6.3 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Continuing the story of Max and his pet friends, following their secret lives after their owners leave them for work or school each day.
Starring: Patton Oswalt, Kevin Hart, Harrison Ford, Eric Stonestreet, Jenny SlateFamily | 100% |
Adventure | 94% |
Animation | 86% |
Comedy | 68% |
Video codec: HEVC / H.265
Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby Atmos
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Spanish: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
French: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
English SDH, French, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
Digital copy
4K Ultra HD
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.0 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A game challenging players to correctly predict what movie will earn a sequel would wing up being pretty boring, pretty fast. The modern movie landscape is as predictable as the sunrise, and that there would be a short-order sequel to Illumination's smash hit animated film The Secret Life of Pets comes as absolutely no surprise. It's also not much of a surprise that its a shell of the original, a picture with a purpose only to sell tickets and merchandise (and Blu-rays and UHDs and DVDs, of course), a "Happy Meal Movie" as it might rightly be called, rather than one to build on the characters or themes introduced in the original in any meaningful way. Cynical? Nope. Reality? Yup. This is a decent enough jumble of animated sweets but nothing more. A few scattered laughs and cheerful colors (and a few darker undertones) are about all this patchwork movie, which runs a compact 78 minutes sans credits, has to offer.
For the UHD release of The Secret Life of Pets 2, Universal's 2160p/Dolby Vision presentation offers a modest boost in textural finesse and a
great big boost in color reproduction. Textural gains are finite, but appreciable. Animal fur and textured noses enjoy slight improvements to raw
definition, for example, while clarity is enhanced just enough to appreciate the slightly sharper environments around the picture. The Blu-ray does a
great job of
presenting the material at its best, and there's just not much opportunity for upward movement, even at the higher resolution. Slight increases to
texture clarity and total image sharpness are the gains, but there's nothing extraordinary to see, texturally.
On the other hand, the Dolby Vision color presentation takes the Blu-ray's incredibly rich and diverse palette and breathes even more life into each and
every hue. The feel for color refinement, punch beyond the Blu-ray's capabilities, and the general expanded gamut for both rich, broad-swath
primaries and small nuances and color accents is incredible. Blue skies appear with significantly added color depth. Multicolored city exteriors shine
with more intensity and color dazzle. Natural greens round the farm enjoy richness well beyond the comparatively stale (yet excellent in isolation)
Blu-ray tones. Take a look at a fire escape scene in chapter two, around the 9:20 mark. There's opportunity to really soak in the gorgeous greens and
rich reds that comprise the building's exterior while a bright, dense blue sky appears above and beyond, perfectly showcasing the Dolby Vision color
spectrum's ability to add depth and brightness while making colors deeper and more robust at the same time. The view from the Dolby Vision
perspective is breathtaking, making an already abundantly colorful movie all the more visually arresting.
The included Dolby Atmos soundtrack is a bit of well-engineered sonic excellence. The movie literally opens with aggressive bass beats that include positive instrumental and lyrical clarity and wide and deep stage berth. Booming thunder in the five-minute mark strikes heavily and rolls with impressive stage-covering depth and top-end engagement. Music throughout follows suit, with prominently wide front end stretch and perfectly tuned surround implementation to pull the listener into the flow without overwhelming it with needless fluff or prominence. A herd of cows rumbling through the stage in chapter 13 represents just one of many superior effects for clarity, low end extension, and sound imaging. The track never fails to bring life to every character, environment, and action. It's all well integrated and sonically crystal clear. Dialogue reproduction is perfect, finding positive front-center engagement and well balanced prioritization.
The Secret Life of Pets 2 contains a mammoth assortment of mini movies, featurettes, deleted scenes, music videos, and the like (including a
lot of kid-centered fluff), all on the UHD disc A Blu-ray copy
of the film and a Movies Anywhere digital copy code are included with purchase. This release ships with an embossed slipcover.
Young children will undoubtedly be delighted to watch their favorite characters appearing again on the screen and voiced enthusiastically by a well-rounded cast. And for Illumination that's mission accomplished. "Merchandising, merchandising, merchandising!" the great and wise Yogurt once proclaimed. The Secret Life of Pets 2 nails it if its raison d'être is moneymoneymoney. There's certainly not much charm and no real dramatic or thematic allure. It's quite capable in terms of its technical construction and it will certainly please the little ones but the buck stops (and starts) there. Universal's UHD is loaded with extras and delivers top-tier video and audio, so parents at least have that to look forward to.
2019
with Gallery and Activity Book
2019
Limited Edition Gift Set with Funko Pocket Pop! Keychains
2019
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