It's not enough to knock this sequel down enough however. There is a great false ending and this time around, and light actually fills the set. The brief and sometimes difficult glimpses of the title monstrosities are gone and the movie is better for it. This is simply one of the rare ones to actually eclipse the original. (**** out of *****)
Like every film in this series on DVD, viewers can watch either widescreen (1.85:1) or pan & scan on the same side of the disc. Mostly because this sequel features extensive light, this one looks a lot better than the first disc. It's a soft transfer, but the gorgeous color in addition to no compression problems make this one a winner. Yes, some light grain is noticeable, but it's rarely bad enough to become a problem. When night does fall, things remains the same, only now the solid black levels keep everything together. The print used is flawless too with barely any damage. (****)
The best improvement this disc contains over the first DVD is the audio. Scratchy dialogue is not a problem here. It's all very clean with no distortion. Bass is strong (but not that powerful) in the 5.1 mix, especially towards the end when things start going up in flames. Ambient effects like bird chirps fill the sound field and there are a few minor moments where the rear speakers find work, but it's not spectacular. The best work remains in the stereo channels where positional audio really shows what it can do. (****)
I hope you enjoy trailers because they are the only included feature. You'll see one for each film in the series. The DVD-ROM extras only link the viewer to websites that no longer exist. (*)
If little alien monsters are your thing, they don't come much better than this. The film made enough at the box office to warrant a third film in the series which then set up the series for the final entry. Mick Garris, who directed this and the short-lived "Nightmare on Elm Street" TV series has only stepped behind the camera a few times since.
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