Picture: Panorama is one of those companies that is very hit and miss. Especially in terms of older, back catalog releases like the Tora-San films and Ozu classics, Panorama has really missed the mark and delivered sub par, compression plagued and poor print quality transfers. But they are cheap, so knowledgeable consumers know what they are in for with a Panorama purchase.

Here we've got a rough Anamorphic Widescreen transfer. Election has a very natural look to it, and Johnnie To largely dispenses with his trademark trickery and slickness in favor of more formal direction. Unfortunately, the print is on the soft side, diluting the sharpness of the image. The contract also has a slight lack of shadow details, and some fo the darker scenes come off a bit too gray. Again, Panorama got their hands on a new film, with a clean, spotless print, but somehow manage to muck it up.

Sound: DTS, 5.1, and 2.0 Cantonese, or 5.1 Mandarin audio tracks. Optional Chinese or English subtitles. Great sound. Again, the film doesn't quite have many action spectacle moments, but the mix is quite responsive in all the key areas. The score is a real standout, and those with high end systems should be relatively pleased. The only real issue I found was some slightly weak dialogue recording in a few scenes. Subtitle translation appears pretty good, well-timed, and without many glaring grammatical errors.

Extras: Nothing, really, a slipcase and trailers for Everlasting Regret and Drink, Drank, Drunk.

This is the single disc edition, thus the lack of any extras. If you want the extras you'll have to go for the two-disc, which I'll add, is quite affordable. But cheapskates who just don't bother with extras very much will be more than happy with this barebones version.

Conclusion: ...In terms of the disc, it gets a mediocre grade. Flawed image and barebones, but, hey, it wont break your wallet. It's a judgement call- fine if you just want to watch the film, not fine if you are a stickler for technical details. I'll give it a shaky recommendation.