The Reef 2: High Tide Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.5

The Reef 2: High Tide Blu-ray Movie Review

If At First You Don't Succeed . . .

Reviewed by Michael Reuben October 26, 2012

The 2006 film The Reef (a/k/a Shark Bait) was reportedly a flop even in Korea, home of its animation studio, primarily for the reasons identified by my colleague Jeffrey Kauffman in his Blu-ray review: namely, that the plot was an obvious mish- mash of elements from other, better films like Finding Nemo and The Little Mermaid. Despite some appealing elements, the CG animation wasn't sufficiently original or dazzling to overcome the limits of the hackneyed script, and the American distributor, The Weinstein Company, opted to go direct-to-video.

But no one ever let a little thing like failure stand in the way of a sequel; so here we are, six years later, with a sequel subtitled "High Tide". Information about release overseas wasn't readily available, but here in the U.S. the film has once again been sent direct-to-video, first as a Wal-Mart DVD exclusive last August, and now as a Blu-ray/DVD combo pack released through ARC Entertainment.

The remake is every bit as derivative as the original, but the script has been more tightly crafted and polished so that the cliches move along briskly. (And, for the young, they won't be cliches.) The animation benefits from advances in computing power and software development. Most of the voice cast is back, with a few key substitutions and some interesting additions. However, the biggest innovation of The Reef 2 is 3D, which isn't available to the home video audience, because ARC hasn't yet ventured into 3D Blu-ray. As the credits indicate, the film was shot in native digital 3D format. The end credits are accompanied by animation that was clearly designed for 3D display. But until such time as ARC (or another publisher) reissues the disc in 3D format, we'll just have to use our imaginations on how the film would look in three dimensions.

The reef has been a peaceful place since the valiant guppy, Pi (Drake Bell, replacing Freddie Prinze, Jr.), channeled the Force, er, the Power of the Sea to drive off the bullying shark, Troy (Donal Logue). Pi has settled down with his lady love, Cordelia (Busy Philipps, replacing Evan Rachel Wood), and they have a son, Junior (Frankie Jonas), who idolizes his father. Indeed, everyone treats Pi with a respect appropriate to the hero and savior of the reef. Pi himself has never forgotten how much he owes to the Yoda-like sea turtle, Nerissa (Rob Schneider, also voicing several additional characters), who trained him in the art of combat.

Meanwhile, Troy has been captured by a human scientific expedition that keeps him caged below water while it performs unspecified experiments involving what appear to be growth hormones and steroids. He's bigger and stronger. One day a small bottom feeder called Ronny (Jamie Kennedy) swims too close to the cage, and Troy reaches out a fin to scoop up Ronny by what, on a human, would be the neck. Scavenger that he is, Ronny has amassed a satchel of junk from the ocean floor (I liked the Rubik's cube), and his set of tools proves sufficient to pick the lock on the shark cage. With Ronny as his prisoner, the newly buff Troy sets off to gather a "gang" and wreak vengeance on the reef.

Troy and his minions are prevented from entering the reef by rock formations that block access for creatures as big as sharks; so they have to wait at the edge of "town", like marauding outlaws in a Western, for the tides to rise high enough to let them swim above the rocks. This allows plenty of opportunity for taunts, threats, feints and panic by the reef's inhabitants as everyone cowers in fear of the enormous predators waiting just outside their borders, grinning and licking their . . . well, if they had chops, they'd be licking them. Nerissa attempts to raise the true god of the sea to aid the reef (does anyone doubt he'll succeed?), while Pi works tirelessly on a mechanical trap to snare Troy that, for a long time, doesn't seem likely to work.

For his part, Troy sends his slave Ronny, who's small enough to slip through the rocks, into the reef in disguise—in disguise? seriously?—to sabotage the inhabitants' defenses from within. Ronny's brilliant ruse is to persuade the various aquatic villagers that the path to salvation is show business: specifically, a stage extravaganza so spectacular that passing ships will spot them and make the reef a tourist destination. Then, the humans will save them from the sharks. (It didn't make any sense to me either. But they're just fish.) This results in some Music Man-style comedy, as performers who don't know what they're doing still try to give it their all. It turns out, though, that Cordelia's Aunt Pearl (Audrey Wasilewski, replacing Fran Drescher) has an impressively ear-shattering set of pipes.

You don't need much experience as a movie watcher to guess that the skills that the reef's inhabitants discover in themselves as they prepare for Ronny's phony show will end up being adaptable to fighting off Troy and his fellow sharks. When the attack begins, all fins, claws, tentacles and other extensions pitch in to repel the invaders. Where the first Reef relied primarily on a handful of Disney films for plot, the second plunders an entire canon of movies about plucky underdogs uniting against a superior foe to defend their homes. (Ewoks, anyone?) The director, Mark A.Z. Dippé, is an ILM veteran, whose first feature film was the live action adaptation of Spawn. Dippé produced the first Reef film, and here, working from a script by Chris Denk (also a carryover from the first film) and Johnny Hartmann, he keeps things moving at such a snappy pace that you don't have time to stop and think about how silly the whole thing is. It's ideal for the younger audience, for whom the story won't be so obviously familiar, while being less taxing for the older set, because the voice work is interesting and Dippé is sharp enough not to linger over any joke for too long. It's a cartoon as B movie. It may even be closer to what they were aiming for the first time than the original Reef.

The Reef 2: High Tide Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Although Pixar has nothing to worry about, the 1080p, AVC-encoded image on ARC Entertainment's Blu-ray of The Reef 2 is crisp and colorful, with a wide array of primary and pastel hues to depict the reef, and a well-chilled palette of blues and grays to depict the sharks and the open water. Detail is generally excellent, despite the fact that the film follows its predecessor in envisioning undersea creatures as beings that are frequently "smooth and textureless" (in my colleague Mr. Kauffman's phrase). Various surroundings, however, reveal much greater detail, particularly the underwater cavern in which Pi tries to create the elaborate booby trap for his predatory foe. The scenes of "rehearsal" for Ronny's decoy of a musical show are especially complex and entertaining, as are the long overhead views of the shark pack invading the reef, cruising for prey. Since the source of the Blu-ray image originates in the digital realm, the usual concerns about grain filtering or artificial sharpening do not apply, but I did notice some light banding, always at scene transitions. It was the only major concern in an otherwise solid presentation.

The Reef 2: High Tide Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Like the track for its predecessor, the DTS-HA MA 5.1 track is serviceable but not showy. The ever-present sounds of water and the ebb and flow of the tide provide the ambiance, and a few brief scenes above the water (many involving a hapless pelican) allow for a change in the sonic environment. Pi's use of the seas's "fury" and Nerissa's attempt to summon its "essence" to defend the reef provide opportunities for directional effects, but they aren't overused. Dialogue is generally clear and centered. The score, this time, is by Todd Haberman, who has contributed music to a wide variety of features and TV shows. It's sufficient but generic.

The Reef 2: High Tide Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The first Reef had no extras on the Blu-ray, but several major extras on the accompanying DVD, including a commentary by the director and producer. The Reef 2 is featureless on both Blu-ray and DVD, except for the film's trailer (HD, 1080p; 1.78:1; 1:59). At startup, the disc plays trailers for Animals United, Jock the Hero Dog, Cinnamon, Red Dog and Battlefield America.

The Reef 2: High Tide Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Reef 2 is a harmless entertainment for kids that shouldn't drive their parents to distraction. The DVD, which has been available at Wal-Mart since August, is included with the Blu-ray in this combo pack. It isn't a timeless classic, but not every cartoon has to be. The Blu-ray's technical merits certainly can't be faulted. Recommended for at least a rental; more if your youngsters enjoy what they see.