Armour of God II: Operation Condor Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Armour of God II: Operation Condor Blu-ray Movie Review

Armour of God II: Operation Condor is an outstanding follow-up to the original feature-film that became a runaway hit at the Hong Kong box-office. Distributed by Golden Harvest, Armour of God II: Operation Condor was released in Hong Kong cinemas on February 7, 1991.  The first sequel to Armour of God, Armour of God II: Operation Condor would later be followed by CZ12 (also known as Armour of God III). Armour of God II: Operation Condor had a beautiful production with filming taking place in the beautiful locales of Madrid, Morocco, and Spain.

At the time of release in 1991, Armour of God II: Operation Condor was the biggest budget Hong Kong film ever produced. Executive produced by Raymond Chow (Enter the Dragon, The Way of the Dragon), Armour of God II: Operation Condor became a massive box-office hit upon release – the second biggest film to be released in Hong Kong in 1991. Produced by Leonard Ho (Mr. Nice Guy, Rumble in the Bronx), Armour of God II: Operation Condor was nominated for Best Action Choreography at the 1992 Hong Kong Film Awards. A must-see for Jackie Chan fans.

Jackie “Asian Hawk” (Jackie Chan) returns with a new adventure. The epic adventurer has now been hired by the United Nations to find hidden gold that was buried by the Nazis in the Sahara Desert. The adventure is one that joins Asian Hawk with some beautiful women traveling alongside him: Ada (Carol 'Do Do' Cheng) and Elsa (Eva Cobo).

Over the course of the journey, Jackie also encounters a Japanese woman, Momoko (Shôko Ikeda). Momoko also joins up with Jackie, Ada, and Elsa for the rest of the adventure. Along the expedition, a cave is discovered with a hidden Nazi base. The search for the hidden gold leads the adventurers to face off against the evil leader of a mercenary group, Adolf (Aldo Sambrell). Can Jackie, Ada, Elsa, and Momoko rescue the golden treasure and survive to see another day in the sun?

Jackie Chan demonstrates his exceptional skills as a performer with Armour of God II: Operation Condor. The film required Jackie Chan to do some of his best stunt-work and the film showcased the excellent blend of action and comedy that is essential to the success of Jackie Chan as an actor. Writing about these stunts in his memoir, I Am Jackie Chan: My Life in Action, Jackie Chan revealed that a stunt performed during the production resulted in his sternum becoming dislocated after falling off a platform.

There are a lot of impressive production elements at play with Armour of God II: Operation Condor. The film benefits from superb production design by Oliver Wong (Kung Fu Hustle, Police Story 2). The film is exceptional in scope and scale because of the design work.

The art direction by Dominique Lo (Royal Warriors, On the Run), Eddie Ma (Black Mask, The Bride with White Hair), and Oliver Wong (Police Story, The Protector) is impressive to behold. The film looks big- budget (no surprise!) as so much effort was put in to the production. The costumes by Carroll Gordon (Saga of the Phoenix, A Killer’s Blues) are great and add to the characters in the film, too.

The score composed by Chris Babida (Life After Life, Fleeing by Night) is an enormously fun component of the adventure. The music is a great backdrop to the action sequences and the fight choreography. Composer Babida did a solid job bringing the stunt work to life with the score. The comedy is well highlighted as well.

The cinematography by Arthur Wong (Painted Skin, The Warlords) is ambitious and beautiful. The film has a great visual style. In fact, Armour of God II: Operation Condor looks even more beautiful and ambition than the original. The first film was visually stunning and Armour of God II: Operation Condor is even more beautiful with superb cinematography enhancing the experience. A great cinematographic effort by Wong.

The screenplay by Jackie Chan and Edward Tang (The Legend of Drunken Master, Rumble in the Bronx) is enormous fun. The script for Armour of God II: Operation Condor outdoes the first film with even more comedy and a lot of fun scenarios at play in the film. The script gives Jackie Chan plenty to do while also having some fun moments for the ensemble cast of actresses. It is fun seeing these actresses working alongside Jackie Chan and their roles added a lot to the success of the script.

Directed by Jackie Chan, Armour of God II: Operation Condor is even more ambitious than the original film in the franchise. Armour of God II: Operation Condor ups the ante considerably with even more ambitious stunts and nice production values. The first film was a massive hit so it is no surprise Chan decided to level-up and bring even more action-packed spectacle to the sequel. Armour of God II: Operation Condor is a must-see for Jackie Chan fans.

Armour of God II: Operation Condor Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by Shout Factory, Armour of God II: Operation Condor is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high- definition in the original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.39:1 widescreen. The film is presented with a beautiful and filmic transfer – one that highlights the visual wonder of the quality cinematography. The presentation capably preserves detail in the image and looks naturally filmic. Shout Factory provides excellent encoding that handles the action scenes and the stunt work well. The cinematography shines and color reproduction is excellent on the release.

Armour of God II: Operation Condor Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The audio is provided in Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono and English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono. English subtitles are provided. The lossless audio adds a lot to the viewing experience. An entertaining and engaging lossless audio mix, the dynamics of the audio help to preserve the detail in the stunts. The action scenes have considerable sense-of-scale. Dialogue is crisp and clear. The score is well reproduced on the release.

Armour of God II: Operation Condor Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Extended Cut (HD, 1:57:10)

Extended Cut with Audio Commentary by Film Critic James Mudge

Notes for a New Direction – An interview with composer Stephen Endelman (HD, 13:54)

Original Theatrical Trailer (HD, 3:20)

Still Gallery (HD, 3:22)

Armour of God II: Operation Condor Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Armour of God II: Operation Condor is enormous fun and is even more ambitious and exciting than the first film. Jackie Chan handles directing duties and stars. Chan showcases exceptional stunt work here. The filmmaking is exquisite – even more ambitious than the first. An impressive achievement, indeed. The Blu-ray release provides an excellent video and audio presentation alongside an impressive selection of bonus features. The release also provides an extended cut of the film (also presented in high-definition). Highly recommended.