In the Line of Duty III Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.0

In the Line of Duty III Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 18, 2023

Arthur Wong and Brandy Yuen's "In the Line of Duty III" (1988) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the release include exclusive new audio commentary by critics Mike Leeder and Arne Venema; exclusive new audio commentary by critic Frank Djeng; and original Hong Kong and UK trailers for the film. In Cantonese and English, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Was Cynthia Khan the right actress to replace Michelle Yeoh in In the Line of Duty III? If the main reason you enjoyed the previous two In the Line of Duty films was Yeoh’s personality, then the answer is no. However, if it was mostly Yeoh’s fighting skills that made the previous two films attractive to you, then the answer is yes, probably.

Khan and Yeoh have different personalities and they defined their characters in different ways. However, it is important to remember that very few people that saw the first two In the Line of Duty concluded that they were good strictly because of Yeoh’s personality. (The same can be said about Cynthia Rothrock’s personality). Even the creators of these films did not think that they had proper star power, so they shot them with the awareness that it was so and attempted to make up for it with top-quality action. The period atmosphere of 1980s Hong Kong was in many ways used to help as well. Admittedly, during the same period, this is how many similar films were shot in Hong Kong even if they had proper star power, but as far as the In The Line of Duty films are concerned the concept behind them was always more important than the unique personalities of their leads.

If you accept that this is how In the Line of Duty films were conceived, Yeoh’s absence from In the Line of Duty III becomes incredibly easy to ignore and the arrival of Khan even easier to rationalize. The successful concept remained the same. What changed were some directorial preferences about the action choreography and the tone of the films.

During a lavish ceremony in Tokyo, a duo of thieves (Stuart Ong and Michiko Nishiwaki) with connections to the Japanese terrorist organization Red Army steal a load of diamonds worth millions of dollars. While trying to get away with the loot, the thieves kill a Japanese detective and many innocent bystanders. Soon after successfully exiting Tokyo, however, the thieves realize that the man that helped them set up the heist, a prominent businessman with ambitious goals, has tricked them and they risked their lives to steal a load of worthless plastic stones. They immediately vow to track down their 'partner', take him out, and acquire the real diamonds.

When the businessman’s bodyguards and the thieves, now fully transformed into violent assassins, begin clashing, detective Rachel Yeung (Khan) is ordered to stop the mayhem. But the task proves so challenging that Yeung is advised to team up with a Japanese detective (Hiroshi Fujioka) who has landed in Hong Kong to avenge the death of his partner after he was killed by the thieves in Tokyo. Shortly after the two go to work, all hell breaks loose.

When Arthur Wong and Brandy Yuen completed In the Line of Duty III in 1988 the consensus was that they had delivered the most violent film in the franchise. Even though the fourth film has some quite intense footage with Donnie Yen, the reputation of In the Line of Duty III remains the same.

The other very notable discrepancy between the first two films and In the Line of Duty III is the dramatically diminished role humor has in the latter. To be clear, there are still bits of it that are scattered in different places -- with arguably the best ones always featuring Paul Chun’s Inspector Chuen -- but at best they are temporary distractions in what is a notably darker, more intense, and violent action thriller.

Virtually all of the material that gives In the Line of Duty III a new personality is in the second half and features Ong and Nishiwaki. (This may seem strange but only if you forget what was mentioned earlier about the importance of the concept behind the In the Line of Duty films). In fact, these two actors do most of the leading in In the Line of Duty III and routinely force Khan and Fujioka to respond accordingly.

While the action choreography and visuals are very solid, the direction is a mixed bag. For example, a lot of transitions between different episodes are perplexingly abrupt, leaving the impression that someone had a terrible time trying to decide how to properly edit the footage. Elsewhere the overlapping of the action and non-action footage is unconvincing as well, which is why continuity throughout the film frequently feels less than stellar.

In the Line of Duty III 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, In the Line of Duty III arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.

The release is sourced from a new 2K master that I found quite frustrating. The raw files that were prepared after the 2K scan was done are incredibly healthy and make the film look brand new. The surface of the visuals, in particular, is simply immaculate. Unfortunately, the entire film is graded like a contemporary production and in some areas there are anomalies that destabilize the native dynamic range of the visuals. For example, there is a very obvious emphasis on brown(ish)/dark yellow hues that alter skin tones and interact with other primaries, like red, blue, and white. As a result, most of the time faces appear unnaturally brown or oddly pale. (You can see examples in screencaptures #15, 19, 28, 32, 33, 35, and 36). Also, much of the daytime footage is supposed to take place during warm and sunny weather, but because of the color anomalies its native temperature is off and it looks like it comes from late Autumn. In some darker areas with different ranges of shadow nuances, the problematic dynamic range of the visuals introduces digital flatness as well. (See screencapture #5). Elsewhere when blue must interact with other colors it routinely evolves into contemporary turquoise. (See screencapture #36). The only solid blue is during very dark footage -- such as the footage from the shootout in the nightclub -- or in transitional footage where it is set to easily overwhelm all other colors. (See screencaptures #27 and 35). In summary, there are many fluctuations that cannot be associated with stylistic preferences on a 35mm film shot during the 1980s, which is why different parts of the new master do not have a proper organic appearance. Density levels are excellent. Image stability is very good, too. (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).

In the Line of Duty III 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 Cantonese track.

I tried both tracks. I started with the Cantonese track, switched to the English tracks, and eventually went back to the Cantonese track. Both tracks show their age. The Cantonese track has a slightly better range of dynamic contrasts but there is plenty of unevenness and thinning. It is pretty easy to tell that this is how it was finalized. The English track is all-around thinner, though not clarity and sharpness are comparable to those of the Cantonese track. Obviously, its timbre is very different because of the overdubbing, but this is hardly surprising. (For what it's worth, the Cantonese track uses overdubbing, too). I did not encounter any serious age-related imperfections to report.

In the Line of Duty III Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary One - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critics Mike Leeder and Arne Venema. It is another very enjoyable commentary from these gentlemen that produces as much information about the production of In the Line of Duty III as it does observations about Hong Kong's personality, style, politics, and culture during the 1980s. Unsurprisingly, there are plenty of comments about the careers of the various actors that made In the Line of Duty III and other genre films they contributed to and are now considered classics and how they performed at the box office.

• Commentary Two - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic Frank Djeng. Here there is plenty of good information about the casting choices that were made and the use of the In the Line of Duty title, which was popularized with this film. Also, there are interesting comments about the dubbing that was done on the original Cantonese track, the significance of some particular clothing choices, the action choreography, and the various locations in Hong Kong where parts of the film were shot.

• Trailer One - presented here is an original Hong Kong theatrical trailer for In the Line of Duty III. In Cantonese, with English subtitles. (4 min).

• Trailer Two - presented here is an original UK trailer for In the Line of Duty III. In English. (4 min).

• Cover - a reversible cover with vintage poster art for In the Line of Duty III.

• Booklet - a limited edition collector's booklet featuring new writing by critic James Oliver as well as technical credits.

In the Line of Duty III Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Stuart Ong and Michiko Nishiwaki's presence is so overpowering that for my money they become the true stars of In the Line of Duty III. Also, I think that they are the reason much of the action in this film is more impressive than that from the previous two films, not Cynthia Khan, who was chosen to fill the void left after the departure of Michelle Yeoh and Cynthia Rothrock. (For what it's worth, as they emerged, the four In the Line of Duty films were not part of a cohesive franchise). Eureka Entertainment's release is sourced from an exclusive new 2K master that I found quite frustrating. This 2K master makes In the Line of Duty III look brand new but gives it a contemporary identity and produces some anomalies. If you wish to have the release in your library, the best thing to do is find a way to test it on your system first and then consider a purchase.