Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.0

The Wandering Earth II Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 21, 2023

Some wags coming to this frequently visually dazzling but almost as frequently largely incomprehensible sequel (actually prequel) may join certain curmudgeons (ahem) in thinking that maybe it might have helped had Well Go USA released The Wandering Earth first, giving potential viewers some point of entry other than the film's "previously. . .on. . ." montage that starts things out, even if considering the fact that this is a prequel, that opening might have been better classified as a "subsequently. . .on. . .", so to speak. As it stands (and/or falls, as the case may be), according to our typically reliable database, it looks like the only Blu-ray release of The Wandering Earth hails from China, which means potential consumers may need to do a little earth wandering themselves to track it down. What's kind of interesting about all of this is that the first The Wandering Earth was an absolute blockbuster at the box office, which makes its absence from, well, global markets a little perplexing, though (horror of horrors for lovers of physical media), it has evidently been available to stream for quite some time. While I personally haven't done that yet, it might be advisable for anyone considering spending close to three hours with this opus trying to figure out exactly what's going on.

The general plot mechanics of this "three hour tour" involve the sun nearing red giant territory, which means that Earth itself is going to get a pretty serious sunburn. Because science always has the answer, an international coterie of formerly battling nations has banded together to move the Earth out of harm's way, not to mention blowing up the moon because, well, special effects. The film's extended running time may indicate that there's a lot of pseudo scientific babble going on in this enterprise, which may recall similar approaches in any number of fifties "space spectaculars" hailing from Hollywood in particular. The visuals are often stupendous, if frankly kind of trite by this time, and the narrative fitfully tries to weave in any number of "current issues" like climate change and even AI (in a late plot development that is probably going to be a major focus of the already announced The Wandering Earth 3). It's perhaps salient to note that the film is chock full of "informational" titles that crop up announcing locations, dates, and even characters, which may indicate the filmmakers themselves may have been aware of some narrative deficits in the actual film.

The seemingly intentional choice to highlight special effects over the plight of Mankind means that even marquee stars like Andy Lau (who evidently was not in the first film) are often relegated to what might be termed "supporting" status. But even this aspect may indicate that there is so much visual wonderment on display that what happens to humans becomes almost irrelevant, since the film seems intent on focusing on epic visuals rather than matters of the heart. That means the kind of cold, wintry ambience that Earth itself starts to experience extends to the whole emotional underpinning of the entire story.

The Wandering Earth II Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Wandering Earth II is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Well Go USA with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1 and 2.74:1. Captured with Arri Alexas and kind of surprisingly finished at 2K despite source captures of over 6K (all of this according to the IMDb), this is, as mentioned above, frequently dazzling, with some excellent fine detail throughout in both practical and CGI laden moments. A lot of cool grading has been employed, especially as things get more and more Apocalyptic on poor little Earth, but generally speaking these sometimes aggressive tactics really don't lead to any major downturns in detail levels. There is occasional minor softness in some of the CGI, notably some of the wider framings where there's a lot of destructive mayhem on screen. For an "outer space" epic, there's kind of comically some underwater moments where detail levels can understandably not be at the same level as the bulk of the presentation.

The Wandering Earth II Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Wandering Earth II features a Mandarin Dolby Atmos track and an English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 option as its surround choices. Unless you're averse to reading subtitles, I'd certainly recommend sticking with the Atmos track, which is consistently immersive and which provides both "traditional" surround engagement along with some clear verticality courtesy of any number of scenes which feature things like blastoffs or debris falling from the sky. The "high tech" scenes are typically littered with background effects that clearly engage the side and rear channels, and even some of the earthbound material has well rendered ambient environmental effects. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English and Mandarin subtitles are available.

The Wandering Earth II Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer (HD; 1:55)

Note: As tends to be the case with Well Go USA Blu-ray releases, the disc has been authored to automatically move on to trailers for other Well Go USA releases after the trailer for this film plays. Those trailers for other Well Go USA releases also play automatically at disc boot up.

Additionally, packaging features a slipcover.

The Wandering Earth II Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I will say I'm curious enough about this nascent "franchise" that I may in fact track down the first film to see if it can shed any light on this film. At nearly three hours, even without the more than occasional head scratching moment, it's probably arguable that this narrative could have been judiciously trimmed and streamlined. Technical merits are first rate for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.