Scary Movie 2, while not an awful film, is just simply not very funny. It pales in comparison to the original and makes the two other sequels look absolutely brilliant. I’ve now seen this film twice and nothing has changed over the years; I might’ve chuckled a couple of times but otherwise I just had a blank stare counting down the minutes until it was over.
Scary Movie 2 (2001)
REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall
Genre(s): Comedy
Lionsgate | R – 82 min. – $14.99 | September 20, 2011
MOVIE INFO:
Directed by: Keenan Ivory Wayans
Writer(s): Shawn Wayans & Marlon Wayans & Alyson Fouse & Greg Grabianski & Dave Polsky & Michael Anthony Snowden & Craig Wayans (written by)
Cast: Shawn Wayans, Marlon Wayans, Anna Faris, Regina Hall, Tim Curry, James Woods, Tori Spelling, Chris Elliott
Theatrical Release Date: July 4, 2001
DISC INFO:
Features: Featurettes, Deleted Scenes
Number of Discs: 1
Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 5.1)
Video: 1080p/Widescreen 1.78
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Region(s): A
THE MOVIE – 2.0/5
Plot: No blockbuster is safe as the Scary Movie crew takes on more horror. This time around, Cindy (ANNA FARIS) and college classmates Brenda (REGINA HALL), Shorty (MARLON WAYANS), Ray (SHAWN WAYANS), Alex (TORI SPELLING), Tommy (JAMES DEBELLO) and Theo (KATHLEEN ROBERTSON) accept an invitation from their professor (TIM CURRY) to a mansion which turns horrific when they discover it’s haunted. You see, a year earlier, when the movie opens with a decently done spoof on The Exorcist, a girl was possessed but couldn’t be saved despite the help of Father McFeely (JAMES WOODS) and an assistant, Father Harris (ANDY RICHTER).
What’s really to say about Scary Movie 2? When it comes to modern spoof comedies, they often either work none of the time or half of the time but rarely have the same kind of consistency of other spoofs like Airplane or Hot Shots (and maybe even Top Secret). Here outside of parts of the opening sequence, there weren’t a whole lot of laughs to be had with this film. It’s not quite as bad as the god awful Friedberg/Seltzer movies, you would have to try to be that bad, but compared with the first Scary Movie and even the two sequels that followed, it couldn’t sustain any sort of comedic momentum.
The cast I guess gave it their best, especially Anna Faris who is a truly funny actress, but when the jokes don’t land – or when the writers confuse being gross with being funny – there’s not a whole lot that can be done. I appreciate what the Wayans’s Brothers brought with the first Scary Movie as it’s hard to spoof something that itself was mocking but they did it.
Scary Movie 2 was again directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans and features an onslaught of writers (no less than 7!) and you can see in the film the mishmash of jokes. I appreciate what the Wayans did in the first Scary Movie (Shawn & Marlon Wayans were amongst the writers), but this entry was almost a complete misfire.
SPECIAL FEATURES – 2.25/5
Behind-the-Scenes Featurette (8:09; SD) – This is your typical making-of featurette with interview and on-set footage of the cast having a good ‘ole time.
Alternate and Deleted Scenes (43:51; SD) – Yeah, you read that right there are over 40-frickin’-minutes of deleted footage and as you can imagine, most of these are hardly gems, but a couple scenes made me chuckle… but wouldn’t have helped the film in the slightest. One thing is they actually address the events of the first film and why Shawn Wayans’ character was in the sequel. Included are three alternate endings one that brings back James Woods’ priest character and a “twist” (the third alt. ending is similar except for one really odd final shot).
Special Effects Tour with Lou Carlucci (5:45; SD) – The special effects supervisor takes the viewer on a tour showing off some of the effects used (like joint rigs, vomit rigs, etc).
Here Kitty, Kitty (1:48; SD) – Even the puppet/animatronic cat – and the variety of others created to do certain scenes – gets its own featurette.
Scary Effects (2:07; SD) shows off the effects used (like breaking glass or making the skeleton).
Behind the Make Up with Barry Koper (4:16; SD) – The make-up effects designer gets his chance to show off his work, mainly Shorty’s scalp being taken off.
Previews – Scary Movie, Scary Movie 3, Scream Trilogy
VIDEO – 3.0/5
Scary Movie 2 spoofs its way onto Blu-ray with an average albeit acceptable 1080p high-def transfer. The film is presented with a 1.78 widescreen aspect ratio and there are scenes that showcase some artifacts and pixilation, especially early on, while others come across as a typical and quick transfer. Colors are alright I suppose but given most of it takes place in a castle… at night… this isn’t exactly a movie that pops off the screen.
AUDIO – 3.25/5
The DTS-HD MA track is serviceable but unremarkable. The dialogue levels are OK but the many sound effects and annoying score offer little to no depth. I can’t quite say this lossless track is very good but it’s probably a slight upgrade over the DVD.
OVERALL – 2.25/5
Overall, Scary Movie 2, while not an awful film, is just simply not very funny. It pales in comparison to the original and makes the two other sequels look absolutely brilliant. I’ve now seen this film twice and nothing has changed over the years; I might’ve chuckled a couple of times but otherwise I just had a blank stare counting down the minutes until it was over.
The Movieman
Published: 09/15/2011