City on Fire (Movie Review) + Hong Kong Legends (UK) DVD Review

City on Fire :: Hong Kong Legends

Originally posted by: Hussain on Jan 08, 2006 - 12:27 PM

 

Great film and probably the only review on the internet that does not mention Tarrantino or his Reservoir Dogs.
Alternative Titles: Lung Fu Fung Wan / Long Hu Feng Yun
Director: Ringo Lam
Main Stars: Chow Yun-fat, Danny Lee, Roy Cheung
Production Year: 1987
Studio: Hong Kong Legends (Contender Group)
Packaging: Amaray
Extras: Exclusive feature-length audio commentary with Asian Cinema Expert, Bey Logan, Portrait of Anger: An exclusive interview with acclaimed cinematographer, Andrew Lau, Long Arm of the Law: an exclusive interview with Roy Cheung, Trailer Gallery
Aspect Ratio: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio Tracks: Cantonese Dolby Digital 5.1, English dub Dolby Digital 5.1, Commentary 2.0
Subtitles: English, SDH English
Regional Coding: Region 2 PAL
Running Time: 102 minutes
Rating / Certificate: 18
Release Date: April 25th 2005
 

The Film

The death of an undercover agent disturbs the police investigation on a jewel robbing syndicate. Ko Chow (Chow Yun-fat) is assigned to continue the undercover job and enters the underworld as a weaponry dealer. He joins the jewelry gangsters and plans the next heist with them. However, his undercover work is being interfered by his own men who don't know about his undercover work. Now he finds himself trapped between the two opposing groups, the gangsters and the cops. Whatever he does, he seems doomed to be uncovered. The question that remains is on what side he will be when his true identity is revealed.
The sub plot involves the woman of Ko Chow's life who wants to get married with him. His undercover work however has made her leave him more than once and she now gives him one last chance. But how should he appear to a wedding, when at the same time he is supposed to sell firearms to a group of dangerous gangsters? Will she leave him for good? I won't reveal too much here, but all I can say is that the sub-plot works perfectly with the main storyline.

An effective cop/action story, but more importantly, it's a sober (perhaps gloomy) look at the reckless, tragic life of an undercover detective. Costars Chow Yun-fat and Danny Lee play the opposite roles that they would (2 years later) portray in The Killer. This time Chow Yun-fat is the cop who gets too emotionally involved with his thief/killer quarry, Fu (Lee).

The DVD

DVD Menus

Clearly laid out DVD menus accompany this film. Overall, they are easy to navigate and visually satisfying, not more or less. HKL have previously proven however, that they are capable of more in terms of DVD menus.

 

Picture Quality

OK... I guess it is best for you to decide for your own. Personally, I did not have a problem with the DVD transfer. Many fans of the film complain about the blue filter HKL seem to have used here. The blue tone of the original film is lost. I took comparison screenshots of the old Universe DVD and this one, so you can have a look of your own.
Apart from the missing blue tone, the film is presented in its original aspect ratio. Although the transfer does not come from a high definition master this time, HKL provide a good re-mastering of the film. Both, day and night scenes are clearly visible. Sometimes we seem to have a bit of blurriness, but mostly, the picture is totally alright. Nothing spectaular, but a usual HKL re-master of an 1980's Hong Kong film.

Audio Quality

Unfortunately, City on Fire does not come with the original Cantonese mono track. What we get again is are the 5.1 remixes in Cantonese and English. As usual, this remix is of quality. No music or sounds have been changed and no sound effects were added. Dialogue is crisp and clear and front-staged. The music and shootouts are the only sound elements (ambient noise) that you will hear from your rear speakers.

Subtitles

English subtitles are available in two forms, the usual English ones and the English ones for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. Free from mistakes, the subtitles translate everything you will hear including the songs during the film.

Special Features

In his commentary, Bey Logan examines the film from start to finish. Apart from the usual actors' and director's background he provides us with, he analyses certain scenes, their message and probable intention behind them. It was yet again an informative and interesting listen.

Apart from the commentary you will find two interviews. One with Roy Cheung (City on Fire, Infernal Affairs 2) and another one with City on Fire's cinematographer Andrew Lau. Lau would later co-direct the Infernal Affairs-trilogy. Both of the interviewees give a good insight into what the production of the film was like and how it was working with director Ringo Lam and leading actor Chow Yun-fat.

As usual, there is the UK Promotional Trailer and the Original Theatrical Trailer.

'Further Attractions' feature UK Promotional Trailers for more HKL and Premier Asia titles.

Conclusion

City on Fire is a classic film. HKL is famous for releasing classic HK films on above average DVDs, in terms of special features. Audio and video-wise however, the quality of their DVDs tend to go up and down. In April, HKL released probably one of their best discs this year, which is Duel to the Death. Every aspect of the DVD rocked. In the case of City on Fire, I'd say that the superior subtitles, the audio commentary and the interesting interviews speak for an HKL purchase. The picture quality is not bad, but people who have seen the screenshot comparisons above and think the blue tone of the film is lost, should wait for a DVD release which satisfies them more. Now that Fortune Star has this deal with HKL, they might even use their subtitles for their future release of this film.




Film 4.5/5
DVD Menus 3/5Picture 3.5/5Audio 3.5/5Subtitles 4/5Special Features 3.5/5