Pet Sematary Two appears in an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This was a pretty strong presentation.
For the most part, sharpness seemed positive. A few shots looked a bit soft, but those were exceptions to the rule, so the majority of the elements came across as concise and well-defined.
Jaggies and moiré effects failed to materialize, and I noticed no edge haloes. With a nice, natural layer of grain, heavy-handed digital noise reduction didn’t appear to occur, and the image lacked spots, marks or other print defects.
In terms of colors, the film opted for a subdued palette, one that tended to favor an amber flavor to suit the fall New England setting. Some blues popped up in nighttime or dream sequences as well. Overall color reproduction remained fine, so despite the mildly muted sensibility, the hues remained acceptably full and vivid.
Blacks showed nice depth and intensity, and I thought low-light shots appeared clear and well-depicted. Overall, I felt pleased with this quality transfer.
I also thought we got a good DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack from Two. Given the story, the soundscape usually offered creepy atmosphere more than anything else, but it occasionally kicked to life in more significant ways.
These related to the sporadic scenes of violence or terror, as those opened up the mix to provide reasonable spread and engagement. Music also offered appealing spread and delineation.
Still, this remained a largely environmental mix, so don’t expect a lot of fireworks. It created a nice sense of place, at least.
Audio quality seemed more than adequate. Speech appeared natural and concise, without edginess or other issues.
Music felt rich and full, while effects demonstrated solid clarity and accuracy. While this never turned into a whiz-bang soundtrack, it felt perfectly fine for the story.
As we move to extras, we launch with an audio commentary from director Mary Lambert. Along with disc producer Justin Beahm, she offers a running, screen-specific look at the project’s development, story/characters, cast and performances, sets and locations, photography, effects, music and related domains.
Though Lambert and Beahm occasionally refer to the movie as it goes, most of this track progresses much more like an interview than a standard screen-specific commentary. In that regard, it does reasonably well for itself, as we get a good array of insights into the production.
That said, the commentary can drag at times, and we get a few too many gaps. While a good track, it seems a little too erratic.
By the way, I felt bad for actor Jared Rushton as I listened. Both Lambert and Beahm continually called him a “local hire”, with an implication that he lacked experience. I guess neither of them ever saw Big!
In addition to the film’s trailer, the disc comes with five interviews, and the first presents actor Edward Furlong. In this 13-minute, 32-second reel, Furlong discusses how he got into T2 and became an actor.
Furlong also tells us about his experiences during the Sematary Two shoot. This never becomes the most coherent overview, but Furlong manages a few good memories.
Next comes actor Clancy Brown, as he gives us a 21-minute chat about his career in general as well as his work on Sematary Two. Nothing especially insightful emerges, but Brown adds some interesting notes.
Actor Jason McGuire brings a 24-minute, 23-second talk about his life and aspects of his short time in movies. Given that McGuire made only three films – he also appeared in 1993’s Leap of Faith and 1994’s Forrest Gump - 24 minutes seem like an awfully long chat, but he gives us some worthwhile thoughts.
Up next, we find a 15-minute, 51-second interview with special effects artist Steve Johnson. He goes over his career and his work on Sematary Two.
I loved Johnson’s recent commentary for Big Trouble in Little China, so I looked forward to this interview. Though Johnson doesn’t show the same gleeful willingness to dish dirt here, he still brings a fun chat.
Finally, we get composer Mark Governor via a 29-minute, 32-second piece. He looks at his interest in music along with his efforts for Sematary Two. Governor offers another enjoyable interview.
Because it manages its own story beats and doesn’t just rework the original film, Pet Sematary Two comes with some positives. However, a poorly-executed script and lack of purpose make it less than effective. The Blu-ray comes with pretty positive picture and audio as well as a good collection of bonus features. Two isn’t worse than the first flick, but don’t take that as a recommendation.