Smile 2 (Steelbook) [4K Ultra HD]

Director: Parker Finn

Cast: Naomi Scott, Rosemarie DeWitt, Kyle Gallner

Release Date: January 21, 2025

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Film Rating: 9/10
Disc Rating: 8/10

Synopsis:

About to embark on a new world tour, global pop sensation Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) begins experiencing increasingly terrifying and inexplicable events. Overwhelmed by the escalating horrors and the pressures of fame, Skye is forced to face her dark past to regain control of her life before it spirals out of control.

‘Smile 2’ accompanies smash music sensation Skye Riley who after some time off due to a horrific accident and some other problems is ready to make her much anticipated comeback. Struggling with the pain lingering from the accident, Skye caves and visits her old friend and current dealer to score some pain pills, but when his erratic behavior leads to him committing suicide directly in front of her with a grin plastered on his face, Skye’s real nightmare begins. Now she’ll have to try get to the bottom of the mysterious condition plaguing her while trying to decipher what’s real and what’s in her head, all while preparing for the massive tour.

Written and directed once again by Parker Finn (Smile) who does an outstanding job at the helm of ‘Smile 2’ guiding along the sequel with a perfect balance of creepy and stylish. The cast of the sequel includes Naomi Scott (Aladdin 2019), Rosemarie DeWitt (TV’s The Boys), Miles Gutierrez-Riley (Sweethearts), Lukas Gage (Road House 2024), Peter Jacobson (Fly Me to the Moon), Ray Nicholson (Licorice Pizza) and Kyle Gallner (Strange Darling) who each offer capable and solid performances for the most part in their respective roles, although Scott is the star of the show for good reason and her marvelous portrayal of Skye repeatedly stands out.

‘Smile 2’ is a wild, tense and gory follow-up that manages to evolve into a surprising and altogether superior sequel that excels above its already fantastic predecessor at nearly every turn. It repeatedly finds ways to improve upon the first installment not only by upping the ante on the gore and other nasty content (which it most certainly does) but even the cinematography, performances and environments are bigger, bolder and more expansive, something that also helps to keep us on edge along with our lead once it becomes clear that the smiling figures are liable to come from anywhere or everywhere at any time. Naomi Scott also helps to make the sequel stand out with her fully invested and impressive performance which never falters and even the unique shooting styles such as the upside down and twisting city shots offer some nice new tricks and standout shots that more than once slapped an appreciative grin on my face.

It’s clear we’re in for a treat of a sequel with ‘Smile 2’ from the opening five minutes which sends the viewer on a tense, chaotic and beautifully shot rollercoaster of a thrill ride before fully diving into the world of our new lead Skye Riley and then it allows us some time to become acquainted with her before things start to go off the rails once again. Yet once the chaos begins to pick up it only continues doing so at a steadily increasing pace going forward until the wild conclusion. It’s a nicely crafted ride that knows exactly how to balance the pacing and when to send things in a different direction which all combine to help it build into something unique that’s even better than the already solid first film.

Overall, ‘Smile 2’ is a marvelous and gnarly sequel that’s even better than its predecessor; delivering a creepy, brutal and impressively acted continuation that repeatedly ups the ante from the first film, while also fine tuning many of the edges and becoming superior in nearly every way. ‘Smile 2’ is definitely highly recommended for any genre fans that enjoyed the first installment in the slightest. It’s a spectacular sequel that enhances everything we loved about the first film and combines that with gorgeous direction from Parker Finn and a stellar cast led by Naomi Scott. If you’re already even slightly interested in the sequel and have seen the first film, then you will not want to overlook ‘Smile 2’ and it should easily prove well worth the cost of a rental at the absolute least. Don’t be terribly surprised if you end up wanting to add it to your collection soon after as well.

VIDEO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘Smile 2’ features a full 2160p Ultra High Definition presentation with Dolby Vision and HDR-10, presented in its original 2.00:1 Aspect Ratio. The video presentation looks marvelous as a whole and provides a clean, sharp and gorgeously detailed presentation from start to finish that never suffers from any unexpected issues arising along the way. Detail is great on character faces and attire, along with the various locations and settings it takes us through, much of which is further boosted by the Dolby Vision HDR which contributes some more vibrant and full bodied colors noticeable on outfits, blood and certain backgrounds; with deep, clean and problem free black levels to further enhance it all. Overall, this is a fantastic Ultra High Definition presentation that dazzles throughout and should easily thrill fans and newcomers alike.

AUDIO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release features a Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 channel compatible) soundtrack. Please note that this review pertains solely to the Dolby TrueHD 7.1 audio presentation. This multichannel soundtrack is a blast itself and it delivers a crisp, clean and hard hitting audio presentation throughout. It repeatedly takes full advantage of all seven available channels in order to send music, crowd noise, action and nature effects, plus a great deal more zipping throughout the various speakers at every fitting opportunity, while never allowing any dialogue or other audio elements that might be occurring simultaneously to become distorted or rendered problematic in the process. Overall, this is a spectacular Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 compatible) soundtrack that never disappoints and repeatedly contributes to the tension and unease throughout.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘Smile 2’ offers a nice collection of bonus content. Included on the release is an ‘Audio Commentary with Director/Writer/Producer Parker Finn’, along with a few ‘Deleted and Extended Scenes’ from the movie (running approximately 7 minutes in length altogether). We are also treated to various Behind the Scenes Featurettes that include interviews/comments with the cast and crew, plus behind the scenes footage and more, they include ‘Ear to Ear’ (running approximately 5 minutes),’ The Rise and Fall of Skye Riley’ (approximately 5 minutes), ‘Behind the Music’ (5 minutes), ‘A New Smile’ (5 minutes), ‘Smiler: A New Monster’ (6 minutes), ‘Turn That Frown Upside Down’ (5 minutes) and ‘Show Me Your Teeth’ (5 minutes).

*Please note that the above images are taken from the Blu-Ray disc included in the 4K UHD Combo Pack and resized. They do not represent the quality of the 4K Ultra HD disc itself and will additionally suffer quality loss as a result of .jpg compression. Larger versions of each image can be viewed by clicking on the image. All images and content included on the 4K UHD & Blu-Ray release are the property of their respective owners.

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Film Rating: 9/10
Disc Rating: 8/10

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‘Smile 2’ Arrives on 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray Combo Pack, Limited Edition 4K UHD Steelbook & DVD on January 21, 2025 & is Now Available on Digital from Paramount Home Entertainment

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You can purchase ‘Smile 2’ on 4K UHD Steelbook at Amazon HERE!

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