Butterfly Effect 2, The (Blu-ray) (2006)

This review is sponsored by

BUY IT

General		Extras
Category	Thriller	Main Menu Audio & Animation
Rating
Year Of Production	2006
Running Time	88:49
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	John R. Leonetti
Studio Distributor	Icon Entertainment	Starring	Eric Lively Erica Durance Dustin Milligan Gina Holden David Lewis Andrew Airlie Chris Gauthier
Case	Standard Blu-ray
RPI	$29.95	Music	Michael Suby

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 (2304Kb/s) English Dolby Digital 5.1 (640Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	1080p
Original Aspect Ratio	1.85:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	None	Smoking	Yes
		Annoying Product Placement	Yes, Miller beer, Pepsi, Alienware
		Action In or After Credits	No

"Can you change your past without destroying your future?"

     Rarely has a sequel succeeded in equalling the success of its inspiration. The Butterfly Effect 2, written by Michael D. Weiss and directed by John R. Leonetti, does not break that tradition. Although there is a plot link to the earlier Butterfly Effect that is revealed later in the movie, this sequel stands on it's own with regard to characters and story. In similar fashion to the first however, Nick Larson (Eric Lively) discovers that he can go back in time to change events which has a profound effect on the present and future. The term "butterfly effect" refers to the chaos theory that even the smallest of actions can have consequences far exceeding the initial event. The opening scenes see Nick, his girlfriend Julie Miller (Erica Durance), and best friends Trevor Eastman (Dustin Milligan) and Amanda (Gina Holden) enjoying a camping trip which is partly in celebration of Julie's 24th birthday. Nick is an ambitious salesman working with Trevor at a newly established communications company, while Julia is an aspiring photographer with dreams of setting up her own studio and business. After breaking away from their friends for a quiet moment together Julia reveals that she has something very important to tell Nick. Nick interrupts her with a gift necklace and then answers a call from his boss calling him back to work for an important meeting. With the mood lost Julia does not tell Nick that she is actually pregnant with his child, and the foursome cut short their holiday to return home. This fateful call, and the decision to return, sets in train a sequence of events which leads to a dreadful tragedy.

     We next see Nick a year later working for the same firm but with a work colleague Dave Bristol (David Lewis) as his supervisor. Bristol had been promoted over Nick and now is the manager from hell - picking on the smallest things and taking credit for the work of his subordinates. Nick has been having flashbacks of past events prompted by visual clues of the past such as photographs and the necklace he gave Julie. While delivering a sales pitch to potential clients Nick has another episode caused by a slideshow presentation, and is subsequently suspended for a week by the firm's boss. Back home he has another flashback prompted by a picture of him and his friends in the car returning from the camping holiday. This time however the episode results in him actually going back in time, and back to the moments preceding the tragedy. Realising what has happened he decides to take actions that avert the tragedy - the consequences of which resulting in changes to his future. As in the first Butterfly Effect movie Nick's actions have consequences which escalate each time he goes back in time to change the past. Eventually Nick has to decide on a final course of action that will leave Julie and his friends in the best possible circumstances - an action that has serious repercussions for his own reality.

     Being a direct to video release not much was expected from this movie and largely this anticipation was justified. The lead actors are certainly good looking and act well enough but the biggest problem is the very ho-hum plot and less than inspiring events which just don't have the tension of the first film. Frankly most of the time I just didn't give a d*** about whether Nick is successful at work or whether he gets the girl. Apart from the first and last past changing flashbacks the actions are all pretty self indulgent. The gratuitous sex scenes are a sure indicator of running out of ideas and, although quite nicely shot, are included as a time filler and probably to generate a bit of salacious interest. The worst aspect of this movie is that it has absolutely no suspense after the opening scenes. In a supposed "thriller" movie this is unforgivable.

     The Butterfly Effect 2 is an inferior attempt to milk the most from a successful and original foray in time travel and science fiction. Filmed with a significantly lower budget than the successful original it seems as if the producers had little intention of creating something more substantial and just wanted something quick and easy to cash in on the earlier success. Although the cast do their best it's the weak plot and lack of suspense that ultimately drag the film down. Somehow this ninety minutes of B-grade movie mush inspired a 3rd instalment which fortunately I have not watched - yet.

Video

    As you would expect this Blu-ray film is presented in 1080p however it is disappointingly in a 1.78:1 aspect rather than the cinematic 1.85:1. Icon films also annoyingly presented the first Butterfly Effect in a 1.78:1 aspect.

     Apart from this it's typical that a second rate movie has a first rate transfer to Blu-ray. This film looks really good with strong vibrant colours, minimal grain, well defined blacks and shadows, and crisp detail. Unlike the original movie the flashback sequences are not presented with a different colour palette to differentiate them from the present reality. There are no film or video artefacts evident with a very clean print on display. Overall the video quality, while not outstanding for Blu-ray, is still very good.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is encoded at a variable rate of around 2100Kb/s with no subtitles available. The alternative, according to the menu, is meant to be a Dolby Digital TrueHD track however it actually plays as a Dolby Digital 5.1 track encoded at 640Kb/s. The disc I am reviewing is pre-release so this anomaly may be rectified in the final pressings.

     As in the first movie the DTS effort is very good with surround usage at appropriate times and a thunderous subwoofer channel, especially during the flashback sequences. The surrounds aren't used as extensively as for the first movie but I'm not a fan of gratuitous surround effects anyway. In my opinion they are used appropriately to create ambient and directional effects and also to support the musical score. There are no clicks, dropouts, or any other audio flaws. The Dolby Digital 5.1 track is also very good but does not have the depth and intensity of the DTS offering. The original music score by Michael Suby, who also created the score for the first movie, is again excellent and complements the screen action very well.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

    The menu featured looping video and audio.

     Information on the US version does not seem to be available at time of review so I can't confirm whether it has the commentary track and featurette that is available on the DVD version. There are US and locally based releases also available which combine all three Butterfly Effect movies in a three disc pack or a single disc Butterfly Effect 1 and Butterfly Effect 2 combo with no extras. If you must buy this movie then it's probably best to stick to the local version until more information is available.

     In summary The Butterfly Effect 2 feels and plays like a rushed attempt to cash in on a successful original. The characters are attractive but largely self-centred and lack the empathy to make them worth worrying about. The closing scenes seem contrived and unconvincing and fail, in my opinion, to successfully conclude the threadbare plot. Needless to say there are plenty of plot holes evident and little incentive to overlook them. This Blu-ray disc has excellent video and audio but has absolutely no extras. Not recommended unless you are desperate.

     The video quality is very good. The audio quality is very good. Extras are nil.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall