Spinal Tap II: The End Continues - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Spinal Tap II: The End Continues



Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:



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Movie
While 1984’s This is Spinal Tap has become a cult mockumentary classic, this wasn’t always the case for the film. Back in 1984 (when I was all of 2 years old), the box office results were fairly mild and the general public really didn’t come out to see the film in any large capacity. It wasn’t till the 90s that it garnered the sort of attention that a post hard rock world sort of latched onto. Overnight it became a classic with co-stars Christopher Guest, Michael McKean (who I always see as Mr. Green in Clue) and Harry Shearer keeping the name alive via guest appearances, comedy skits, and actually touring as the fake band, “Spinal Tap”, themselves. To this days it’s sort of a legend in the cinephile universe as being one of the most hilarious rock mockumentaries of all time.

I’m going to admit that I was rather skeptical about a sequel being made 41 years after the original film came out. Sure, sequels that have large breaks in time between production can be decent, but 41 years? That’s a tough sell considering how iconic the original film is in our hearts and minds. So I was a bit nervous going into this viewing hoping that it wouldn’t simply be a vanity project that tarnishes the memory we had of the original.

In the world of the film, Spinal Tap continued on making music (even though the original “documentary” revolved around their final tour back in 1984) after the embarrassing documentary that Marty Di Bergi (Rob Reiner) did on them, but ended up breaking up 15 years ago due to conflict between the band mates. The daughter of their old deceased manager comes up with the bright idea to get the band back together one more time to do a legacy tour in hopes of pulling in some quick cash from the gig. Deciding to try again with the documentary that went awry 41 years ago, Marty grabs his camera crew and films band mates as they struggle to come to grips with getting back together again after all these years.

The film is luckily brief and moves at a quick pace, content to center around the 3 band mates trying to get back into their old groove, and deal with the unreasonable demands of the concert promoter Simon (Chris Addison). Rob Reiner slips back into the role of Marty with relative ease, playing the lovable goofball that made his career the one that it is. But it’s really the three “rock stars” that make the movie. Nigel (Guest) and David (Michael McKean) steal the show, with Nigel hamming it up as the clueless cheese merchant, and David does his best to look like a bumbling oaf (a role that McKean does impeccably).

Simultaneously, we get a revolving door of legendary musicians cropping up throughout the film, ranging from Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Paul McCartney, and Elton John himself for a massive finale. And while cameos don’t really make a film great, it adds a layer of authenticity and fun for music fans to point them out playing their respective roles. Personally I thought the film surpassed most people's expectations, and largely because most people weren't expecting a whole lot from this. But all involved VERY obviously are having a blast, and that translates on screen to the audience well, resulting in a rather decent picture.




Rating:

Rated R for violent/disturbing content, sexual content, graphic nudity, language and brief drug content.





Video:

The 1.85:1 AVC encoded image looks fantastic, and definitely a glossy digital image that mimics the cameras used for modern documentary’s quite well. The studio scenes tend to look a bit warm, with a slight push to the amber and brown tones, while outside of the studio things look a lot more bright and bold. Fine details are impressive all around (sometimes a bit TOO good, as Michael McKean’s wig is a bit too obvious at times) and black levels more than exemplary. Costuming is well textured and gives off stunning detail, and except for some very mild banding, I can find no major fault in the image.









Audio:

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA track isn’t exactly going to stretch the limitations of the lossless format, but it does really well with what we have. Large swathes of the film are simple dialog exchanges, so we’re not going to blow the doors off with the band mates yapping at each other. There’s some mild ambiance in Bobby’s office (god, I love Fran Drescher), but it’s really the musical numbers that light up the sound stage with activity. Instrumental are done beautifully, and I forgot just how well the actors could actually sing (but shouldn’t be shocking as they actually toured as the band). All in all, a solid track that does everything well even though it may not be a shock and awe type of movie.









Extras:

• Deleted Scenes
• Trailers

Final Score:

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I honestly liked Spinal Tap II: The End Continues a lot more than I thought I would. It’s not a perfect sequel, but being that This is Spinal Tap wasn’t a smash hit back in 1984, maybe in a few years this will climb in my esteem as well. That being said, it’s not perfect, but the 3 main stars (4 if you include Rob Reiner) are having a blast with their old roles, hamming it up as goofy rock stars who’ve snorted too much booger sugar over the years, and dealing with the ravages of age. Not perfect, but definitely fun.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer, Rob Reiner
Directed by: Rob Reiner
Written by: Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Rob Reiner
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 AVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 5.1, English DVS
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Studio: Decal Releasing
Rated: R
Runtime: 83 minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: November 11th, 2025

Recommendation: Fun Watch

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