Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

Armour of God Blu-ray Movie Review

Armour of God is an action-packed adventure film with an abundance of spectacle for Jackie Chan fans. Distributed by Golden Harvest, Armour of God was released in Hong Kong cinemas on January 21^st 1987. Based on an original story by Barry Wong, Armour of God comes from producer Leonard Ho (Rumble in the Bronx, Mr. Nice Guy). Armour of God is arguably one of Chan’s most entertaining films with an enduring cult following. The film combines kung-fu action with comedy. At the time of its original release in Hong Kong, Armour of God became the highest grossing Hong Kong film ever made.

Asian Hawk (Jackie Chan) is a treasure hunter with a passion for adventure. The adventurer in Asian Hawk (real name: Jackie) is determined to go on new adventures and to find new hidden treasures. Traveling across Europe alongside his best friend and sidekick Alan (Alan Tam), Jackie gets hold of a valuable sword.

The sword ends up going on an auction and is won by the gorgeous May (Lola Forner), who ends up joining Jackie and Alan on an adventure – one that extends beyond just gathering treasure as the group also has to help rescue the kidnapped Lorelei (Rosamund Kwan). A cult of mysterious monks causes trouble for the gang. Jackie will even face-off against the Grand Wizard (Ken Boyle) and his female assassins with kung fu skills. Can Jackie, Alan, and May rescue Lorelei and become the heroes of the story?

Jackie Chan is terrific in the lead role in the film. Jackie Chan has a lot of fun with the role and he exudes confidence and charm with the part. Chan was born for roles like this one – and the performer has the energy necessary to make all the stunt-work entertain in spades. The stunts by Jackie Chan showcase exceptional craftsmanship and skill. Chan had some difficult stunts to perform in the film and with a stunt performance he almost died during the production. During a stunt that involved Chan using a branch, the tree branch broke while Jackie was performing a stunt and he cracked his skull – an outstanding survival for Jackie Chan.

The production of Armour of God is enormous in scale and there are a lot of elements of the film that are impressive to behold. The film showcases great art direction by William Chang (The Grandmaster, Happy Together), Jonathan Cheung (My Dream Is Yours, China Cry), and Eddie Ma (The Bride with White Hair, Black Mask). The scope and scale of the production is enormous and the aesthetic of the work is something to behold. The art direction adds a lot of creativity to the filmmaking.

The costumes by Shirley Chan (Kung Fu Hustle, The Killer) are first-rate, too. The costuming feels perfect for the cast of characters. Jackie Chan uses multiple excellent costume designs in the film himself and the supporting cast have strong costumes to wear as well. A good effort by the designer.

The cinematography by Yiu-Tsou Cheung (The Legend of Drunken Master, Police Story), Peter Ngor (Mr. Vampire, The Tragic Fantasy: Tiger of Wanchai), Bob Thompson (Reign Behind a Curtain, Loney Fifteen), and Arthur Wong (The Warlords, Painted Skin) is outstanding. The visual language of the film is quite beautiful and the action scenes hold much more weight with the excellent cinematography. A fun experience visually and the cinematographers contributed good work to the production.

The score composed by Siu-Tin Lai (Project A, Police Story) is enjoyable and engaging. The music adds to the sense of action-packed fun on display in the film. The music adds a lot to the action scenes and the score highlights the stunts well. The score is also a good accompaniment to the comedy in the film.

Edited by Peter Cheung (The Way of the Dragon, Fist of Fury), Armour of God is a fast-paced film with a solid edit. The pace and rhythm of the filmmaking is excellent. The edit has a good sense of flow and is enormously engaging. The film does not drag on unnecessarily.

The screenplay by Jackie Chan, Edward Tang (The Legend of Drunken Master, Rumble in the Bronx), Cheuk-Hon Szeto (Dragons Forever, Righting Wrongs), Ken Lowe, and John Sheppard (Mania: The Intruder, MacGyver) is entertaining. The script is over-the-top and ridiculous at times but it is all in good fun. The characters go on an exciting adventure and the script provides solid dialogue and a fun concept for the actors to work with.

Directed by Jackie Chan, Armour of God is one of Chan’s most entertaining films. The filmmaking is action-packed fun from start to finish. There are many lavish set-pieces during the production. An impressive effort by Chan in the director’s chair. Chan understands action filmmaking better than almost anyone and he has a great time bringing this film to life. Armour of God is a must- see action-adventure for fans of the actor.

Armour of God Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by Shout Factory, Armour of God is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the theatrical aspect ratio of 1.90:1 widescreen. The presentation on the release is quite impressive. The video quality looks great and retains a level of detail that is impressive. The encode capably handles the action sequences. The filmic presentation looks beautiful. Color reproduction appears excellent on the release as well. A good encode capturing the beauty of the 35mm film.

Armour of God Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The audio is provided in Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio Mono, Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Mono, English Dolby Digital 5.1, and English DTS- HD Master Audio Mono. English subtitles are provided. The lossless audio on the release is engaging to listen to. The dialogue is well reproduced and sounds clear and easy to understand. The score is also well reproduced on the release. The soundstage is engaging and capably reproduces the sounds of the stunts in the film.

Armour of God Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Audio Commentary by James Mudge, Veteran Hong Kong Film Critic at Easternkicks.com

International Cut (SD, 1:24:55)

Rise of the Phoenix – Radek Sienski on Armour of God (HD, 20:50)

Interview with Jackie Chan (SD, 4:06)

Interview with Willie Chan (SD, 3:40)

Interview with Editor Peter Cheung (SD, 4:42)

Japanese Release Outtakes (SD, 4:29)

Original Theatrical Trailer (HD, 4:55)

Japanese Theatrical Trailer (SD, 1:10)

English Theatrical Trailer (HD, 2:07)

Still Gallery (HD, 1:52)

Armour of God Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Armour of God is one of the most entertaining Jackie Chan action epics. The sense of action-adventure in the film is tremendous and there is a lot of fun to be had with the film for Jackie Chan fans. This is a must-see adventure. The Blu-ray release features an impressive video and audio presentation alongside an outstanding selection of bonus features (including the international cut of the film – though the cut is presented in standard-definition as a supplement to the main-feature presentation only). Highly recommended.