Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		4.5

Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons Blu-ray Movie Review

Rings, Demons and a Monkey

Reviewed by Michael Reuben May 27, 2014

Having already established himself as a force to be reckoned with in Shaolin Soccer and Kung Fu Hustle, director Stephen Chow smashed box office records in China (and possibly started a franchise) with his 2013 fantasy epic, Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons. A happy marriage of classic Chinese literature and cutting-edge special effects, the film is based on a 16th Century novel of the same name that has been adapted to the screen many times, including the 2008 pairing of Jackie Chan and Jet Li, The Forbidden Kingdom, and the two-part 1995 Hong Kong fantasy, A Chinese Odyssey, in which Chow himself appeared.

Chow usually stars in his own films, but the demands of Journey were so unusual that he chose to remain behind the camera and even took on a co-director, Derek Kwok. The script is credited to Chow, Kwok and six other writers. Post-production lasted more than a year, due to the extensive effects work, as well as a 3D conversion (which was not released in this country) and an IMAX blow-up.

In contrast to the blockbuster Chinese box office (estimated at $205 million in U.S. currency), Journey to the West was seen here in only a handful of theaters. Its primary distribution has been through video-on-demand and now this excellent Blu-ray from Magnolia Home Entertainment.

In comic book terms, Journey to the West could be called the "origin story" of a demon hunter named Xuan Zang (Wen Zhang). When the film opens, Xuan Zang is a shaggy, shambling youth, whose inability to defeat a demon would be entirely comic if his failures didn't also result in death and tragedy. Xuan Zang has been taught by his master that demons must be redeemed with love, because they are formerly decent souls corrupted by sorrow or anger. Xuan Zang's weapon of choice is a book entitled "300 Nursery Rhymes", which he believes he can use to return a demon to its true, original nature. The book becomes a running joke throughout the film.

In his quest, Xuan Zang encounters other, more effective demon hunters. The most memorable is Miss Duan (Shu Qi), who might be considered "Duan the Demon Slayer". She certainly has much in common with a famous slayer from Western popular culture: strength, agility, exceptional fighting skills—and also poor choice in men. After their first encounter, Miss Duan finds herself in love with Xuan Zang precisely because he is not a typical man; she admires the bravery of someone who would confront a demon armed with only a book of nursery rhymes. Unfortunately for Miss Duan, her fighting prowess isn't accompanied by traditional feminine wiles, and she lacks the ability to interest Xuan Zang, who has sworn off earthly love in favor of the Great Love to which a true follower of Buddha aspires. Miss Duan's increasingly desperate efforts to arouse Xuan Zang's interest are among the film's most comical scenes.

Xuan Zang and Miss Duan encounter three other demon hunters of renown, all of them rivals who can't stop bickering among each other about their prowess. One of them, Fist of the North Star (Xing Yu), summons animal spirits as his fighting form. Another demon hunter, Almighty Foot (Zhang Chaoli), has a tiny foot that expands to enormous size, which he uses to crush his enemies. A third, Prince Important (Luo Show), doesn't reveal his powers until late in the film, but he broadcasts his stature by having himself borne by four women who strew him with rose petals (although they constantly poke fun at their boss, which somewhat detracts from his feeling of Importance).

Over the course of the film, one or more of the hunters encounters three demons, each more cunning and dangerous than the last. The first is called "Sand Monk" or the Water Demon. It decimates a small village on a river, killing several of the inhabitants, and Xuan Zang is unable to stop it without Miss Duan's help. As will later be explained, the Water Demon's attack on this particular village is not accidental; it has a specific grievance. A dazzling CG creation, the Water Demon is part fish, part tiger, part horse, part octopus and other elements blended together. The lengthy battle against it mixes suspenseful action with director Chow's trademark slapstick humor. Anyone familiar with Jaws will spot numerous references to Steven Spielberg's classic thriller, including the assurance that the water is safe, followed by a panicked stampede when, as the audience well knows, the opposite turns out to be true.

The second demon is a shapeshifter named "K.L. Hog" or the Pig Demon. He appears in several guises, including that of a restaurateur who could teach Hannibal Lecter a thing or two. Strong and resourceful, the Pig Demon is ultimately defeated only with the assistance of a third, more powerful demon, whom Xuan Zang locates after a long search. "Sun Wukong" or the Monkey Demon (played in one of his manifestations by veteran Chinese actor Huang Bo) was imprisoned five centuries ago by Buddha himself after wreaking havoc in heaven. The Monkey Demon is only too happy to offer help and advice, but treachery lurks behind every word. Xuan Zang's encounter with the Monkey Demon results in a massive battle involving all the demon hunters, and a supernatural conflagration in which Xuan Zang finally discovers his true power.

At the film's conclusion, Xuan Zang, now an entirely different man, has been dispatched to the West by his master with a new task. He has three traveling companions, and they are not the allies his former self would have chosen. The adventure continues.

Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Journey to the West was shot digitally on the Arri Alexa by Hong Kong cinematographer Choi Sung Fai. Digital acquisition was no doubt chosen to improve the ease of integration with the extensive CG imagery (880 shots were computer-generated, according to visual effects supervisor Ken Law). Final color timing was completed on a digital intermediate, from which Magnolia's 1080p, AVC-encoded Blu-ray was presumably sourced.

The Blu-ray image is gorgeous. Crisply detailed, the visuals still retain the almost film-like texture for which the Alexa is noted. That texture contributes substantially to the delicately constructed fairy tale atmosphere that Chow has created. The blacks are true, and the contrast is appropriately balanced, but the color palette is the magical element of this presentation. All of the hues, even of dirt and sand, are at least a little prettier than reality, and some are much more so. To take just one obvious example, the green of the river in which the Water Demon attacks is a lovely shade that would rarely, if ever, occur in nature, but it looks cool, refreshing and inviting (at least, until someone is bitten in half). Such precisely chosen shades appear throughout Journey to the West, even in such grisly venues as K.L. Hog's kitchen or the dark hole where the Monkey Demon is imprisoned (note the contrast between his colors and those of Xuan Zang and Miss Duan in screenshots 4 and 20). Even the film's worst occurrences are lightened by its eye candy.

Unlike some studios, which would compress a digitally originated film down to the smallest possible space, Magnolia has given this impressive visual achievement the benefit of a BD-50 and an average bitrate of 33.97 Mbps. The film could no doubt look impressive with less bandwidth, but the quality of this presentation speaks for itself and should be a lesson to others.

Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The film's original 5.1 track is presented as lossless DTS-HD MA in its original Mandarin with English subtitles. A lossless English dub track is also available. Subtitles can be selected in a choice of English, English SDH or "English narrative".

The sound mix is as varied and elaborate as the action of the film. A high point is Miss Duan's weapon known as "the Infinite Flying Rings", which are exactly what the name indicates. As these powerful objects ping and boomerang around the room, the entire speaker array gets a workout. Deep bass extension renders the thunderous impact of various demon incarnations as they charge their victims or destroy their homes. (In one specific instance that I don't want to give away, very low bass signals the approach of an unexpected challenge to one of the demons.) The animal spirits of Fist of the North Star, the stomp of Almighty Foot and the weapons of Prince Important (once he chooses to use them) all add their unique signatures to the aural mix.

The score by Chow's regular collaborator, Raymond Wong, shifts easily between the film's comedic beats and its action scenes, rising to a suitably heroic conclusion.

Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Behind the Scenes Featurettes (1080p; 1.78:1): A "play all" feature is included, and English subtitles automatically engage.


• Stunts and Special Effects (1:41): Stunt rehearsals and green/blue screen photography compared to the finished sequences.


• Cast & Characters (2:24): Actors Wen Zhang, Shu Qi and Huang Bo are shown working with the director and discussing their characters.


• Director Stephen Chow (2:39): Members of the cast describe being directed by Chow.


• The Laughs (2:20): The laughs in question are those the cast and director had with each other, because they found it difficult to keep a straight face on the set.


• Production Design (1:20): Shots of various sets and locations.


• Choreography (1:45): Several improbable dance numbers figure in the story. These are scenes from their rehearsal.



• Trailer (1080p; 2.35:1; 2:08).



• Also from Magnolia Home Entertainment: The disc includes trailers for The Protector 2, Stage Fright and Alan Partridge, as well as promos for the Chideo web service and AXS TV. These also play at startup, where they can be skipped with the chapter forward button.



• BD-Live: As of this writing, the BD-Live feature provides access to trailers for additional Magnolia films.

Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Even if the rumored sequel never appears (and it almost certainly will), Journey to the West is a terrific entertainment: colorful, exciting, often very funny and perhaps most importantly, utterly unlike anything currently playing at the American multiplex. If you want to be entertained, thrilled and surprised, it's classic popcorn entertainment, with soy sauce instead of butter. Even viewers who hate subtitles are covered, because there's an English dub track. Highly recommended.