Blu-ray Review: SCARY MOVIE 3.5 - Insanely Funny Spoof

rating: 4

Scary Movie 3.5 is literally rammed with hilarity! Available now on Blu-ray for the first time, our review is below... Produced before the onslaught of 'Genre Movie' spoof films, Scary Movie 3.5 combines it's own (albeit light) plot with a plethora of episodic funny moments. Stupid comedy may not be everyone€™s cup of tea, but truly nothing is proved sacred here, with the film spoofing virtually everything that had any popularity in the early 2000's. Targeting everything from pop culture to blockbuster movies, Scary Movie 3.5 spoofs Signs, 8 Mile, The Ring, The Matrix, The Hours and The Sixth Sense which all have it ripped out of them, but the film remains cohesive in it's own right. All-star cameos also add to the comedy, including fantastic moments from Pamela Anderson, Jenny McCarthy, Denise Richards, Ja Rule, Fat Joe, Queen Latifah and Leslie Nielson. However, the best one is reserved for Simon Cowell, who judges a rap battle in his usual ruthless and sarcastic X Factor/American Idol way€only to get shot! Gratifying viewing for many I€™m sure! The performances for the most part anyway are about as strong as such a ridiculous film allows, with long term lead Anna Faris proving the most proficient. Faris demonstrates astute comic timing, delivering lines perfectly and generating massive laughs. She plays dumb exceptionally well, as well as being great at the physical aspects of the role and the slapstick comedy this creates. Regina Hall returns as Cindy€™s friend Brenda (who dies in every film!) and is my personal favourite character. She's sorely underused here, but in her brief appearance she induces sidesplitting laughter with her impeccable timing and deadpan delivery of her lines. Her uttering of the classic line, "Cindy, the TV's leaking..." is sheer comic perfection in my eyes and still has me rewinding to hear it again! A pre-crazy Charlie Sheen is also strong here, giving a performance that combines tongue in cheek dramatics with a slapstick performance of natural instinct. Hilarious support comes from the likes of Simon Rex as George, Cindy€™s love interest and Anthony Anderson as his homey Mahalik. Both deliver their lines with solid comic timing and play dumb as well as Faris (their best and funniest scene comes when they try to resuscitate the body of Brenda at her wake!). However, their performances fail to impress quite as much as others.

QUALITY

The visual quality of Scary Movie 3.5 is very adept. It could even be argued that the film actually looks better than some contemporary releases do in HD. Lionsgate have tidied up the print nicely and transferred a distinctly good quality copy to Blu-ray. Images are virtually free from all grain (there€™s occasionally a little bit noticeable in some shots, but this is barely noticeable) and other blemishing or image distortion is all but removed entirely. The only images that let down the quality and prevent the quality from being essentially perfect are the stock footage shots. Most notably in the establishing shot of the White House, the image quality is decidedly poorer and more noticeable imperfections are apparent. However, such shots are few and far between, meaning that the images are distinctly good quality. Small and minor details are crystal clear on screen, helping improve definition and make the viewing experience that little bit more exceptional. Colours are vivid and bold, with an expansive range and multiple tones. Skin tones look even and natural, not too heavily made up (apart, of course, from the actor playing Michael Jackson!) or unrealistic. The depth of blacks and greys is impressive, meaning that darker images do not blur or merge in any way. Visual effects remain impressive and even the prosthetic alien costumes don€™t look any more ridiculous than they did on standard definition DVD! The audio quality is similarly proficient, with a clear and clean dialogue stream throughout the run time. Scary Movie 3.5 is heavily reliant upon special sound effects and these fill the full range of speakers, but without ever being overpowering. The rap battle sequence is one of the best sounding scenes within the film, with a depth and sense of reality that has never been achieved before in standard definition releases of the film. The heavy bass laden tracks that George and Fat Joe spit rhymes could literally make viewers€™ television vibrate and audiences won€™t help but feel entirely immersed in the scene. The original soundtrack score takes inspiration from conventional horror film pieces, with tense and thrilling compositions highlighting key moments within the narrative. Essentially, Lionsgate€™s lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix is compelling and accomplished.

EXTRAS

A host of entertaining and engaging special features are housed on the Bluray. Viewers can expect to find the following on the single disc release: € NEW Audio Commentary with Director David Zucker, Producer Robert K. Weiss & Writers Craig Mazin and Pat Proft - This informative and engaging commentary covers a range of subjects and will undoubtedly please even the most ardent of Scary Movie fans! € NEW Deleted and Extended Scenes - This collection of deleted scenes is interesting and many of them are very funny, but for the most part it's understandable why they hit the cutting room floor as they're simply not at the same level as what was kept in the final cut. € Making Scary Movie 3 - Cast and crew discuss the production in every aspect in this engaging making of documentary. Coupled with some informative behind the scenes footage and plenty of clips from the film, viewers really do get a sense of what went in to the making of the production. € Making Scary Movie 3...For Real - Cast and crew give a series of humorous interviews and a collection of funny behind the scenes clips add a comical twist to the usual making of formula. A lot of this should be taken with a pinch of salt though, as I'm not sure that Shakespeare's The Tempest is really the motivation behind the films narrative! € Outtakes and Bloopers - This series of mishaps and line fluffs is funny, bit not as funny as the film itself! € Alternate Ending - A relatively funny alternative ending can be viewed either with or without comedy. It's more farcical than the one that filmmakers went with, seeing George transform into the Hulk and defeating the aliens and Queen Latifah returning to save Cindy! It's a more longwinded conclusion and loses it's way slightly, so most viewers will probably be happy with the chosen one. € Hulk Vs. Aliens: Behind the Scenes of the Alternate Ending - This fun and informative mini documentary looks at the special effects that went into the production of the alternate ending. Film: 4 out of 5 With a plot that cleverly intertwines elements from a host of big budget, popular blockbusters that are familiar to most viewers, Scary Movie 3.5 is arguably the most solid of the franchises€™ outings. Humorous, ridiculous and vulgar, it€™s exactly what viewers€™ want in spoof and ranks with the best of them (including the holy grail of spoofs, the Naked Gun series€but then again, it was helmed by the same director responsible for these!). Visuals: 4 out of 5 Bold and well-defined visuals make Scary Movie 3.5 look excellent on screen. Free from virtually all grain and other image distortion, the film has transferred exceptionally well to HD. Audio: 4 out of 5 The audio is strong on Lionsgate€™s Blu-ray, with crystal clear dialogue throughout and a full range of immersive sound effects and musical soundtracks. Extras: 4 out of 5 A host of solid, engaging, informative and humorous special features accompany the film, so fans and casual viewers alike will undoubtedly find some extra-textual material to sink into. Presentation: 3 out of 5 The front cover reuses the original DVD release imagery, so it€™s a little dull but effective enough. The video menu looks good, but is slightly over-complicated to use. Overall: 4 out of 5 Insanely funny and receiving a high quality release, get some Scary Movie 3.5 in your life! Scary Movie 3.5 is out on Blu-ray now.