Jaws 2: A Portrait by Actor Keith Gordon– Actor Keith Gordon who played Doug in the movie (and best-known for playing Jason Melon in Back to School) was the only one to go onto other films both as a actor and director. For fans of Steven Spielberg’s Jaws, this long-awaited 4K Ultra HD release has been well worth the wait. Just in a streaming experience, I’ve had the worst luck with Peacock 4K streams as they often start out looking great, but for whatever reason after about ten to fifteen minutes it shifts back to SDR 1080p and will stay that way.

Sure, there’s nothing to “new” about a great white shark eating people off the coast of a New England island community, but dang did the filmmakers come up with some clever ways for this toothy killer to enjoy a snack.We reviewed the region free UK Ultra HD Blu-ray release of Jaws 2 on a JVC-DLA N5 Ultra HD 4K projector and a Panasonic DP-UB9000 Dolby Vision HDR10 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player. Housed in a two-disc case, the disc loads to a static image main menu with the bonus features panel along the right side of the screen.

The cast of JAWS 2 includes Roy Scheider, reprising his role as Police Chief Martin Brody, Lorraine Gary as Brody's wife Ellen, and Murray Hamilton as Mayor Larry Vaughn. So while it never gets close to the majesty of the first film, this sequel remains infinitely better than it had any right to be. Some reviews have stated that there has been additional clean up work done on the audio, resulting in a better sound experience than the previous 1080p release.This transfer steps that back a tad and evens out brightness levels, keeping whites nice and bright without blooming and blacks and shadows strong without crush. The safe money is probably on the main poster design, which sees the great white shark rising up against behind the unsuspecting water-skier, echoing one of the key stand out moments from the Jeannot Szwarc directed film. Everyone knows the dolly zoom shot, much imitated, never bettered, but the wipe cuts immediately preceding it form part of the whole, a prelude, if you will, as we move closer to Brody ramping the tension with every cut.

Yet remarkably, this film still looks like a production of its day—it retains that familiar Eastman color look.The 4K UHD from Universal is terrific; the native 4K picture is blistering with absolute detail, incredible colouring and stunning blacks, while the Dolby Atmos surround track adds an extra layer to what is an already top notch sound track. Setting it in Amity with the Brodys front and centre was a necessary link back to the first film and they are exactly as we remember them, thanks to Scheider’s and Gary’s continued warm, emotional and wholly rounded performances. Jaws was shot using Arriflex 35-III and Panavision Panaflex on 35mm film, with subsequent scanning at 4K resolution to form a native 4K DI. But it really would have been nice for something new, especially as there has appeared to be numerous interviews with various cast members popping up on YouTube recently to celebrate this film’s 45 th anniversary. There’s nothing new here, what’s included are the same series of supplements found on the previously-released Blu-ray.

Only a couple of image tweaks have been done (notably an adjustment to ensure that the brightness levels of the night sky, as seen through the windows of the Orca’s cabin, match at all times) but these were visible in the 2012 Blu-ray as well (reviewed here at The Bits). Though plagued with production problems from the get go, be prepared for more of the same (da da dum…) music and a more elaborate score from John Williams. I like this artwork more and i hope it won't arrive with brown line defect like all Jaws 2 steels did. A shame that can't be said about the next one…or the next one…or pretty much every other shark movie sequel ever made.The discovery of Chrissie’s body stands out for me; Brody, aghast as the sceptic, turns to look at the ocean – bang, right there, Spielberg subconsciously implants death with the sea; already our heckles are up… there’s something deadly in the water. Just when you thought it was safe to get your DVD or Bluray copy of JAWS 2 out, it is headed for a 4K release. Anniversary Edition is on 4K Ultra HD™ and Collectors Edition Steelbook from Universal and is available now. audio or an Atmos or DTS:X mix, but I’m one of those people that feels that kind of upgrade isn’t always necessary or needed to enjoy a classic.