All About Love Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

All About Love Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 29, 2011

Screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, Ann Hui's "All About Love" (2010) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Hong Kong-based distributors Vicol Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include the film's original theatrical trailer; standard making of featurette; two music videos; and photo album. In Cantonese, with optional English, Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

To love or not to love?

Veteran director Ann Hui's latest film All About Love tells the story of two bi-sexual middle-aged women from Hong Kong looking to once again fall in love – and hopefully with the right person. Both have been in more relationships than they could remember. Both have had their hearts broken more times than they could recall.

Anita (Vivian Chow, Girls Without Tomorrow) has met Mike (William Chan, Ex) on the internet. They have chatted and agreed to meet for a drink in a cozy bar somewhere in the city. For Anita, it is just another date. For Mike, it is the date, the one at the end of which he hopes to finally be able to lose his virginity. When Anita arrives at the bar, she immediately notices that Mike is nervous.

Everything turns out exactly as Mike had hoped it will - Anita invites him to her place and the clothes come off. Only seconds later, he fires and hits the target. Deeply embarrassed and disappointed, he begins crying. When Anita heads to the bathroom, he runs out.

Macy (Sandra Ng, Portland Street Blues) is a good lawyer having a bad streak. She is also three months late on her office rent - which is why she agrees to represent Robert (Cheung Siu-Fai, Running on Karma), who runs an investment company right next door to her. Robert’s wife is suing him for domestic violence and has already filed for divorce.

While having a dinner together, Macy reveals to Robert that the key to winning his wife back is learning how to give her multiple orgasms. Intrigued by her advice, Robert politely asks if she would be willing to teach him how. She is – and at the end of the night the two end up at her place.

Fastforward. Anita and Macy discover that they are both pregnant, and bump into each other at a single-mother pregnancy meeting. Both former lovers who haven’t seen each other in years, they decide to take a stroll around the city. Before the night is over, they are once again madly in love.

Meanwhile, Mike and Robert decide to do the right thing and support Anita and Macy as much as they can – or are allowed to.

I loved everything about this film. It is simple, honest, passionate but not preachy. Considering its subject matter, this is indeed quite an accomplishment. It could have easily been a giant soap opera, but it is not.

The dilemmas Anita and Macy face after they become pregnant create a number of genuinely hilarious situations, but there is a certain degree of sadness in them as well, especially after they decide to become mothers. Naturally, the film forces the viewer to reconsider the classic definitions of family and parenthood.

The two leads are fantastic. Chow, who is back in the business after a fourteen-year hiatus, looks fabulous and extremely comfortable in front of the camera, while Ng, with an a never-ending arsenal of smart one-liners, gives the film the edge it requires.

Visually, the film is a treat, with cinematographer Charlie Lam making sure that the urban allure of Hong Kong is well represented. Chan Chi Wai and Kwong Chi-Leung’s editing is also competent.

Note: Last year, All About Love was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival and the 23rd Tokyo International Film Festival.

All About Love 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, Ann Hui's All About Love arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Hong Kong-based distributors Vicol Entertainment.

The more releases I see from this particular distributor, the more impressed I am. I really like the films they are starting to bring to Blu-ray, and the manner in which they treat them. Indeed, I will be keeping a very close eye on Vicol Entertainment in 2011.

All About Love looks lovely on Blu-ray. Fine object detail is excellent, clarity pleasing, and contrast levels consistent. Color reproduction is also very good - the film has a very appropriate warm look that really comes alive. For example, the various scenes where Macy and Anita are seen wandering the neon-lit streets of Hong Kong look fantastic. Edge-enhancement is not a serious issue of concern, though there are a few scenes where it is easy to spot. I did not see any traces of heavy noise reduction. Blown through a digital projector All About Love also conveys wonderful depth and tightness. All in all, this is a strong presentation that should please fans of the film. (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 Love Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are three audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: Cantonese Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Cantonese Dolby Digital 5.1, and Mandarin Dolby Digital 5.1. For the record, Vicol Entertainment have provided optional English, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese subtitles for the main feature.

The Cantonese Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track does not disappoint. The bass is not overly active but effective, the rear channels intelligently used, and the high-frequencies not overdone. Additionally, there is a good range of nuanced dynamics that add quite a bit of flavor to the film (the tango scene, for instance, is beautiful). The dialog is crisp, clean, stable, and very easy to follow. There are no balance issues with Anthony Chue's music score either. Lastly, I did not detect any disturbing pops, cracks, hissings, or dropouts to report in this review. The English translation is good, but there a couple of grammatical errors that I noticed.

All About Love Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Note: All of the supplemental features on this Blu-ray disc are perfectly playable on North American PS3s and SAs.

• Trailer - the original theatrical trailer for All About Love. In Cantonese, with optional English, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese subtitles. (2 min, 1080p).

• Making of - the featurette contains footage from the 2009 Hong Kong Pride Parade, as well as raw footage from the shooting of All About Love. In Cantonese, not subtitled. (22 min, 480/60i).

• Promotional Music Video - "You're the One", performed by Angelita Li. (3 min, 480/60i).

• Undisclosed Full Version Music Video - "You're the One", performed by Angelita Li. (4 min, 480/60i).

• Photo Album - a collection of still from the film and the shooting process. (1080p).

All About Love Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It may seem that All About Love is only a light romantic comedy, but the film actually tackles a number of important social issues. The cast is excellent, and Vivian Chow in particular. The film is yet to be picked up for U.S. distribution, so for now getting the Blu-ray disc herein reviewed, courtesy of Hong Kong-based distributors Vicol Entertainment, is probably the only way to see it. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.