Why So Blu?

The Nun II (4K UHD Blu-ray Review)

The Conjuring Universe is one that takes its time and doesn’t overload us with features and television, despite continued success time in and time out. The Nun II is the latest entry. A sequel to the smash success on the spinoff character from the second Conjuring movie, this one saw itself some rock solid financials as well as improved response from both critics and moviegoers alike. Now, it arrives on 4K Ultra-HD with a Dolby Atmos track and a pair of featurettes. The Nun II will release on November 14th. You can order yourself a copy by utilizing the paid Amazon Associates link below.

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Film

1956 – France.  A priest is murdered. An evil is spreading. The sequel to the worldwide smash hit follows Sister Irene as she once again comes face-to-face with Valak, the demon nun.

Unlike the other spinoff series, Annabelle, The Nun II is a direct follow up to its predecessor. Taissa Farmiga returns to continue her torment at the hands of the demonic Nun entity. Even though that first film fell quite short, she was one of the brighter spots in the film, so her return is very welcome. She’s even better in this one and really proves to be quite a captivating and more commanding than she’s been before while showing a generosity to her costars.

Michael Chaves is now a veteran director on The Conjuring series, both canon and not quite canon (He directed that The Curse of La Lallorna movie that was and wasn’t of the series). He seems to have a knack for bits in this movie and strings them all together quite well. Chaves is giddy to have the Nun appear and disappear from places which almost makes a game of trying to see her in the darkness in the film or perhaps even thinking you did when you didn’t. His visuals here are quite good and genuine which add a lot more to the production value over the first film.

Also adding to it is the cinematography which seems to capture a similar film and locale just a whole lot better. It feels so much bigger and a lot more spacious than the fist film. The environment feels of an antique era in both beauty and creepiness. As I mentioned, there are some decent, creative horror/suspense sequences, but helping them out is how they look and move. Just a more interesting use of angles and display of scale in here really just make it better to look at and engage with.

The Nun II follows Annabelle in improving with its sequel. However, its not as big a jump as that series (Which argues to be maybe the best Conjuring film of all), but a welcome one and an entertaining film that won’t be a chore to go back to when marathoning this series in lieu of a new entry. Its also nice how it stands all upon its own a part of its own lore despite a midcredits scenes insinuating something else may be to come.

Video

Disclaimer: Screen captures used in the review are from promotional images supplied by the studio, not the 4K UHD Blu-ray disc.

Encoding: HEVC / H.265

Resolution: 4K (2160p)

Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1

Layers: BD-66

Clarity/Detail: The Nun II comes with a lovely transfer in it is debut on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray. This is a very dark film for most of the runtime and this handles it all quite well via good contrast and HDR. Its a crisp and clean image with sharp picture showcasing very fine details. Special effects hold up quite well to the 4K scrutiny.

Depth: Depth of field is quite strong, with the photography really opening up a big scale both in the exteriors as well as the giant rooms inside the big churches and buildings. Movements are smooth and natural with no issues of distortion occurring from rapid camera or actor movements.

Black Levels: Blacks are probably the biggest player in this transfer. They are natural and very deep. Contrast helps more colors and skin tones stand out. Its shaded quite well with different tines to allow for visibility of finer details, textures and patterns in the darkest areas of the frame. no crushing witnessed.

Color Reproduction: This isn’t the most colorful film, but there are areas where ones do pop quite well. There are some nice moments of glowing eyes or raging flames that really lift up off the screen with a good glow coming from the HDR.

Flesh Tones: Skin tones are natural and consistent from start to finish of the film. Facial features and textures like freckles, blemishes, dried blood/dirt, make-up strokes, special effects makeup and more look quite clear as day from any given distance in the frame.

Noise/Artifacts: Clean

Audio

Audio Format(s): English Dolby Atmos, English 5.1 Dolby Digital, English Descriptive Audio, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital

Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French

Dynamics: The Nun II comes with a very dynamic and super playful Dolby Atmos track that rocks the room and creeps you out all over the place. There is a great balance in play with playful volume construction for good effect and jumps throughout. Layering and depth prove quite strong in building space and making the effects work feel authentic in your viewing space.

Height: There’s an excellent moment in the film where a girl is in bed and hears something rolling, walking and wandering above her, moving in a direction toward the left side of the room. Its rather lifelike hearing it from the ceiling speakers. This is the kind of fun, and powerful moments found throughout the film with good volume and effectiveness.

Low Frequency Extension: The subwoofers hit pretty hard when it comes to musical stings, roaring flames, crashing, slamming on walls and more.

Surround Sound Presentation: If the ceiling description didn’t convey enough, this mix really fills the room with ghoulish joy. Rear and side channels emanate a good ambiance as well as unique effects carrying angle changes and offscreen activity as well as help to roll sound around the room with good force.

Dialogue Reproduction:  Vocals are crisp and clear.

Extras

The Nun II comes with a redeemable digital code.

The Nun II: Demons In Paradise (HD, 5:04) – James Wan discusses exploring more of the origins of the Nun character. Taissa Farmiga and crew discuss how important France was to the film and keeping authentic to the area and the time period.

Handcrafter Nightmares (HD, 7:02) – This takes a look at some of the creepy sequences of the film and how practical effects were utilized in them. Includes previsualization storyboard animations and behind the scenes footage of make-up being done.

Summary

The Nun II is an improvement upon the first film and a decent little haunt to pass you by should you be looking for one. This 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray release comes with a top notch presentation with a fantastic Dolby Atmos track. The extras are brief but informative and effective for how short they are. This is a pick up at a discounted price certainly, and probably for The Conjuring collectors or horror completionists first an foremost.

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