Paramount Scares Vol. 2 - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

As with any non-franchise box set of this sort, you're bound to get a little bit of everything all in one go. The Paramount Scares sets are a lot like Sony's Columbia Classics 4K collections giving collections a range of titles and genres over different eras. The difference here is Paramount is keeping the set strictly on a Horror theme. Well, mostly. While I'd argue Breakdown is more of a Thriller than a Horror film, the two genre do overlap so the case can be made this fits within that designation. 

So here's what's in the box - click the title links to read the full review:

Friday the 13th: Part II 

"But most people out there don’t know Jason without his iconic hockey mask. Before Part 3-D, Jason had a simple burlap bag over his head, but what made him extra creepy was the single eye hole. The few times you got a full look at him, it was a gnarly piece of work. We had to wait until the end to see what was under that bag and it was a hell of a reveal! Now the nuts and bolts of the film may be an almost Pete and Repeat of the original's stalk-and-kill plotting, but it also expanded the lore of the franchise and laid the groundwork for the inevitable sequels. And I quite like it. It’s not my personal favorite of the series, but if I’m going to do a F13 marathon and focus strictly on Jason, I start with Friday the 13th: Part II, run through Part III and Final Chapter, skip Part V: A New Begining (because I find every character in that film insufferable) and then close out on Part VI: Jason Lives." - 3.5/5

Breakdown 

"1997 was a great year for thrillers. The Game, L.A. Confidential, Donnie Brasco, and Lost Highway were just a few of the gems that came out that year. One that I feel often gets overlooked in that shuffle is the Jonathan Mostow and Kurt Russell team-up - Breakdown. Part The Vanishing, part Duel, Breakdown skims the line of the classic everyman thriller and the everyman action film. We have an average Joe (or average Jeff in this case) who is in way over his head. He’s more brain than brawn and is pushed to the point where he has to fight back. While the film has great action sequences, it’s focused on Russell’s performance to sell the suspense with J.T. Walsh selling the terror." - 4/5

World War Z 

"While I admit I’m dunking on World War Z pretty hard, it’s not a total loss. The film is actually fairly entertaining and when it works it’s intense and exciting. You can tell when the film works best because the scenes are dynamite examples of establishing the stakes, building suspense, and then paying off with some edge-of-your-seat thrills. The opening escape is a perfect example along with one of the most terrifying airplane crash sequences. So this film has some things going for it, but a lot of the middle material is sluggish and I genuinely hate the final twist resolve for the Zombie Apocalypse. When David Fincher was circling the sequel I briefly got excited at the prospect of a genuinely good take on this material, but alas, that film never materialized and likely never will." - 2.5/5

Orphan: First Kill 

"In my eyes, this film is actually more of a Horror/Comedy than a straight Horror flick or Thriller. From the first film we know what Esther/Leena is capable of, so now it’s about letting the little terror get down to business. She wastes no time dispatching various human obstacles with a fun opening sequence. But once the setup is out of the way, I have to say things get a little flat. There’s an odd blandness to the proceedings where you question if the stilted line delivery and pace is intentional or a side effect of a prequel arriving too many years too late. However, once the film reveals itself and the blood really starts flowing, it turns into this ghastly adventure where you cheer for bloody death and gleefully chuckle with every kill." - 3/5

Vital Disc Stats: The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray 

It’s almost Halloween again and Paramount delivers a new edition of their Paramount Scares collection. For Volume 2, Paramount brings Friday the 13th: Part II, Breakdown, World War Z, and Orphan: First Kill. Each film comes home as a two-disc 4K UHD + Blu-ray set and a digital slip is included offering codes for all 4 films. Like the first volume, we get a bunch of rather cool swag items including a special Fangoria issue with articles about each film, a custom poster highlighting each film by artist Orlando Arocena, a very cool Paramount Scares stick, enamel pin, and iron-on patches for each film. Each film also gets a set-exclusive slipcover. All of the films, and swag items are held in a sturdy rectangular box. So you can keep everything together, or you can drop the individual titles on your shelf. 

Read the linked reviews above for a full breakdown of the video transfers for each film.

Read the linked reviews above for a full breakdown of the audio mixes for each film.

Each film on their own may not have the greatest selection of extras, but collectively we get some nice, worthwhile stuff. Throw in that exclusive Fangoria magazine and you're all set! All of the extras are found on the title respective Blu-ray discs. 

Friday the 13th: Part II 

• Inside ‘Crystal Lake Memories’ (HD 11:15)
• Friday’s Legacy: Horror Conventions (HD 6:50)
• Lost Tales From Camp Blood Part II (HD 8:54)
• Jason Forever (SD 29:27)
• Original Theatrical Trailer

Breakdown 

• Audio Commentary featuring Jonathan Mostow and Kurt Russell - located in Settings Menu
• Isolated Score Track - located in Settings Menu
• Filmmaker Focus - Jonathan Mostow (HD 10:46) 
• Victory is Hers: Kathleen Quinlan on Breakdown (HD 4:22)
• A Brilliant Partnership: Martha De Laurentis on Breakdown (HD 8:18)
• Alternate Opening with optional Mostow commentary (HD 11:54)
• Trailers

World War Z 

• Origins (HD 8:21)
• Looking to Science (HD 7:28)
• WWZ: Production (HD 36:18)
• Outbreak
• The Journey Begins
• Behind the Wall
• Camouflage

Paramount Scares returns for Vol 2, a four-film 4K UHD collection featuring a rather disparate range of Horror/Thrillers. Unlike the first edition, there isn’t a “secret release” so what we have is an interesting selection of fan favorites. From the 1980s we get a slasher classic with Friday the 13th: Part II. From the 1990s we have the everyman chiller thriller Breakdown. From the 2010s, we have the zombie-actioner World War Z. And last but not least, from the 2020s we get the pint-sized killer prequel Orphan: First Kill. On 4K each film looks and sounds great and aside from Orphan has a nice selection of bonus features. The set certainly is an attractive shelf piece with some fun swag items. But a collection like this isn’t always for everyone and I imagine some fans out there are likely to wait it out for single-title releases or import them (they’re due to hit the U.K. late October). But if you like sets like this, I appreciate Paramount’s effort to bring their back catalog to 4K disc. Here’s hoping we see a Paramount Scares Vol. 3 - I’ve enjoyed what’s come around thus far and the Physical Media gods know well that there are plenty of Paramount Horror titles we haven't seen on 4K yet - or even Blu-ray for that matter! And given the current price point, you're looking at around $16 a title. Not too shabby. Recommended