A Brighter Summer Day Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

A Brighter Summer Day Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov April 5, 2016

Edward Yang's "A Brighter Summer Day" (1991) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include an audio commentary by film critic Tony Rayns; exclusive new video interview with actor Chang Chen; Hsiao Chu-Chan's documentary film "Our Time, Our Story"; and more. The release also arrives with an illustrated leaflet featuring an essay by critic Geoffrey Cheshire and a statement from Edward Yang. In Mandarin, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

At the party

This truly epic film from Taiwanese master Edward Yang is partially based on a highly publicized murder case that took place in 1961.The original version of the film is approximately 236 minutes long and it is the one Yang preferred. However, in order to make the film easier to promote by distributors Yang also produced a shorter cut which is approximately 185 minutes. Criterion’s new release presents the original longer cut of the film which was recently restored in 4K by The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project.

The film offers an unfiltered glimpse at life in Taipei during a very unusual transitional period. After the end of the war the city is flooded with families from mainland China that are quietly trying to rebuild their lives. From afar it seems like people are getting along rather well, but there is tension in the air and many can sense it. The government has recently dispatched armed soldiers to patrol the streets because violent gangs have started clashing. Troubling reports coming out of the mainland have also convinced a lot of the newcomers that the island faces a clouded future.

Yang and his camera follow closely 14-year-old Xiao S'ir (Chang Chen, The Assassin) who understands where the tension comes from -- the island, like the many immigrants that have come to it, is struggling to choose an identity and in the vacuum that has emerged many people feel insecure. He also understands that this is the reason why many of his schoolmates have joined the gangs -- as gang members they feel stronger and safer, part of a formation that gives them an identity and then protects it when it is challenged.

For a while S'ir avoids the two big gangs that control the area where he likes to spend most of his time, but when he becomes involved with a beautiful girl (Lisa Yang) whose boyfriend is the leader of one of the gangs his life quickly spins out of control. In the ensuing chaos, S'ir undergoes a dramatic transformation that forces him to see the world he lives in from an entirely different angle.

There are times when it is rather difficult to follow the complex relationships between the many different characters because sometimes crucial details about key conflicts are not immediately revealed. Also, there are characters that appear early into the film and reappear much later on, long after one has incorrectly assumed that their words and actions were insignificant. So, this is one of those films that are probably best to see twice in order to fully appreciate the depth of its story.

S'ir’s forced maturation is interesting to observe, but it is the big picture that makes the film great. History is a crucial part of it as Yang highlights the different antagonistic views that ultimately shaped up Taiwan’s identity and examines the nature of the social and economic realities its people had to endure after the end of the war. The influence foreign cultures had during the transitional period is also recognized and placed in a unique context.

Despite the violent clashes and the occasional graphic close-ups, this is a strikingly poetic film. There is a sense of calmness in it that reminds of Japanese master Yasujiro Ozu’s work. The positioning of the camera is very precise and there are various segments that actually look like contemporary portraits with a large number of moving characters in them.

A Brighter Summer Day Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Edward Yang's A Brighter Summer Day arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

The following text appears inside the leaflet provided with this Blu-ray release:

"This new 4K digital restoration, undertaken in partnership with The Film Foundation's World Cinema Project, was created from the 35mm original camera negative on an ARRISCAN film scanner with wet-gate processing. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, and warps were manually removed using MTI's DRS while Digital Vision's Phoenix was used for small dirt, grain, noise management, jitter, and flicker. The original monaural soundtrack was restored by Cineteca di Bologna from the original soundtrack negative. Additional restoration was performed by the Criterion Collection using Pro Tools HD and iZotope RX4.

Colorist: Lee Kline/Criterion, New York.
4K scanning: L'Imagine Ritrovata, Bologna."

The film looks flesh and very healthy. Because large portions of it were shot with restricted or manipulated light some very small density fluctuations exist; some color nuances also evolve, making some segments look slightly more vibrant than others (see examples in screencaptures #5 and 11). Depth and fluidity are consistently very pleasing. In fact, the larger your screen is, the more you will be impressed with the film's delicate organic appearance. There are no traces of problematic degraining corrections. Grain is evenly distributed and always appears well resolved. Edge-enhancement is not an issue of concern. Overall image stability is excellent. Large debris, cuts, damage marks and other age-related imperfections have been carefully removed without jeopardizing the integrity of the film. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

A Brighter Summer Day Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: Mandarin LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The film has a surprisingly diverse soundtrack. For example, between the stage performances and some of the mass fights there is a nice range of nuanced dynamics. Natural sounds and noises also frequently pop up and are exceptionally easy to identify. The dialog is clean and stable, never sounding flat and thin. There are no pops, audio dropouts, or digital distortions to report in our review.

A Brighter Summer Day Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc One

• Commentary - in this new audio commentary, film critic Tony Rayns discusses in great detail key motifs of the rather complex plot of A Brighter Summer Day, the history of the feud between the two big gangs as well as the relationships between the principal characters, the socio-political climate in Taiwan and the impact American pop culture has on the gang members, the real murder case that inspired the film, Edward Yang's legacy and directing style, the new Taiwan cinema, etc. Tony Rayns also reads various bits from letters Edward Yang wrote years ago. The commentary was recorded exclusively for Criterion in 2014.

Disc Two

• Chang Chen - in this brand new video interview, Chang Chen, who made his acting debut in A Brighter Summer Day, discusses the impact the film had on his life and career, the shooting process and his interactions with director Edward Yang, the period atmosphere the film recreates and the identities of the major characters, etc. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2014. In Mandarin, with optional English subtitles. (19 min, 1080p).

• Likely Consequence - presented here is an archival recording of a play cowritten and directed by Edward Yang. The play blends social satire and comedy and incorporates some major themes that are present in the director's films. It was staged on March 20, 1992 in Taipei. In Mandarin, with printed English subtitles. (46 min, 1080i).
  
  1. Wrong number
  2. The Body
  3. Malicious memories
  4. Disposal proposals
  5. Smart solutions
  6. Curtain Call

• Our Time, Our Story - this excellent documentary film takes a closer at the socio-cultural environment in Taiwan after the Civil War and the emergence and history of the New Taiwan Cinema movement. Included in it are interviews with directors Hou Hsiao-Hsien, Ko Yi-Cheng and Tsai Ming-Liang, actors Li Li-Chun and Sylvia Chang, and film critic Lan Tsu-Wei, amongst others. The film was produced by Hsiao Chu-Chan in 2002. In Mandarin, with optional English subtitles. (114 min, 1080i).

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring an essay by critic Geoffrey Cheshire and a 1991 statement from Edward Yang.

A Brighter Summer Day Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Edward Yang's masterpiece is partially based on a highly publicized murder case that took place in the early 1960s in Taiwan's capital, but actually tells two different stories. The first is about a young boy who is caught in the middle of an intense war between two gangs in Taipei during an unusual transitional period, while the second is about a nation struggling to choose its identity. It is a special film that one probably needs to see twice in order to fully grasp the depth of its story and appreciate the artistic vision of its creator. Criterion's new Blu-ray release contains the original longer version of the film which has been recently restored in 4K. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.