The Angry River Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

The Angry River Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 12, 2026

Note: There's perhaps a bit of a cinematic analog to the old conundrum, "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" with regard to at least two of the three offerings 88 Films is releasing in tandem, namely this film, The Invincible Eight and The Himalayan. See below for details.

As fans of Asian cinema no doubt know, there was an absolutely fascinating development in the Hong Kong film industry that mirrored (and in fact was probably inspired by) the sudden rise of "indie culture" in Hollywood as the sixties gave way to the seventies and the already fumbling, stumbling "studio system" of the Golden Era more or less met its demise. That same transformation might be exemplified across a pond or two by the creation of Golden Harvest when Raymond Chow and a rather small cohort of other Shaw Brothers employees left the factory like environment of that particular studio in order to found something more attuned to what individual directors and performers might want. 88 Films is offering this production and The Invincible Eight, along with the arguably slightly more tangentially related The Himalayan, but in that aforementioned "chicken vs. egg" debate, according to the always fast and furious commentaries offered by Frank Djeng and Michael Worth, while The Angry River was the first actual production filmed under the newly minted Golden Harvest banner, The Invincible Eight was actually the first to get to market in January 1971.

As the Djeng and Worth commentary also gets into, it's maybe a little remarkable that the then more or less completely unknown and untested Angela Mao got the lead in this first ever production by the studio. If that part was innovative and unexpected, as even Djeng and Worth unabashedly admit, the film itself is firmly in what might be called a traditional Shaw Brothers template, with Mao portraying a daughter with "a particular set of skills" on the hunt for a rare antidote to a poison that has been "delivered" to dear old dad courtesy of a rather large arrow sticking out of his back (the fact that no one really does anything with him after this discovery is maybe a little hilarious). That then sends the brave heroine on a vignette driven quest where she has to cross dangerous terrain (including the titular body of water), and also deals with both near alien nemeses (another patently hilarious moment) as well as her father's pretty ruthless enemies. Sammo Hung, who has a small role, did the fight choreography, and eagle eyed fans can also catch a glimpse of Jackie Chan.

The Angry River Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Angry River is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of 88 Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The back cover states this is a new 2K restoration from the original negative, and it's often eye poppingly colorful and very nicely detailed. Director Huang Feng brings a distinctive visual flair to the proceedings, and askew framings can provide perhaps unexpected close-ups of things like period costumes, where intricate fabric textures are beautifully rendered. The almost ridiculously farcical artificiality of the subterranean world that's briefly part of the story also has some perhaps comically rubbery textures, not necessarily just on the "Lizard Man". The same maybe unintended revelations that this resolution also offer includes some now pretty "quaint" looking compositing of Mao supposedly wire walking across a river (see screenshot 7), which commentators Djeng and Worth perhaps struggle to describe as better than it is. The palette is beautifully suffused for the most part, though there are some interstitial moments that can show observable downturns in densities and suffusion, with a slight skewing toward browns. For example, there is a clear difference between what I'm assuming was a master shot of Mao when she gets to a beach with a number of other characters about to fight, which looks fairly rough, and cutaways or close-ups covering the same sequence, which are generally much clearer and better suffused. Some day for night material doesn't offer a wealth of detail. Some of the slightly degraded and darker moments can also show a somewhat rougher looking grain field than the bulk of the presentation.

The Angry River Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Angry River offers LPCM 2.0 Mono tracks in either Mandarin or English. The Mandarin track is a bit brighter and louder, something that can be heard in things like the enjoyably manic opening music, but also throughout in any number of sound effects. The difference isn't huge by any means, but it tends to be most audible in the almost gonzo score (Fu-Ling Wang almost seems to think this is a mid sixties spy effort based on some of the cues). There do appear to be some interesting differences in effects mixes on a few occasions, as in the forest scene at circa ten minutes in, where the English language track offers a more forward accounting of the stealthy moves of the attackers. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Angry River Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary by Frank Djeng and Michael Worth


• Image Gallery (HD; 2:06)


• Original Mandarin Trailer (HD; 3:52)

All three of the above linked releases by 88 Films have been designed as a "brand", with handsome reversible sleeves, an enclosed folded mini poster, and a slipcase with art by Aurelio Lorenzo.

The Angry River Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

They say from tiny acorns mighty oaks grow, and even if it's granted there are certain undeniably cliché ridden aspects to this film, there is also a certain breeziness and distinctive peculiarity to kind of make it simultaneously an homage to and a deconstruction of any number of Shaw Brothers efforts. Those with a particular interest in the history of this general era of Hong Kong filmmaking will probably find this and The Invincible Eight indispensable, but The Angry River, while undeniably hokey and goofy, will probably provide a good deal of adventurous fun for newcomers. Technical merits are solid, and as usual Djeng and Worth are provide the equivalent of several encyclopedias of information. Recommended.