From Beijing with Love Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

From Beijing with Love Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 22, 2023

Stephen Chow and Lee Lik Chi's "From Beijing with Love" (1994) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the release include recent programs with Wong Kam Kong; interview with Lee Lik Chi; exclusive new audio commentary by critic Frank Djeng; and more. In Cantonese or English, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

You hold this thing, you pull the trigger, you kill. Simple business, only slightly messy.

From Beijing with Love begins with a disclaimer, This film has absolutely no relation to James Bond 007. Oh, really? Is it related to Ben-Hur, then? Gone with the Wind? Or could it be Casablanca? Of course, the disclaimer is supposed to be funny, but it is incredibly silly, too. In fact, From Beijing with Love tries so hard to spoof just about everything that is associated with Mr. 007 it very quickly tires the eyes and the mind, so it is more than fair to declare that it is one very, very silly film.

The Chinese replica of Mr. 007 is called Ling Ling Chat (Stephen Chow) and he happens to be making ends meet as a butcher on the streets of Beijing. (How about that, Mr. 007?) When someone steals an ancient dinosaur skull and kills one of the top spies in China, Chat is summoned by his masters and ordered to track down the thief who is most likely the killer, too. Soon after, Chat is teamed up with the sexy female agent Lee Heung Kam (Anita Yuen) and pointed in what seems to be the right direction. After some quite wild adventures, including an encounter with a vicious killer with a metal mouth -- sound familiar? -- Chat and Lee identify their target, The Man with the Golden Gun (Wong Kam Kong), but he proves a much more intelligent foe than initially anticipated. Chat’s business relationship with Lee evolves in a most unexpected way, too. Well, sort of.

While it is very easy to understand why a Hong Kong-produced 007 mockery that was completed in 1994 would feature Chow, who at the time was a huge box-office magnet, From Beijing with Love most definitely feels like a vanity project. It is because Chow directs himself with a very, very obvious desire to be the undisputed source of all laughs throughout the film, which very quickly transforms it into a one-man show. Indeed, even though Yuen is given plenty of time before the camera, everything her character does is meant to enhance in some way the image of the superspy-turned-butcher. The impact on the quality of the comedy is substantial because there is just not enough variety.

The other big reason the comedy underwhelms is the quality of the writing. It lacks wit and rhythm, plus it does not create situations where the spoofing looks at least somewhat organic. It is true that a good spoof does not have to look organic to be effective, but absolutely everything in this film looks staged in ways to target different elements from the 007 universe. At least some creativity outside of it undoubtedly would have made the film a lot more exciting. (On the other hand, given how successful From Beijing with Love was in Hong Kong, it seems logical to conclude that its producers and Chow knew exactly what they were doing. It appears that this is the exact type of entertainment local audiences desired at the time).

The action material looks very good. It must be said, however, that a Western viewer will probably be shocked by its violent nature. Indeed, there is an abundance of material with gory executions, dismembering, and other similarly disturbing Hong Kong treats. Also, a lot of the action material features big pyrotechnic effects and fancy camera work that makes it even more striking.

Ultimately, From Beijing with Love will be much better received by fans of the The Naked Gun films than fans of the James Bond films, possibly looking for an exotic nostalgia fix. It has a few good moments and could be somewhat charming, but it seems fair to say that with Chow’s involvement, it should have turned out a lot more exciting.

*Several years ago, From Beijing with Love was remastered on behalf of Hong Kong-based label Vicol Entertainment. It made its Blu-ray debut in 2015. This upcoming release offers the same remastered presentation of the film.

From Beijing with 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, From Beijing with Love arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.

A few years ago, an old and very good friend on this site sent me Hong Kong label Vicol Entertainment's release of From Beijing with Love. It offers a remastered presentation of the film. This upcoming release offers the exact same presentation.

The film looks good in high-definition. Delineation, clarity, and depth pleasing. The surface of the visuals could be a bit more attractive -- grain is not always as nicely and evenly exposed as it could be -- but there are no serious anomalies to report. Color balance is stable. However, this is an area where some meaningful improvements can be introduced. For example, in some sequences highlights can be rebalanced and with them some supporting nuances. The same can be said about other areas where darker nuances can be expanded. Image stability is very good. There are no damage marks, cuts, warped or torn frames to report. One last thing. It is worth mentioning that this release is substantially better encoded than the Hong Kong release that is reference above. (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).

From Beijing with Love Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: Cantonese LPCM 2.0 and English LPCM 2.0. Optional English subtitles are provided for the main feature.

I viewed the entire film with the Cantonese track and did not encounter any anomalies to report in our review. The audio is very clear and stable. Dynamic intensity is very good too, but perhaps it needs to be said that the film has a lot of action footage, which means that there are plenty of opportunities to impress. I did sample the English track. To be honest, the dubbing sounded very goofy to me, so I quickly switched back to the Cantonese track.

From Beijing with Love Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Wong Kam Kong on From Beijing with Love - in this recent program, actor Wong Kam Kong recalls how he was approached with an offer to play The Man with the Golden Gun, his interactions with Stephen Chow before and during the production process, how he prepared for his part, how some of the more challenging action footage was choreographed and shot, etc. Also, there are a few interesting comments about the film's midnight premiere at Ocean Cinema and how it changed Mr. Kong's perspective of Mr. Chow's craft. In Cantonese, with English subtitles. (22 min).

• Wong Kam Kong on His Career - in this recent program, Wong Kam Kong discusses his background as an artist, the evolution of his career, the importance of his professional relationship with Ringo Lam, and his contribution to Burning Paradise. In Cantonese, with English subtitles. (55 min).

• Interview with Lee Lik Chi - in this archival program, director Lee Lik Chi discusses his early work at several TV stations in Hong Kong and transition to the film industry, his initial encounter with Stephen Chow and then collaborations on several different films, including From Beijing with Love. There are some interesting comments about Mr. Chow's performing style, which Mr. Chi believes is similar to Buster Keaton's. In Cantonese, with English subtitles. (25 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage Hong Kong trailer for From Beijing with Love. In English and Cantonese, with English subtitles. (3 min).

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

• Booklet - an illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing by James Oliver as well as technical credits.

From Beijing with Love Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you are a fan of The Naked Gun films, there is an excellent chance that you would enjoy From Beijing with Love. I think that it has its moments, especially after Stephen Chow and Anita Yuen become partners, but the mockery quickly becomes repetitive. Eureka Entertainment's release offers a good presentation of From Beijing with Love with a small but nice selection of bonus features. RECOMMENDED to the fans.