The Man From Hong Kong: Technical Notes

Technical Notes Technical Notes:
The Man From Hong Kong
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    by HKFlix
    www.hkflix.com

The following features are no longer included on the disc: Director's Audio Commentary; Jimmy Wang Yu Arrives: 1974 Australian Newsreel Footage; 1975 Australian Premiere Footage.



    by DT27046

[HKFlix Note: This review refers to the first pressing, which had special features that have since been removed from the disc.]

The DVD quality was OK, but I would have preferred a widescreen version; many bits on the side were cut out because it wasn't widescreen. Features included a commentary track, the film trailer, and two short promo's of Wang Yu arriving in Sydney for the shooting of the film, and the film's red-carpet launch and after party.




    by AW5527



[HKFlix Note: This review refers to the first pressing, which had special features that have since been removed from the disc.]

The US-DVD is identical with the Australian release in terms of quality, only the audio commentary is missing.

The picture looks fine without distortions altough the film is presented in the wrong aspect ratio.The film was actually shot in 2.35:1 but for some reasons unknown to me, the picture has been matted and transformed to an aspect ratio of 1.78:1.

The original english 2.0 mono track sounds just fine for a movie of 1974, nothing special but it gets the job done.

In the bonus section we get two very short clips of the premiere show and Jimmy Wang Yu's arrival in Sydney plus the original trailer for the film. A bit more background information on the movie would have been appreciated but it's better than nothing.

All in all a solid DVD release and a recommended addition for your collection.




    by JH24867



[HKFlix Note: This review refers to the first pressing, which had special features that have since been removed from the disc.]

It must be said while TMFHK is well worth a watch as a film this DVD special edition is a major letdown for fans expecting a digitally spruced-up release. First off the picture quality is terrible despite having a clean print sadly ruined by drab colors and is way too dark and soft. Supposedly remastered from the original negative even an upgraded VHS print could improve on this lousy visual effort. Not only that but while TMFHK was shot in the 2.35:1 theatrical ratio the DVD version is cropped to around half that (albeit anamorphic but that doesn't help.) whereas the trailer included on the disc is in the correct widescreen format! Talk about adding insult to injury!! Audio-wise things are serviceable but the sound can be tinny on the odd occasion.

On the extras front we get the typically long seventies trailer as previously mentioned alongside an audio commentary with helmer Trenchard-Smith. I haven't had time to listen to all of the director waxing lyrical but the first five minutes seemed not too bad. Also of interest are a couple of black and white short (Just over a minute in length each!) featurettes from the time of TMFHK's release. Strangely enough, the picture quality on these clips look better than the actual movie! 'Jimmy Wang Yu Arrives In Australia' is exactly that, footage of the Eastern veteran meeting with his antipodean colleagues and it's humorous to note Wang Yu being described as "An Asian Steve McQueen"! 'Premiere' is also self-explanatory with the film's cast turning up for the initial screening with TMFHK explained as a "Comedy spoof of the 007 movies"!

Overall it's a case of an enjoyable film on a lackluster DVD.
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