Review of American Pie 2

Introduction

Come on, it was inevitable. After the box-office smash that was American Pie, Hollywood had to come knocking again.

Universal got the first thing right: getting all (and yes, that even includes the Sherminator) the original cast back. The plot is simple (hey, the first one was too - the original gang are spending their first summer out of college at a beach house...so no doubt gross-out moments will ensue.

Video

A crisp 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen transfer. The visuals are deep and there is no colour saturation. The print is constantly clear and there are no compression signs.

Since this is set at a beach (well a lake to be exact), expect some sun scenes with some good cinematography. The inside scenes are always well shot and the set pieces are always directed intelligently by J.B. (Say It Isn`t So) Rogers.

Audio

The disc comes with a DD 5.1 and DTS tracks respectively. It seems strange that a DTS track has been tacked onto a comedy, and when watching the movie there is little difference between the two.

Both tracks are clear however, and the ambience level is just right. This movie is dialogue-driven but the surrounds to come into action during the numerous music numbers, which are all inserted seamlessly into the movie. As usual, expect witty dialogue and some inspired one-liners.

Features

There is a wealth of material on offer here. First up there are 4 (count `em) commentaries by numerous people involved in the production (i.e. the director, writer and cast members). The commentary tracks are good listening, but do get slightly repetitive fourth time round.

Then there is a fairly good making-of featurette, The Baking of American Pie 2, which is an informative piece of back-slapping. The outtakes and deleted scenes are good, and they add more to the movie. Then there is also some other things:

Favourite Scenes - the 10 top scenes from both movies. This is a nice little gimmick.

Classic Quotes - a collection of the classic quotes from the movie, which again is a nice little gimmick.

Music Video - this video is filmed at Tall Oaks (aka Band Camp) by some punkish er..punks. Expect American rock trash...

32 Music Highlights - does what it says on the tin really.

Trailer - can you vague that up for me?

Filmographies, Production Notes, DVD-ROM features - the usual affair, presented well.

There is also a 4-page booklet offering some more insight into the production.

Conclusion

The movie is filled with enjoyable set-pieces (Superglue anyone?) and some good acting. The script by Adam Weisz is on the ball, and J.B. Rogers directs well. It may lack the charm the first movie had, but nevertheless American Pie 2 is a very enjoyable slice of comic entertainment.

As for the disc, it is top-notch, and makes an improvement on the lacklustre disc the first movie had.

Overall, a great addition to your collection.