Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Burning Paradise Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 10, 2023

Ringo Lam's "Burning Paradise" (1994) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the release include new audio commentary by critic Frank Djeng; archival program with producer Tsui Hark; and remastered theatrical trailer. In Cantonese, with optional English subtitles. Region-B "locked".

Viewing Burning Paradise is a special but ultimately saddening experience. Released in the early 1990s, this film united two of the most creative directors to ever work in Hong Kong whose legacies have defined how quality in action cinema should be understood. The first, Ringo Lam, who directed Burning Paradise, is no longer with us. The second, Tsui Hark, who produced Burning Paradise, is still active, but nowadays the projects he is involved with are very different. I will explain why viewing Burning Paradise is a saddening experience at the end of this article.

Burning Paradise tells a story that begins at the end of a failed uprising against the Manchu government organized by the notorious Shaolin Temple. After Emperor Yung-Ching orders his troops to siege and destroy the Shaolin Temple and then arrest the leaders of the uprising, several monks manage to escape. Somewhere in the desert, imperial agents then track down Fong Sai Yuk (Willie Chi) and his elderly and injured mentor, Chi Nun (Wu Xi-Qian), both fugitives who have miraculously survived the fall of the Shaolin Temple. While trying to lose the imperial agents, the fugitives meet Dau Dau (Carman Lee), a beautiful, terrified young girl, who has escaped from a brothel and is trying to reunite with her family. However, before they can resume their journey, the imperial agents surround them and kill Chi Nun. Fong Sai Yuk immediately vows to avenge the murder of his mentor, but when Dau Dau is captured, he is asked to choose between her life and an honorable death. To save Dau Dau, Fong Sai Yuk surrenders, and soon after, together with various other captured monks, is transported to the Red Lotus Temple. In its massive underground prison, which the deranged warden Elder Kung (Wong Kam-Kong) enjoys running like an evil circus, a most bizarre game of survival begins.

More than two-thirds of Burning Paradise are dedicated to the survival game, but it is virtually impossible to accurately describe it. Why? It is essentially one giant, stunningly choreographed play of action overload that is too rich and complex to properly summarize. I can point out a few of the character transformations and backstabbing that are at the center of it, but this would be like describing Federico Fellini’s iconic 8 ½ only as a film about a man visiting a sanatorium. In Burning Paradise, there is a lot more happening, and while the action is the main magnet, there is an effective overlapping of various interesting themes.

Something else that makes Burning Paradise effective and unique is the relationship between its mad tempo and atmosphere. Virtually all films that produce a very heavy, unforgettable atmosphere slow down, often rather significantly, too. This usually helps the director and cinematographer to emphasize the qualities of a location or the passing of time in a particular setting and they become the foundation for their film’s desired atmosphere. In Burning Paradise, the exact opposite happens – the film hits the ground running with a tremendous fight in the desert, and after that, it never misses an opportunity to speed up. Combined with the spectacularly choreographed action, this inexorable desire to keep moving on at an incredible tempo becomes the catalyst of the atmosphere in Burning Paradise. (All of the above is a recurring theme in many of Ringo Lam and Tsui Hark’s action films, but in Burning Paradise it is masterfully done).

It is impossible to view Burning Paradise without associating it with the end of auteur action cinema in Hong Kong. It was Ringo Lam’s most ambitious project, and while some consider it his greatest film, it underperformed at the box office and initiated a permanent change in the production of big-budget action films in Hong Kong. By the end of the 1990s, virtually all films that were conceived in Hong Kong were carefully polished to meet expectations in Mainland China, which meant that they were no longer able to have a unique identity.

Burning Paradise 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, Burning Paradise arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.

The release is sourced from a recent 2K master, which I think is very good. However, for some reason, the visuals are not always as impressive as they need to be. From time to time, grain exposure becomes oddly uneven, producing light smearing that can be quite easy to spot on a large screen. If I had to guess, I would say that the encoding is not good enough, but there is a small chance that some of the fluctuations are on the master. (And if I had to speculate again, I would say that they are not on the master). For example, this is the type of quality you should be seeing throughout the entire film. However, often times, you will see this and this type of quality as well. Obviously, something was not managed right. The rest looks good. Image stability is outstanding. Color balance is very good, as well. The entire film looks spotless. My score is 3.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Burning Paradise Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English subtitles are provided for the main feature.

I did not encounter any issues to report in our review. I thought that the lossless track performed as well as possible, and in a few sequences, where the action goes in overdrive mode, even better than I thought possible. The dialog was very clear, sharp, and stable. If there were any traces of age-related imperfections before the film was restored, it is impossible to tell now.

Burning Paradise Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic Frank Djeng.

• Tsui Hark Interview - in this archival program, producer Tsui Hark discusses the inspiration behind Burning Paradise. Also, there are a few interesting comments about Ringo Lam's take on the original concept for the film. In English, with English optional subtitles. (5 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a remastered original trailer for Burning Paradise. In Cantonese, with English subtitles. (3 min).

• Booklet - a limited Edition collector's booklet featuring new writing by James Oliver as well as technical credit.

Burning Paradise Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Even though Burning Paradise did not meet box office expectations, I think that it is very difficult not to consider it Ringo Lam's most accomplished project. It is a very big and very imaginative film of the kind that is no longer possible to make in Hong Kong, which I think is sad. Eureka Entertainment's release introduces a very nice 2K restoration of Burning Paradise, but I think that the technical presentation of it could have been even more convincing. Regardless, you should not miss it. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.