BLU-RAY REVIEW

Bad Ass 2: Bad Asses

Featured In Issue 187, June 2014

Picture4.5
Sound4
WSR Score3.5
Basic Information on new release titles is posted as soon as titles are announced. Once reviewed, additional data is added to the database.
(Studio/Distributor):
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
2294427
(MPAA Rating):
R
(Rating Reason):
Violence, language, some sexuality, nudity and drug use
(Retail Price):
$29.99
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Single Layer (BD-25)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
91
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
A
(Theatrical Year):
2014
(Theatrical Release):
No
(Direct-To-Video Release):
Yes
(Disc Release Date):
04/08/14
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Craig Moss
(Screenplay/Written By):
(Story):
(Music):
(Director Of Photography):
(Production Designer):
(Visual Effects):
(Costume Designer):
(Editor):
(Supervising Sound Editors):
(Re-Recording Mixers):
(Executive Producers):
(Co-Producers):
(Producers):
(Academy Awards):
(Principal Photography):
(Theatrical Aspect Ratio):
(Measured Disc Aspect Ratio):
(Disc Soundtrack):
DTS HD Lossless 5.1
(Theatrical Sound):
(Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
(DTS Bit Rate):
(Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
(Additional Languages):
(French Language):
(Spanish Language):
(Chinese Language):
(Subtitles):
(Cantonese Language):
(Mandarin Language):
(Japanese Language):
(Italian Language):
(German Language):
(Portuguese Language):

In Bad Ass 2: Bad Asses, decorated Vietnam hero Frank Vega (Trejo) now runs an East L.A. community center where he trains young boxers to survive in and out of the ring. But when his prize student falls in with the wrong crowd and turns up dead, Frank teams up with his pal Bernie (Glover) to take matters into their own fists and prove that justice never gets old. (Gary Reber)

Special features include a making-of featurette (HD 10:00), upfront previews, and an UltraViolet digital copy.

The 1.78:1 1080p AVC picture was digitally photographed. The imagery is quite pleasing, with detailed resolution exhibited throughout. Fine detail is resolved in Trejo's and Glover's faces, with other detail resolved in hair, clothes, and object texture. Contrast is nicely balanced with deep blacks and shadows that are revealing. The color palette is strongly hued and saturated, and often pops. This is a far better presentation than the first release. (Gary Reber)

The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack is conventional and mediocre, with an overall frontal focus, with subtle surround envelopment. There are few "bad ass" aural embellishments. The fight scenes sonically pump up the excitement with enhanced .1 LFE bass energy for impact. The music score is nicely recorded, with a wide and deep soundstage that subtly is immersive in the surrounds. Dialogue is natural sounding and generally well integrated spatially. This is a fun soundtrack that, while not aggressively enveloping, is pleasingly engaging, with good fidelity. (Gary Reber)