Ultra HD Blu-ray Movie Reviews

M3gan 2.0 takes place two years after the events of M3gan, a marvel of artificial intelligence, that went rogue, and embarked on a murderous rampage. In this sequel, its creator, Gemma, has become an advocate for government oversight of AI. Unbeknownst to her, a defense contractor has created a military-grade weapon known as Amelia, the ultimate infiltration spy. However, as Amelia's self-awareness increases, it becomes less interested in taking orders. Hoping to stop Ameilia, Gemma decides to resurrect M3gan, making it faster, stronger, and more lethal.

The first M3gan film was a sort of sci-fi, horror, comedy, mashup, with a cautionary tale about the ramifications of enlightened AI, and our reliance on gadgets, to keep our youngsters entertained. I admittedly found it more entertaining than initially thought, and was interested in seeing what this follow up had in store.

This one eschews the original’s elements of horror in favor of a sci-fi action thriller vibe. I wondered how well that would play out, and was surprised at the result. At 121 minutes it develops the components necessary to render the narrative’s general context. I mean this isn’t a reinvention, but it successfully blends the elements that made the first film fun to watch, along with a tonal shift, that opens the door for a bit of action.

Truth be told, I liked it a tad more than the first film, finding myself chuckling aloud at M3gan’s retorts, while enjoying her penchant for unleashing a bit of butt kicking. It occasionally resorts to moments of sentiment, especially in the third act, that seem gratuitous, but it’s not compromising. There’s even a bit of a twist, which you may not see coming. It didn’t really add anything Earth shattering to the outcome, but kept things interesting. This isn’t great cinema, but I found it to be the kind of mindless entertainment that I enjoy from time to time. The door is left wide open for another chapter so, we will see what comes next.

M3gan 2.0 was derived from 4.6K sources, and finished on a 4K Digital Intermediate. This is an excellent Ultra HD presentation that delivers crisp detail, and resolute imagery. Close up camera shots are exquisitely rendered as the fine minutia, and subtle lines, seen within the faces of the members of the cast are fully appreciable. There are a handful of instances where sharpness wavers, but duration is brief, and likely attributable to the photography.

Colors are lavish, with vibrant reds, that pop off the screen. Flesh tones appear differentiated, and lifelike. Blacks exhibit excellent dynamic range, with visible gradational stages that stand out during scenes containing low lighting. High dynamic range doesn’t consistently play a forward role in the presentation, but when applied, provides plenty of depth to colors, and specular highlights, yielding a natural, and pleasing picture.

The Dolby Atmos listening track makes excellent use of the bed channels to drive the film’s thematic tone. This is a fairly-active sound design that augments the dynamic impact associated with the sequences of action. When called for the surround channels are engaged with a blend of discretely placed sounds, and spatial ambience. I found that the mix took a laid-back approach with respect to discrete use of the height channels. Overall, the bulk of the presentation, save for specific moments, and the finale, height channel presence is limited predominantly to atmospheric extension.

The recording’s dynamic range accents the sonic detail present in the recording. I never had any trouble discerning subtle vocal inflections, or the presence of low-level sounds, that were mixed to the background. There is natural integration of the front, and rear channels, which creates a well-proportioned listening experience that is complemented by rich bass that has excellent palpability, and tight extension.

This Unrated 4K release includes the unrated, and theatrical versions, of the film. The included bonus features are made up of four production featurettes that go behind-the-scenes to explore the design of the film’s animatronics, stunts, and the breakdown of the infamous dance sequence. A Blu-ray and digital code complete the package.

M3gan 2.0 is an entertaining sequel that is among the rare cases, where I enjoyed a follow up more than the original. It looks, and sounds great, in 4K/Dolby Atmos, making it a solid offering for fans.

Ralph Potts