The second installment of Jeepers Creepers not only comes with more Creeper, but it comes with more picture as well as the aspect ratio has been bumped up to an anamorphically-enhanced 2.35:1 widescreen transfer for the sophomore effort. The film looked really nice and detailed, but it presented some small, albeit nit-picky issues that kept it from obtaining a higher score than it did. That’s not to say the transfer was bad – it was far from it – it’s just that Jeepers Creepers 2 presented some unusual flaws for such a recent, big name film.
That being said, the film looks really sharp and defined for the most part and the colors and hues in the film come across very strong and properly saturated. There was some noticeable filtering employed in the film for effect and MGM’s transfer made sure that it didn’t become too overpowering or distracting. Certain amounts of softness seemed deliberate and caused the image to come across a bit supple and less defined, although not at distracting levels. Bleeding or smearing were not a concern whatsoever and the film always maintained excellent contrast and balance throughout. Black levels were strong in the film and allowed for acceptable shadow detail and delineation. The master print for the film seemed to be in pristine condition, as flakes and flecks were held nicely at bay. I did notice a couple of instances early on, but they were of the “blink and you’ll miss it” variety. I’ve seen stronger transfers overall in other MGM titles, but for what it’s worth, Jeepers Creepers 2 looks pretty nice.
The image does suffer from a few anomalies however, as there was some subtle blockiness and compression artifacting noted from time to time, as the single-disc seems quite full with its roster of supplements and alternate audio tracks. Edge enhancement and haloing were also seen, but failed to distract from the picture itself. While these seem to be some pretty major problems coming from a studio like MGM on a rather big title for them, they actually aren’t that severe and don’t detract from the viewing of the film too much at all.
MGM’s transfer was well-done, but not quite up to snuff with other hyped films of the time. Even so, Jeepers Creepers 2 looked pretty impressive and fans will find little fault with the studio’s efforts.
MGM outfits Jeepers Creepers 2 with a Dolby Digital 5.1 audio transfer that suits the material well. The track does an excellent job of engaging the viewer, as it allows for a very atmospheric and moody presentation. While it’s not on par with some of the bigger action blockbusters of 2003, Jeepers Creepers 2 comes across as a very pleasurable auditory experience.
The film is full of activity and it translates well to the DVD, as your system will get a decent workout while spinning Jeepers Creepers 2. There was a pleasing amount of surround activity that will engage your speakers often and it all sounds great … exhibiting excellent dynamics, frequency response, and fidelity. Sound design was clever and effective for what is essentially a low-budget feature and it really made viewing the film more pleasurable than had the principals simply gone through the motions. Front surrounds remain actively engaged throughout, while your rear surrounds kick in during the more active scenes in the film and add nice reinforcement for Bennett Salvay’s very impressive and always appropriate score. Low end was very strong during the film and again, added nice strengthening for the score, while dialogue was always front, center, and easily understood.
Along with the Dolby Digital 5.1 option, we also have selections for Spanish and French tracks in Dolby Stereo Surround, as well as subtitles in English, Spanish, and French. Ultimately, MGM has created a well-rendered and authored track for Jeepers Creepers 2 and fans will find themselves impressed with the studio’s efforts.
MGM’s disc comes with some really nice supplemental material that includes a couple of Audio Commentaries. One features writer/director Victor Salva & Cast, while the other features Jonathan Breck, storyboard artist Brad Parker, and make-up and effects artist Brian Penikas.
The first commentary features Salva and his cast of teens (Eric Nenninger, Josh Hammond, Nicki Lynn Aycox, Marieh Delfino, Garikayi Mutambirwa and Shaun Flemming) and they have a really great time in joining their director for this feature-length affair. With so many participants, you might imagine that the commentary is pretty lively … and you’d be right. There’s rarely a dead or dull moment here and all involved seemed to have had a really great time working together on the film, as well as on the commentary. There are more light-hearted moments than not here and surprisingly, there were even some decent (albeit breezy) comments included about making the film itself. Salva spends a lot of time heaping praise on his actors and doesn’t delve too deep into his processes for writing and/or directing, but he’s a welcome addition to the track nonetheless. While not the most informative commentary on filmmaking methods and particulars, this was a very raucous and boisterous affair that was a lot of fun to listen to, even if you didn’t care for the film itself.
The second commentary, aka the “Creeper Commentary”, was a lot of fun as well. Breck and his two cohorts offer a lot of insight into what it took to bring his rather menacing character to life on the big screen (from stunts to makeup to digital effects) and they have a lot of fun offering up anecdotes from behind-the-scenes and on the set. It’s a very lightweight and lighthearted affair and fans of the film should really enjoy this informative and breezy affair.
The DVD boasts a lot of great footage from behind-the-scenes and on the set, as Salva’s participation allows for some great insight and featurettes on MGM’s release. The big supplement here is entitled Lights, Action, Creeper: Making Jeepers Creepers 2 and it’s broken down into four different sections: “Lights, Camera, Creeper” (15:22), “Creeper Creation” (11:18), “Creeper Composer” (9:14), and “Digital Effects” (5:21). In the first selection, Salva discusses the sequel in great detail and how he had never intended to create a sequel at all. He tells us how Francis Ford Coppola convinced him to do one and all of the major script rewrites that took place while the film was being developed (JC2 was originally supposed to follow the characters from the first film and the kids on the bus were simply a side-story). He also espouses his young cast (full of many actors in their first feature), the digital effects and stunts used in the film, and even the camaraderie on the set.
”Creeper Creation” is a pretty straightforward supplement that takes us through the process of creating the Creeper and how storyboarding initially brought him to life. We also get some input here from the effects and make-up artists and they show us how they took the concepts from paper and brought them to a three-dimensional reality. “Creeper Composer” is pretty telling as well, as we get a nice featurette on composer Bennett Salvay and the really great work he did on composing the score for Jeepers Creepers 2. Lastly, we have “Digital Effects” and in surprisingly the shortest feature of the bunch, we see a lot of montage footage of before, during, and after effects of characters and elements seen in the film.
A Day In Hell (26:42) is next and it runs as a video diary from the 41st day of shooting as we follow director Victor Salva from the time he’s being driven to the set until the end of shooting on that particular day. Salva does a lot of commentary over the video and fills us in moment by moment what’s going on. He was also “mic’ed” all day long, so we get to hear his remarks and observations throughout the long, laborious day. This was a really great feature and it gives us just a taste of what a day on the set of a feature film is like. Good stuff.
Following are Deleted Scenes and Moments (15:50) and here, we get a nice helping of deleted scenes and lines from Jeepers Creepers 2. The scenes run back-to-back without any introduction or separation and they are all anamorphically-enhanced with feature film quality. Some scenes were good, some were tossers and while their inclusion was appreciated, it would have been nice to have a bit of commentary accompanying them.
The Creeper’s Lair (4:07) and Ventriloquist Creeper (1:26) are two storyboard sequences that present us with storyboarded ideas that never made the final cut of the film. Both are given snippets of the film’s score to accompany them.
A couple of still galleries are included on the disc as well. One is in the form of a Photo Gallery (6:59) that runs as a slideshow with publicity stills, stills from the set, and stills from the film itself. There’s also the Behind The Scenes Photo Gallery that gives us 50 or so navigable stills (using our –LEFT- and –RIGHT- remote buttons) from the DVD menu shoot. (The DVD menus incorporate the Creeper from time to time).
Rounding out the disc is the film’s Theatrical Trailer, as well as a promotional bit for Other MGM Releases which includes trailers for MGM Means Great Movies, Jeepers Creepers, Shredder, Bulletproof Monk, and some cover shots for other MGM DVDs.
Totally forgettable and uninspired, Jeepers Creepers 2 fails to generate any horror or suspense at all. Salva should have stuck to his “no sequel” mantra and kept from trying to cash in on a very memorable … and quite popular … first film. If more sequels are in the works for the Creeper that are this bland and insipid, maybe Salva should release them as often as the Creeper himself is … every 23 years. A weekend rental at best and only for hardcore fans of first film at that.
