Paramount Scares Volume 2 Collection (4K UHD Review)
Just in time for the spooky season, Paramount Home Entertainment is releasing Paramount Scares Volume 2. This 8-disk collectable box set includes 4K UHD and Blu-ray disks of Friday the 13th Part II, Orphan: First Kill, World War Z and Breakdown
- Full-size FANGORIA magazine produced specifically for this release with new and classic articles about the films
- Four unique iron-on patches representing each film
- A domed PARAMOUNT SCARES logo sticker
- A new PARAMOUNT SCARES glow-in-the-dark enamel pin
- Limited-Edition poster by acclaimed artist Orlando “Mexifunk” Arocena
FRIDAY THE 13TH PART II:
In 2022, Paramount released the original Friday the 13th on 4K UHD. Now we get the franchises first sequel, Friday the 13th Part II o 4K UHD, which is available exclusively (for now) in the Paramount Scares Volume 2 Collection. I am a long-time fan of the series and much like the original Star Trek films, the even-numbered sequels are the best, most notably, Parts, 2, 4. and 6. Jason Lives will always remain my personal favorite. That will probably be the only time I compare Friday the 13th and Star Trek.
Set five years after the events of the first film, Jason Voorhees has picked up where his mother left off. The original film’s final girl, Alice (Adrienne King) is killed off in the opening minutes to make way for a new collection of young and attractive people for our Crystal Lake madman to pick-off over the next 87 minutes. We have Ginny (Amy Steel), Paul (John Furey), Terry (Kristen Baker), Ted (Stuart Charno), Sandra (Marta Kober), Mark (Tom McBride), Jeff (Bill Randolph), Vickie (Lauren-Marie Taylor) and Scott (Russell Todd).
Plot really doesn’t mean much in an F13 film, we are basically here for the kills and Jason goes about it in some inventive ways. Mark’s wheelchair down the stairs remains my favorite, while the offing of Crazy Ralph (Walt Gorney) remains the most disappointing. Still, the film moves along briskly and Friday the 13th Part II delivers on what slasher fans are looking for. Steel also makes for a solid final girl.
The new 4K restoration with Dolby Vision looks quite incredible. I have watched this film more time than any other title in this collection and the detail is quite remarkable. Being that most of the story is set at the camp, the greenery in the locations look quite detailed. The characters flesh-tones are more natural. However, some of the kill effects look a little less realistic thanks to the newly restored presentation. We get a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio track, which does which delivers a great sound experience. The dialogue is crisp and Harry Manfredini’s soundtrack comes alive, especially in the film’s climactic moments. Out of the entire collection, this may be my favorite disk.
BREAKDOWN:
Director Jonathan Mostow is probably best known for helming 2003’s flawed-yet-entertaining Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. It was an impossible task to live up to the first two films, yet Mostow delivered a decent sequel regardless, especially compared to the two films that followed. Yes, Dark Fate is superior. However, the director saw his first glimpse of mainstream success with the 1997 Kurt Russell thriller, Breakdown.
Jeff Taylor (Kurt Russell) and his wife Amy (Kathleen Quinlan) are in the middle of a very stressful life-change. They both quit their jobs, they are in a poor financial situation, and they have a new car they need to pay off. They are also in-the-midst of a big move to California via a road trip through the desert. To make matters worse, their new car breaks down and a seemingly nice truck driver named Red (J.T. Walsh) offers to give them a helping hand. Amy takes a ride with Red to a diner five miles away to call for help. Jeff finally gets the vehicle working but when he arrives at the diner, Amy is nowhere to be found and nobody there has seen her. Of course, Jeff is both confused and scared. It turns out Amy has been kidnapped and Red, along with his friends Earl (M.C. Gainey) and Billy (Jack Noseworthy) want the $90 thousand that Amy led them to believe they couple has, in exchange for her life.
Breakdown was never considered one of Russell’s most memorable films, but Mostow and screenwriter Sam Montgomery (TV’s Unforgettable, 24) have crafted a tension filled thriller that also works because of Russell’s performance. In 2021 we did get a 1080p Blu-ray release of the film via the Paramount Presents series. However, we now get a true 2160p 4K release with Dolby Vision which is a modest improvement over the already great looking release. I would say that the location shots stand out the most, especially the desert and mountain backdrops, along with the color rock formations. Just like with the 2021 Blu-ray release, we get a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio track, and it truly needs no upgrade. We get plenty of roaring engines, thrilling music and the Dolby track fully delivers.
ORPHAN: FIRST KILL:
Orphan: First Kill arrives on 4K UHD for the very first time in the US as part of the Paramount Scares Volume 2 Collection.
Sequels, prequels, reboots. These are all common things in the film industry, now more than ever. This is especially true in the horror genre. It shouldn’t come as a surprise when almost any successful genre film gets another installment. Yet, Orphan: First Kill stands out for a few reasons. In 2009 Orphan took in $78 million worldwide on a $20 million budget. That should have greenlighted a quick cash-grab sequel. However, it didn’t. Instead, we get a prequel thirteen years later. While that’s not unheard of, the fact that Isabelle Fuhrman (now in her mid-20’s) is once again playing the little orphan Esther is amusing. Granted, the character suffers from a rare hormonal disorder that stunted her physical growth and caused proportional dwarfism. The funny thing about this is that most audiences will be aware that the adult actors are wearing some serious platform shoes to make them much taller than Fuhrman and in many wider shots, it’s clear that there is an Esther stand-in. Still, the most surprising thing about Orphan: First Kill is how entertaining it actually is.
If you have seen the 2009 film, you will remember that there was a big twist in the final act. Esther wasn’t the 9-year-old Russian girl that she pretended to be. She was actually a 33-year-old woman named Leena Klammer that only looks like a child. First Kill is set in 2007, Leena lives in the Estonian psychiatric hospital, where she eventually escapes. From there, Leena takes over the identity of a missing American girl that she resembles named Esther Albright. Leena (now Esther) is brought to the wealthy Albright family which includes Allen (Rossif Sutherland), his wife Tricia (Julia Stiles) and their son Gunnar (Matthew Finlan). While the parents are thrilled to have their little girl back, Esther’s brother doesn’t seem all that thrilled.
It doesn’t take long for Esther to make herself at home and claiming herself a few victims along the way, it isn’t until the twists in the narrative start coming where the fun really begins. While the surprise ending in the first film is one of the all-time best in the genre, the team behind First Kill, including writer David Coggeshall and director William Brent Bell try to one-up with their own twist. While it doesn’t have the same impact, it is still a clever direction they chose to go in. While I don’t feel we need more Orphan films, I won’t be surprised if we get them.
This might be one of the best looking 4K presentations in the collection, but it’s also the newest film, being released just a couple of years ago. One of the drawbacks to this kind of image clarity, is that its more noticeable the Fuhrman appears a bit older in this prequel than she did in the original film. However, that’s just me nit-picking. This is a great looking transfer with Dolby Vision and if you are a fan of the film, you should definitely be pleased. We also get a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track which works perfectly for this low budget horror film.
WORLD WAR Z:
Last year, Shout Factory released director Marc Forster’s World War Z on 4K UHD for the first time. Based on Max Brooks novel of the same name, Paramount has included the Brad Pitt led zombie film in their Paramount Scares Volume 2 collection. While we do get both the PG-13 and the Unrated Cut of the film, only the PG-13 version has been released in 4K. While this is somewhat disappointing, it isn’t surprising since Shout’s release did not have the Unrated Cut on 4K either.
Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt) is a former United Nations Investigator that gave up his career to be a stay-at-home dad. Just minutes into the film, we see the streets of Philadelphia become a violent war zone, when people transform into ultra-fast zombies within seconds of being bitten. We dive into the action swiftly, and this is easily one of the best moments in the film. Gerry does get his family to safety, thanks to his former boss, but there is a price to pay to keep his loved ones safe. Gerry must agree to come out of retirement and help find the origins of the virus so that a cure can be created before its’ too late.
World War Z isn’t a boring film, but it doesn’t bring anything new to the zombie genre. While I haven’t read the source material, I have a feeling that there was a whole lot more going on that just didn’t make it to the screen. It’s also a shame that for a nearly $200 million zombie film, they couldn’t even figure out a way to make it scary. Pitt gives a pretty strong performance as the film’s reluctant globe-trotting hero and some great locations were used in Malta, Glasgow and Budapest. However, the quickly re-written third act is a let-down, especially since we never got the sequel that the ending pretty-much promised.
The 2160p presentation of World War Z with Dolby Vision looks quite impressive. While I haven’t seen the original cut since its’ theatrical release, I had seen the mildly superior Unrated Cut on Blu-ray before. We get a much sharper presentation here with deeper blacks and more naturally looking environments. Some of the films creepier sequences look a whole lot better. A perfect example is the scene when Gerry and the soldiers are quietly riding bikes through a foggy runway to get to a plane before the zombies notice them. The DTS-HD 7.1 Master Audio Track has been ported over from the Blu-ray and that is more than fine. The is so much chaotic craziness going on in the film and the soundtrack takes full advantage of it. If anything makes you jump in World War Z, it will most likely be because of great sound editing work here.
OVERALL REACTION:
While studio collections can be a mixed bag, there is quite a bit to like about the Paramount Scares Collections. Just like with Volume 1, I dig the cool looking case design that feature images from all films included. The exclusive issue of Fangoria produced just for these sets are also a great addition. While I am not a fan of all films included, they are great restorations and having Friday the 13th Part II in 4K is a huge bonus. This is also a reasonably priced collection, retailing for around $65-$70.
By: Marc Ferman
