenes (1080p; 1.78:1; 9:11): On location at Vaughan City Hall in Ontario.
• Audition (1080p; 1.78:1; 1:50): James McDougall's audition tape for the "average guy" part.
• Utopia Storyboards (1080p).
• Production Stills Photo Gallery (1080p).



• V Is for Vacation: Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).



• W Is for Wish
• Making Of (1080p; 1.78:1; 5:16).
• Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p)



• Y Is for Youth
• Making Of (1080p; 1.78:1; 19:35): The painstaking work behind this segment's practical effects. In Japanese with English subtitles.
• Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (1080p).
• Youth Storyboards (1080p).



• Z Is for Zygote: The 55th Trimester (720p; 1.78:1; 6:06): Testing the elaborate prosthetic body.



• AXS TV: A Look at The ABCs of Death 2 (1080p; 1.78:1; 2:23): This is somewhat different from the typical AXS TV promo, because it departs from the usual format of expanding the film's trailer with interview segments. It focuses on directors Robert Boocheck (segment "M"), E.L. Katz (segment "A") and Alejandro Brugués (segment "E"), who briefly discuss their specific chapters.



• Also from Magnolia Home Entertainment: The disc includes trailers for V/H/S: Viral, Honeymoon and White Bird in a Blizzard, as well as a promo for AXS TV. These also play at startup, where they can be skipped with the chapter forward button.



• BD-Live: As of this writing, attempting to access BD-Live gave the message "Check back later for updates".

The ABCs of Death 2 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

At the conclusion of the multi-part commentary, Timson and League ask each other whether they're prepared to do a third installment of The ABCs of Death, but the end credits of this second installment seem to leave no doubt that a third anthology will follow either this year or next. The formula is almost impossible to resist. Production costs are cheap, since the individual films are shot with non-union labor, much of it student or volunteer, and there's no shortage of aspiring filmmakers eager for the exposure that participation in the ABCs franchise can provide. From a viewer's perspective, the films are a no-risk proposition, since you don't have to invest much time in a story you don't like; another one will come along in just a few minutes. Despite some segments that fall flat or don't quite pay off, there's enough in ABCs 2 to make it a worthwhile evening's entertainment. Recommended.