4.4 | / 10 |
Users | 2.1 | |
Reviewer | 1.5 | |
Overall | 2.1 |
See how the legend of The Scorpion King began! When a young Mathayus witnesses his father's death at the hands of the king, his quest for vengeance transforms him into the most feared warrior of the ancient world.
Starring: Michael Copon, Randy Couture, Karen David, Simon Quarterman, Tom WuAction | 100% |
Adventure | 57% |
Fantasy | 39% |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English SDH, French, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | 0.5 | |
Video | 2.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 1.5 |
We all deserve to die. The only question is in what manner and how soon.
Here's a helpful hint to filmmakers from a longtime fan of action movies: a 109 minute runtime
is far too
long for a direct-to-video prequel of a mediocre spinoff movie of a dwindling franchise. The
Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior is overlong, slow, and dull, even when taking into account
its low budget, straight-to-Blu-ray origins. It still comes as a bit of a shock that the movie is as
terrible as it is. Directed by veteran Russell Mulcahy (Highlander), the film features a
straightforward adventure plot that hits on all the appropriate clichés, including revenge, an
attractive female co-star, a witty sidekick, the search for a powerful weapon, and a series of
challenges that the heroes courageously face and barely escape. Generally, such movies are
passable, but considering the terrible special effects, a script that's laughably juvenile, and lousy
acting from some Disney Channel
wannabes and Randy Couture (who turned in an admirable performance in Redbelt, which goes
to show what a good script can do), The Scorpion King
2: Rise of a Warrior joins the club of "worst of the worst" available on Blu-ray, along with
films such as Meet the Spartans,
One Missed Call, Starship Troopers 3:
Marauder, and The Hills Have Eyes
2.
Yeah, I'll grow up to be The Rock! You wanna make somethin' of it?
The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior's 1080p, 1.78:1 framed transfer on Blu-ray fails to impress. The best looking aspects of the disc are the studio logo and the film's title card. Detail is moderately good throughout, but there is a dullness to the transfer that never lets it truly shine. Interior shots fail to impress, noted during a sequence when Mathayus goes to Sargon's palace in chapter three. The limited color palette ventures towards the red side of the scale with only moderate black levels, poor shadow detail, a lack of general detail, flat looking objects, and no vibrancy at all. There is a hint of green to flesh tones and other objects, too, that is noticeable in many of the film's darker sequences. The underground battle sequence in chapter seven exhibits all the same characteristics noted above, and it's extremely noisy in the blacks, too. Black levels do look good in some scenes, and the film's brightest outdoor scenes, like that on the ship to Egypt where Mathayus and Layla meet Ari the Greek, look rather nice. There is a good transfer here, yearning to get out, but it's masked by a myriad of annoyances that make it rather bland. As far as it's place among all the high definition transfers on the market, we've seen much better, and this is certainly Universal's worst looking disc to date, though it must be noted that until now, the studio's discs have all highly impressed.
The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior features a mildly entertaining and generally active DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack that is the highlight of the disc, which really isn't saying all that much. Dialogue is loud and clear, and effects, especially lows, are nice and natural with a solid rumble from the subwoofer when called upon. The audio presentation is fine, with sound spread across the entirety of the soundstage, although there is sometimes a phony pitch to some of the effects. For example, some applause heard during an early segment of the film sounds like it doesn't quite match the action on-screen; it has that canned sound to it, and it seems to emanate from a few spots it shouldn't, with a disproportionate volume. Such issues are present in several places, where effects seem forced and out of place. Some of the effects do work well, however. The ship scene in chapter five, for example, offers perhaps the most natural sound presentation on the disc, just like it offered the best looking sequence of the film from a visual perspective. The rocking and creaking of the boat and the rolling of the ocean all around it creates a very nice atmosphere that makes us feel like we're on the ship. Too bad the lousy dialogue and acting take away anything positive the soundtrack brings to the scene. Overall, this track is acceptable and plenty active, but it never manages to stand above the crowd, either.
The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior offers viewers no special features, a first for a Universal Blu-ray.
The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior has no redeeming qualities. The acting is bad, the dialogue is atrocious and out-of-place, the special effects are horrible, the plot meanders, and the action is dull. Parts of the movie are laugh-out-loud funny, though not intentionally so. Unfortunately, the gap between downright bad and so-bad-it's-funny is far too wide to make a viewing of this film worthwhile. Likewise, this Blu-ray release from Universal is not worth your time. Featuring a rather poor video presentation, an acceptable but somewhat lackluster audio track (not to mention no additional language options), and absolutely nothing in the way of bonus materials, this is one package worth ignoring.
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