Blu-ray Review Comedy

'Ted 2' Blu-ray Review: Fuzzy and foul-mouthed sequel brings the funny

December 15, 2015Ben MK



FEATURE: 
Usually, when you think "talking teddy bear," you imagine it being a child's imaginary friend. But what would happen if that child never outgrew the bond between him and his cuddly best pal? That was the premise behind 2012's Ted. Now the Thunder Buddies are back in Ted 2. And while this sequel doesn't necessarily innovate, it does a pretty good job of recapturing what made the first film so special.

It's been three years since we last saw John Bennett (Mark Wahlberg) and Ted (voiced by co-writer/director Seth MacFarlane), and a lot has changed in their lives. Of course, John married his sweetheart, Lori (Mila Kunis). And now Ted too is getting hitched to the woman of his dreams, fellow grocery store clerk Tami-Lynn (Jessica Barth). But if you think Lori and Tami-Lynn will be hosting dinner parties anytime soon, think again. Ted 2 finds John newly-divorced and Ted's marriage on the rocks, with the latter situation providing the impetus for the foul-mouthed shenanigans and gross-out gags this time around.

When Ted and Tami-Lynn decide the best way to fix their marriage is to adopt a child, Ted discovers that the state of Massachusetts doesn't view him as a person, and that prompts him to hire pot-smoking lawyer Samantha L. Jackson (Amanda Seyfried). Long story short, the script by MacFarlane, Alec Sulkin and Wellesley Wild leaves the door wide open for celebrity cameos and pop culture references galore, as Samantha tries to school John and Ted on the American legal system, before the trio embark on a road trip to seek out powerhouse attorney Patrick Meighan (Morgan Freeman), Ted's last best hope for proving his personhood.

Needless to say, their journey is about as un-pc as a movie can get. With that in mind, it's a minor miracle that when Ted 2 tries its hand at sincerity, it somehow manages to pull it off. Unfortunately, the all-too-predictable romance that develops between John and Samantha is mostly a bore to sit through. Still, the heart and soul of the story — Ted's friendship with John — remains intact; and as for Ted himself, he remains as lovably offensive as ever. Of course, Ted 2 isn't for everyone. But for audiences who enjoy their crassness with a side of compassion, it's certainly more than bearable.

AUDIO & VISUALS: 
Ted 2's cinematography isn't especially showy, but the Blu-ray picture quality is uniformly excellent, whether it's an outdoor scene set in a giant pot field or an indoor scene set in a courtroom or in John's Boston apartment. The image exhibits vibrant coloring, strong contrast and deep black levels, and fine details such as the texturing of Ted's soft fur are highly resolved. As for the film's sound mix, it's more or less what you might expect from your modern-day comedy, comprised mainly of dialogue, interspersed with the occasional bit of music (whether it be an 80's pop song or an old-timey show tune). Either way, the audio comes across loud and clear thanks to the disc's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack, which also capably handles additional sound effects like the sound of a car crashing through the roof of a barn or the sound of punches being thrown during a chaotic brawl.

EXTRAS: 
Universal's two-disc Blu-ray release include an iTunes/UltraViolet digital copy and a DVD, plus both theatrical and unrated versions of the film, as well as the following Blu-ray extras:

  • Deleted Scenes (4:24) - Seven scenes ("Buy My Shoes, " "WWI," "We Should Celebrate," "No Rules," "Text Tami-Lynn," "Greek Orthodox" and "Outside Meighan's Office").
  • Gag Reel (2:39) - Silliness and outtakes from the set.
  • Thunder Buddies 4 Lyfe (7:28) - A piece about the relationship between John and Ted, what's happened to them since the first film, and what happens in this sequel, which also touches on the new character played by Seyfried and features some behind-the-scenes footage.
  • Creating Com-Con (14:44) - A four-part look at the creation of the movie's New York Comic-Con sequence, focusing on the set, the costumes, the sequence's big fight scene and, finally, the climactic confrontation between Ted and an old enemy.
  • Cameo Buddies (7:07) - A look at some of the film's most memorable cameos and smaller roles, specifically Morgan Freeman, Tom Brady, Liam Neeson and David Hasselhoff.
  • A Giant Opening Dance Number (8:48) - A behind-the-scenes look at the film's musical title sequence, which deals with the choreography, the dancers, the rehearsals, the set and costume design, the visual effects and the filming of the actual sequence.
  • Roadtripping (8:51) - A piece about the road trip element of the movie, from the homage to Planes, Trains & Automobiles to the "barn pot field" sequence.
  • Feature Commentary with Producer/Director/Co-Writer Seth MacFarlane, Executive Producers/Co-Writers Alec Sulkin & Wellesley Wild and Star Jessica Barth - Available on both the theatrical and the unrated cut, this extremely casual track has the four recounting their stories from principal photography, joking around and talking about random things, including the movie's cameos, the references to other films, the visual effects, the improvisation, the performances and more.

Ted 2 is available from Universal Studios Home Entertainment as of December 15th, 2015. The Blu-ray features English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French and Spanish DTS 5.1, and English Dolby Digital 2.0 Descriptive Audio tracks. Subtitles are presented in English SDH, French and Spanish. The total runtime is 1 Hr. 57 Mins. (Theatrical Version) and 2 Hrs. 6 Mins. (Unrated Version).





* Reviewer's note: Portions of this Blu-ray review were adapted from my original review of the theatrical release, published on June 25th, 2015.


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