Best Jackie Chan releases? (1 Viewer)

[Joe Wong]

Dragons Forever is supposedly coming out on the Hong Kong Legends label (R2).

Also, Millionaire's Express is a fun film with some amazing fights at the end involving Yuen Biao, Cynthia Rothrock and Sammo Hung (Martial Law). Unfotunately the only version is out of print.

"Yes, Madam" with Michelle Yeoh and Cynthia Rothrock features a superb girls-against-guys showdown at the end, too. The Hong Kong Legends version is titled Police Assassins.

Nobody noticed the smilarities between the bicycle chase in Project A and the motorbike chase in IJ and the Last Crusade?

Joe

 

[Sean Moon]

Also if looking for some great stuff from Jackie's "brothers" Yuen Biao and Sammo Hung, Prodigal Son and Magnificent Butcher are great releases as well.

 

[RyanAn]

The Police Story Trilogy are my personal favorite films of Jackie Chan.

Ryan

 

[Todd Hostettler]

Well, let's put it this way... I'm still watching this one on my Criterion laserdisc.

:frowning:

 

[Jeffrey Nelson]

I've gone through hell over the years TRYING to find decent DVD releases of HK films that are uncut, have the original MONO Cantonese soundtracks, and are IN SYNC. All I can say is, GOOD LUCK. The Megastar editions of the POLICE STORY trilogy are all completely worthless. Horrible 5.1 remixes with atrociously done new foley effects, often out-of-sync, and rotten transfers with incorrect contrast levels and bad bad BAD digital artifacting. The Deltamac releases of a couple of years ago are better, with more correct contrasts, better authoring, and the original mono soundtracks in sync. The Hong Kong Legends versions suffered from wrong aspect ratios and more bad remixes. Now, we get the new IVL releases, and they look beautiful, and even contain the original mono soundtracks, but these soundtracks are OUT OF BLOODY SYNC!!! What the...? Most of the R1 Fox releases of Hong Kong films have horrendous new remixes, and the ones that do contain the original mono mixes, these mixes are ALSO OUT OF BLOODY SYNC!!! We cannot win, folks. I'm sticking with my Deltamac versions of the POLICE STORY trilogy and many other Hong Kong classics as well.

The best version of WHEELS ON MEALS is the Megastar version, because it contains two extra comedy scenes missing from other versions and also contains the old '80s English dub in mono (in addition to the Cantonese track which is a remix but not bad). I actually prefer to watch this one with the English dub, because it's hilarious, and the different music seems to fit the action better.

For more help, try this site (which has a helpful sticky thread regarding which versions of films on which DVDs are cut, have alternate footage, etc.):

http://p088.ezboard.com/fhongkongdvdsgeneral

 

[LorenzoL]

Don't forget Knockabout.

 

[Andy Patrizio]

Actually, the rumors were that Benny got so stiff with his hits that Jackie told him to back off if he ever wanted to work in HK martial arts film again.

 

[Sean Moon]

There are so many stories I have heard about Benny and Jackie with Wheels on Meals. No matter what, they delivered one hell of a sequence, one that has never been topped in my mind.

 

[KevA]

I got into Jackie Chan films in the mid-90s and saw pretty well all of his stuff through VHS rentals back then. Though the stories are lacking a lot of the time, I find the power of the fighting and action sequences to be exhilirating when he's at his best. Much like Jeffrey Nelson's post above, though, I'm more than a little disappointed at how poorly he's been treated in Region 1 on DVD. It's awful.

Without a region-free player, I've pretty well given up purchasing Jackie releases on DVD. It's unfortunate, as there are several films of his (many of them highlighted in this thread) that I would buy immediately if they were anamorphic, Region 1, uncut and with subtitles.

Even the great Drunken Master 2 is NOT in my collection as I can't stand dubbing, which is all that is available on the US version ("Legend of Drunken Master").

 

[Joe Wong]

KevA,

the IVL remasters are R0 and anamorphic.

Joe

 

[Keith I]

I just got the IVL/Fortune Star boxed set of Project A and Project A II and I am very pleased, audio synch problems aside.

I enjoy the Police Story boxed set as well.

I really, REALLY, hope that a boxed set of both Drunken Master movies are released by IVL/Fortune Star, if they do own them or can obtain the rights to them. This would really make my day/week/month/life!
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[PaulaJ]

>I really, REALLY, hope that a boxed set of both Drunken Master movies are released by IVL/Fortune Star, if they do own them or can obtain the rights to them. This would really make my day/week/month/life!


Mei Ah recently released a new Region 0 anamorphic transfer of Drunken Master. I haven't seen this disc, so I can't comment on it.

As for DM II -- the Mouse House as far as I know has its four-fingered gloved hands on the worldwide rights so I'm expecting bupkes there. All you're going to get from them is the dubbed and (slightly) cut Legend of Drunken Master with its replacement "generic Chinese" music score.

 

[Keith I]

I have the Dimension Home Video version and the import laserdisc (but my LD player is on the fritz). It's too bad that Jackie's "star" is fading in America (to try and cross-promote with something, maybe if he did a Rush Hour 3) but if BV/Dimension rereleased this in its correct format, it's obvious how fans would feel about it.

Shaolin Soccer, Hero, etc. (all from Buena Vista) have done it correctly.

Heck, put both American and original Chinese versions on it to satisfy everyone. Keep the title as "Legend of Drunken Master" if you want to. But since this is not a Miramax film (and with the exit of the W Brothers), could the "grip" become looser or not at all? We can hope. While you're at it, Dimension could rerelease all the dubbed Jackie Chan films in corrected versions.

Whoever releases it, a good 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer plus original language (doesn't have to be 5.1; was it originally done in both Cantonese and Mandarin or just one of them?) will be appreciated. I have the import laserdisc but with my player going on the fritz, I'm hoping for a good (read: correct) DVD replacement.

With Fox's waves of martial arts movies, I also hope that they acquire Wheels on Meals. While not heavy on the fighting, when there is fighting, wow (as described in a few posts above)!

I, too, would also love a corrected version of Who Am I? The Columbia Tristar version is okay ... if you like dubbing!

Finally, it's too bad that there are already so many JC DVDs out there that are dubbed. They obviously were released to coincide with Jackie's popularity at the time but it's probably not lucrative enough to rerelease them in their correct/original version. That's too bad.
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