The Hills Have Eyes: Part 2 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		2.5

The Hills Have Eyes: Part 2 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman October 3, 2019

Where’s Ewan Cant when you really need him? Who?, you may well be asking, and for an answer I’d refer you to our recently published The Prey Blu-ray review, where I mention how a superfan (who is/was probably not so coincidentally also either now or in the past part of the Arrow Video team) named Ewan Cant is all over the supplements on that release, touting it as an undiscovered gem in the annals of slasher cinema. It seems like The Hills Have Eyes Part 2 has no such champions, at least not to the degree that Cant offers, with this disc’s commentary track by The Hysteria Continues repeatedly mentioning how awful a lot of people think the film is (even if the commentators don’t necessarily agree), and with a number of supplements offering cast and crew lamenting at least some aspects of the film in passing, albeit at times within the context of what "might have been" had a larger budget been forthcoming or if Wes Craven hadn't felt like he was under the gun to come up with another hit.

The Hills Have Eyes Part 2 (and/or Part II depending on your preference) had a previous Blu-ray release several years ago from Kino Lorber. For those wanting a plot recap, I refer you to my colleague Casey Broadwater's The Hills Have Eyes: Part 2 Blu-ray review of that edition. Casey's review is also a good resource for screenshot comparisons. I evidently actually "like" the film (a relatively term) comparatively at least a little more than Casey, and my score reflects that opinion.

The Hills Have Eyes: Part 2 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Hills Have Eyes Part 2 is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow's insert booklet contains the following information on the restoration:

The Hills Have Eyes Part II has been exclusively restored by Arrow Films and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 with mono audio.

An original 35mm dupe negative element was scanned in 2K resolution on a Scanity. The film was graded on Digital Vision's Nucoda Film Master and restored at R3Store Studios in London. The mono mix was remastered from the original magnetic reels at Pinewood Studios.

All masterials for this restoration were made available by Screenbound Pictures and Euro London Films.

Casey wasn't especially enthused about the Kino Lorber release, giving it kind of a middling score. One thing he didn't address specifically in his comments was the odd aspect ratio of that release (1.57:1), so for original aspect ratio junkies (and you know who[m] you are), this release will probably "automatically" be preferable. But there are other reasons to prefer this version as well, including a warmer and less yellow looking palette (to cite just one example, compare the color of the "red" jacket and helmet in screenshot 10 of this review with screenshot 8 of Casey's review, where things look positively orange, something you can pretty easily make out by comparing some other screenshots between the two releases). Detail levels are generally more precise looking throughout the Arrow presentation, and while grain can be a bit on the chunky side, especially during the numerous optical dissolves the film employs, I noticed no real compression issues. There are still some pretty noticeable deficits in shadow definition in this presentation, something that Casey also mentioned afflicted the Kino Lorber release, but (judging solely from screencaps, not always a safe gambit) things are definitely at least improved if not completely eliminated on this version. Some damage is still extant, including some fairly large scratches and a few other blemishes. There is a noticeable difference in clarity and thickness of grain between the "new" footage and some of the flashback material culled from the first film, with the flashback material looking a good deal grittier and less detailed at times.

The Hills Have Eyes: Part 2 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Asey was similarly unimpressed with the Kino Lorber release's audio merits, giving that aspect an even lower score than he did to the video element. Arrow provides a perfectly workmanlike LPCM Mono track for this release that (to my ears, anyway) had none of the distortion or brashness that Casey mentioned in his review. There are some mix issues at times, with a somewhat "forward" sound to score and effects, but my hunch is that is "baked in" material on a mono track. Fidelity struck me as fine, with good reproduction across all frequency ranges. There are some variances in audio quality between the "new" material and some of the flashback material, as with the video side of things as well.

The Hills Have Eyes: Part 2 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Blood, Sand and Fire: The Making of The Hills Have Eyes Part II (1080p; 31:16) is a really enjoyable featurette offering interviews with Peter Locke, Michael Berryman, Janus Blythe, Dominick Bruno, John Callas and Henry Manfredini.


• Still Gallery (1080p; 6:52)


• Original Trailer (1080p; 2:44) may delight some trivia fans for its now rare Thorn EMI masthead.


• Audio Commentary with The Hysteria Continues

Perhaps to compensate for what some fans may feel is a somewhat meager assortment of supplements on the actual disc, Arrow has packaged this release quite handsomely. The keepcase includes six promotional postcards, and in addition to the keepcase, the sturdy slipbox also houses a folded mini-poster and a pretty expansive booklet.

The Hills Have Eyes: Part 2 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As Casey mentioned in his review of the Kino Lorber release, even Wes Craven had to get paid now and then, and so a less than stellar effort like this is at least understandable if not completely excusable. As some of the supplements on this release get into, there were at least some noble intentions here, though it seems evident that Craven had perhaps a monkey of sorts on his back with an urge to prove he still had the "goods" in terms of providing a film on a restricted (restrictive?) budget that would turn a nice profit. The film here may, to quote a certain Rodney Dangerfield, "get no respect", even by some of the people associated with it, but Arrow has done another fantastic job in providing a cult item with improved video and audio and some very appealing supplements.