Fist of Legend SE (1 Viewer)

[Matthew Brown]

Another big thank you to Bey Logan for answering all my e-mails!

Here is Bey's response to my concerns about those Buena Vista subtitles and the possibility of dubtitles on the Dragon Dynasty version of Fist of Legend.

"...Our DVD will certainly feature the full Chinese version with proper English subtitles, best, Bey"


That is very good news.

 

[TheLongshot]

To be honest, after seeing the original, that might have improved the film.

Tony Jaa's films make the average HK film look like Oscar candidates.

Just as a note, I'm not a fan of cutting films without the director's permission.

Jason

 

[Matthew Brown]

They literally strung the action scenes together for the Protector. Sure, it's the only reason many people watch the movie in the first place but it removes any depth that is there. They could have called the cut version "Tony Jaa and his Amazing Stunts".

 

[George_W_K]

I only watched the UNCUT version, does the US version still have the same ending?

 

[Jeffrey Nelson]

If only their DVD of HARD-BOILED had certainly featured the full Chinese version with proper English subtitles...

:frowning:

 

[Chris Roberts]

Still no mention of Fist of Legend on their website beyond this old press release. Tai Chi Master is listed as an October release and no sign of that either. I didn't see a contact email to confirm if either is still being released.

 

[Matthew Brown]

If you e-mail Bey Logan I am sure he will get back to you. His address should be on the web site.

 

[Citizen87645]

So how come no one told me this is finally getting released tomorrow?

I can't remember the last time I was this excited about a DVD release.

http://www.dragondynasty.com/films/show/109

 

[oscar_merkx]

is this his best movie ?

 

[Ruz-El]

I think so. not as flashy as his current work, and the fights are kick ass brutal, more like Bruce Lee.

I have this on pre-order, hope it's uncut.

 

[George_W_K]

I'll wait to hear how this release turns out, although I it may be worth the upgrade solely for an anamorphic version. Is this version any different than the Dimension release? The runtime on that link is 103 minutes which is the same as the Dimension release.

 

[Citizen87645]

I'll post info as soon as I get my copy. I'm expecting that there will be an original language option as well as restored titles. To my knowledge the Dimension release did not have anything removed that would affect run time - the titles were different as was the score, but I don't believe anything was taken out.

And it is my favorite Jet Li movie, which makes it his best.

 

[Citizen87645]

Okay, here's the skinny.

Three language options: Cantonese and Mandarin in Stereo, and English in 5.1

Since it was not likely filmed with sync sound, there's probably some debate on what is the "original" language, but the first time I saw it it was in Cantonese. Mandarin is Li's native dialect but on the Cantonese track the voices seem better integrated, even though it's not Li's voice (and it doesn't sound much like Li on the Mandarin track either).

The Cantonese and Mandarin tracks have the original score and sound effects (for better or worse). However the titles are the same as the ones created for the Dimension release, which were OK, but too new looking to really fit with the rest of the film.

Now this is where it gets interesting. The English track is the same as the one on the Dimension release, down to the dubbing, which had some pretty radical changes from the original dialogue, and the different score. On the Dimension release there was a credit to Steve Edwards for the new music but on this new edition his name has been removed from the title cards.

IMDB shows the film's aspect ratio as 1.85:1 but there's not the sliver of black border on this new edition, so it looks like it's been cropped a little to 1.78:1 (anamorphic) - if you're willing to believe IMDB.

Of what I watched the image quality is pretty good. There's a bit of black crush in some shots but there's no edge enhancement or noise reduction that I can see. And the segments I watched were pretty clean - just a few specks and blemishes here and there.

As much as I like this film, I've never gone to the trouble to procure an import, mostly due to availability and price. But it's probably safe to say this is the best this film has ever looked, at least for this region.

Now when are we going to see Police Story III?

 

[Kirk Tsai]

I saw this movie theatrically when it first came out in Taiwan with a Mandarin track. It was not Li's voice. Happens fairly common, unfortunately.

 

[George_W_K]

Thanks for the quick summary Cameron. I'll probably get this to have an anamorphic version.

 

[Citizen87645]

At Best Buy there was a guy holding a copy of Forbidden Kingdom and I asked if he'd seen Fist of Legend. He hadn't. I didn't manage to get him to pick up Fist of Legend instead (he said the cover looked cartooney) , but I got him to put Forbidden Kingdom back. Which I guess is a start.

 

[oscar_merkx]

Why did you do that ?

I happen to like that movie

 

[George_W_K]

I actually bought the Blu-ray of that blind today. Haven't watched it yet though.

 

[Ken_McAlinden]

Best Buy has a two pack bundle of the Dragon Dynasty "Fist of Legend" and the 1986 Sammo Hung comedy "Shanghai Express" (aka "Millionaire's Express") for only $5 more than "Fist of Legend" by itself. They are very different films in style and tone, but I like them both, so it was a good deal for me.

Regards,

 

[Citizen87645]

Here's a review: REVIEW: ‘Fist of Legend’ (DVD - Dragon Dynasty)