All About Ah-Long Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		2.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		2.5

All About Ah-Long Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov April 3, 2011

Winner of Best Actor Award at the Hong Kong Film Awards, Johnnie To's "All About Ah-Long" (1989) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Hong Kong-based distributors Kam & Ronson Enterprises. The supplemental features on the disc include two theatrical trailers and a video interview with the producer of the film, Raymond Wong. In Cantonese, with optional English and Traditional Chinese subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Father and son

Ah-Long (Chow Yun-Fat, Prison on Fire, God of Gamblers) is a former hustler-turned-construction worker who lives together with his young son Porky (Wong Kwan-Yuen, The Fun, the Luck and the Tycoon) in a tiny apartment somewhere in Hong Kong. The two sleep in the same bed and love eating noodles. They are poor but happy.

One day, Ah-Long encourages Porky to audition for a role in a TV commercial. Much to his surprise Porky wins the role and the producers ask to speak with his father to explain what his pay would be and have him sign his contract. When Ah-Long appears in their office, he is shocked to discover that the production director is his former girlfriend, Sylvia (Sylvia Chang, Shanghai Blues, Full Moon in New York), whom he has not seen in years.

Through a series of flashbacks it is revealed that Ah-Long and Sylvia were once madly in love and planning to have a family. At one point, they were also expecting a child. Another set of flashbacks, however, reveals that Ah-Long ended up in jail, while Sylvia immigrated to the United States, after her mother (Tam Sin-Hung) lied to her that her baby had died at birth.

While Ah-Long signs Porky’s contract, Sylvia asks who his mother is. Ah-Long’s answer shocks her and turns her world upside down.

Johnnie To’s All About Ah-Long is a deeply moving film about two former lovers who try to come to terms with their past after fate brings them back together. But neither of them knows what to make of the second chance they are given. Sylvia is in a very serious relationship with another man (Yu Ga-Lun), whom she plans to marry as soon as shooting of the commercial ends and she returns to the United States, while Ah-Long simply appears to have forgotten how to love.

Things get even more complicated when Porky is forced to choose between Sylvia and Ah-Long. His father loves him dearly but realizes that if he stays with him in Hong Kong he would end up like him- a poor and broken man. Sylvia wants Porky to come with her to the United States but does not know if the man she is planning to marry would accept him.

The viewer is also encouraged to choose between Sylvia and Ah-Long, but once again, it isn’t easy. Both have made mistakes and paid dearly for them for reasons they could have avoided. Also, their lives could not be more different, and neither seems perfect for Porky to share.

Some of director To’s best films are about smart cops and cold-hearted gangsters who rarely make mistakes. They are fast and flashy. Their plots are often very complicated. All About Ah-Long is a straightforward film in which the main protagonists are incredibly vulnerable, incredibly ordinary people. Their story is moving because it is easy to imagine what they are going through and understand the difficult decisions they must make.

Yun-Fat is fantastic as the loving father who faces a very complicated dilemma. Chang also shines as the successful business woman who suddenly discovers that she has a lot more important responsibilities outside of her office.

The film’s theme song, Ah-Long’s Love Song, performed by Sam Hui, is beautiful.

Note: In 1990, All About Ah-Long won Best Actor Award (Chow Yun-Fat) at the Hong Kong Film Awards.

All About Ah-Long 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, Johnnie To's All About Ah-Long arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Hong Kong-based distributors Kam & Ronson Enterprises.

From all of the upconverted releases that I've seen from Kam & Ronson Enterprises recently, All About Ah-Long is clearly the best one. Obviously, fine object detail, clarity, and contrast are still very problematic, but what we have here looks a lot more like film than, for example, Full Throttle. It is a shame really that there are no decent HD masters for a lot of these classic films Kam & Ronson Enterprises are releasing, but I would take whatever is available.

As noted above, fine object detail isn't terribly convincing. During the darker indoor scenes light to moderate microblocking patterns and noise tend to affect clarity as well. Contrast levels are not consistent, but the fluctuations are not dramatic either. Edge-enhancement isn't a serious issue of concern either. Obviously, color reproduction is not as good as it could be, but there is no harsh color bleeding to report in this review. Finally, there are various tiny flecks and scratches that pop up here and there, but I did not see any large damage marks, cuts, or stains. So, I will say it again: I actually prefer the look of All About Ah-Long over that of Full Throttle. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

All About Ah-Long Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: Cantonese Dolby TrueHD 7.1 and Mandarin Dolby Digital 5.1. For the record, Kam & Ronson Enterprises have provided optional English and Traditional Chinese subtitles for the main feature.

The Cantonese Dolby TrueHD 7.1 is slightly uneven. During selected scenes, the rear channels occasionally become a bit too strong, while elsewhere they remain inactive. The bass, however, is used rather well, though I could tell that some random enhancements have been performed. The dialog is crisp, clean, stable, and very easy to follow. The English translation is also surprisingly good.

All About Ah-Long Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer 1 - the Cantonese trailer for All About Ah-Long. Long version. In Cantonese, not subtitled. (5 min, 1080p).

• Trailer 2 - the original theatrical trailer for All About Ah-Long. In Cantonese, not subtitled. (3 min, 480/60i).

• Wong Bak Ming Interview - an interview with the producer of All About Ah-Long, Raymond Wong. In Cantonese, not subtitled. (10 min, 480/60i).

All About Ah-Long Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Johnnie To's All About Ah-Long is one of the very best films that was released in Hong Kong during the 80s. It is a true classic. If you are wondering whether or not it is worth owning, I have two answers for you: No, if you expect it to look like the many restored classic Hollywood films that are appearing on Blu-ray in North American and Europe; and Yes, if you understand that for many of these classic Hong Kong films there are simply no suitable HD masters, and that this is the best they will look.