6.6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
A cop is assigned to a case of escorting a criminal to Japan while dealing with relationship problems, and his enormous change in appearance as a result of being dumped.
Starring: Donnie Yen, Sandra Kwan Yue Ng, Jing Wong, Teresa Mo, Niki ChowForeign | 100% |
Martial arts | 69% |
Action | 67% |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Cantonese: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Cantonese: LPCM 2.0
English, Cantonese
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
There’s a bit of moralizing toward the end of Enter the Fat Dragon where some voiceover courtesy of star Donnie Yen alerts us all to the fact that it doesn’t matter if you are fat or thin, what’s important is that you stay true to yourself. That’s certainly an honorable homily, but it kind of undercuts the whole premise of this silly and manic, but admittedly at least intermittently amusing, film that bears very little resemblance to Enter the Fat Dragon, the 1978 effort starring Sammo Hung which was more of an unabashed parody of the then still au courant “Bruceploitation” genre other than of course the title the two properties share. Sammo Hung is a bit more, um, “husky” (as catalogs used to call perhaps slightly or more than slightly overweight boys) than Donnie Yen, which probably gave his film with this title a bit more comedic punch, though some viewers may delight at Yen undergoing a transformation courtesy of some decent makeup. Yen portrays cop Fallon Zhu, who is slim and fit as the film beings, a state perhaps aided and abetted by the fact that he’s frequently running around in a panicked state at the behest of his fiancée Chloe (Niki Chow). Fallon and Chloe are due to be married soon, but before that can happen they need to have their “wedding” photos taken, which leads to the first big action set piece of the film when Fallon of course is in the wrong place at the wrong time and has to move fast (again, helpful for weight management) to dispatch a bunch of robbers. While Fallon is successful in his endeavors, unfortunately his attempts, which result in havoc being wreaked across Hong Kong, are covered in several livestreams which deeply embarrass Chloe and enrage Fallon’s police superior, leading to both the breakup of his romantic relationship and his ostensible demotion to the basement of the police headquarters where he’s put in charge of the evidence room.
Enter the Fat Dragon is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Well Go USA with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The IMDb lists Arri Alexa Minis and a 2K DI as the relevant datapoints, and without much in the way of extras, Well Go USA has provided this on a BD-25. There's once again some noticeable banding during mastheads, something that seems to afflict Well Go USA discs for some reason, but things look better once the actual film starts. This is quite a colorful enterprise and the palette really pops with some vivid authority, even in some darker scenes. Detail levels are generally excellent, save for some clunky looking CGI which is noticeably softer than the bulk of the presentation. There also appears to have been some greenscreened material where backgrounds can look similarly a bit hazy. While contrast is generally strong, the climax in particular is beset with slightly milky blacks.
Enter the Fat Dragon features a pretty relentlessly noisy DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track in Cantonese (with optional English subtitles, which can be set to either play under the Cantonese dialogue, or under both the Cantonese and occasional snippets, sometimes just a word or two, in English). The film offers consistent immersion which is especially aggressive in several of the action set pieces, as in the aforementioned opening salvo in the back of a careening van, or the later climax on top of a scary skyscraper outcropping with a nearby helicopter completely out of control (courtesy of some of those aforementioned boneheaded characters Fallon encounters in Tokyo). Even supposedly "quieter" scenes are often rife with either ambient environmental effects or score, and so this track may strike some as ultimately overwhelming. Fidelity is excellent and I noticed no problems of any kind whatsoever.
- International Trailer (1080p; 1:38)
- U.S. Trailer (1080i; 1:33)
Enter the Fat Dragon has some well executed set pieces and at least a glimmer or two of amusing comedy (even if tons of players, including Yen at times, are playing to the veritable second balcony), but it's just a really weird film due to its underlying premise that is frankly unnecessary. Yen fans will probably still get a kick out of this, and technical merits are solid for those considering a purchase.
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