{"id":41750,"date":"2023-11-14T18:29:17","date_gmt":"2023-11-14T23:29:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/?p=41750"},"modified":"2023-11-14T18:34:25","modified_gmt":"2023-11-14T23:34:25","slug":"meg-2-the-trench-2023-blu-ray-digital","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/2023\/11\/14\/meg-2-the-trench-2023-blu-ray-digital\/","title":{"rendered":"Meg 2: The Trench (2023) [Blu-Ray\/Digital]"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>I liked \u201cThe Meg\u201d enough to consider it a fun bit of James Cameron-lite entertainment, but I wasn\u2019t exactly clamoring for a sequel. With \u201cThe Meg 2,\u201d director Ben Wheatley leans heavily in to more unique elements allowing Jason Statham to be more physically active this time around, while also embracing the Asian influence. You just know Statham requested at least one action sequence of him fighting bad guys, hence the re-introduction of Jonas Taylor. Taylor is still a brainy scientist, but he\u2019s also an ecological activist who skirts the law by breaking on to ships and stealing information from criminals. While \u201cThe Meg\u201d was basically \u201cThe Abyss\u201d meets \u201cDeep Blue Sea,\u201d this time around director Ben Wheatley opts more for \u201cJurassic World\u201d meets \u201cThe Deep.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Returning hero Jonas Taylor leads a research team on an exploratory dive into the deepest depths of the ocean. Their voyage spirals into chaos when a malevolent mining operation threatens their mission and forces them into a high-stakes battle for survival. Pitted against colossal, prehistoric sharks and relentless environmental plunderers, they must outrun, outsmart and out swim their merciless predators.<\/p>\n

The Meg we see this time around is not the vicious Meg from the previous film, but now a more docile animal that the crew from the previous film is trying to study. She\u2019s tame in the way that a lion in captivity is tame, but any moment she can attack. There are obvious parallels here drawn from the tame raptor and Chris Pratt\u2019s character in \u201cJurassic World,\u201d even with a scene of Wu Jing\u2019s character testing the limits of the domesticated Meg. \u201cMeg 2\u201d knows exactly what kind of movie is, that why it\u2019s so critic proof. It\u2019s silly, and long, and droning, and measures its violence just enough to where it pushes that PG-13 rating but can be viewed safely on basic cable in a year or two.<\/p>\n

To its credit the characters are fun with returning cast mates Statham, Page Kennedy, Cliff Curtis, and Shuya Sophia Cai, respectively. Li Bingbing\u2019s character from \u201cThe Meg\u201d is explained as having died over the few years prior to this movie, but her daughter Meiying (Sophia Cai) picks up the slack as the spunky teen sidekick who gets in to trouble alongside Statham and Wu Jing, who plays her scientist uncle Jiuming. \u201cThe Meg 2\u201d isn\u2019t a great movie, nor is it a particularly good one. But in the arena of giant monster adventure movies, you could do worse.<\/p>\n

This release includes a Digital Copy<\/strong> redemption code for consumers, and a scant inclusion of features; scant being the operating word, here. \u201cThe Making of Meg 2: The Trench\u201d <\/strong>is a short thirteen minutes promotional-style piece with a brief overview of the production with clips on-set, and interview segments featuring director Ben Wheatley, the producers, SFX supervisors, production designers, and the entire cast, sans Statham, obviously. Finally, \u201cUp From the Depths: Even More Beasts\u201d <\/strong>is a similar nine minutes behind-the-scenes piece featuring concept artwork, more on-set footage, and many of the same cast interviews (sans Statham, of course) shedding light on the brand-new creatures and action set-pieces created for the follow up.<\/p>\n