Miracles: The Canton Godfather Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Miracles: The Canton Godfather Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 2, 2020

Jackie Chan's "Miracles" (1989) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of 88 Films. The supplemental features on the disc include vintage trailers and new video appreciation by critic Steve Lawson. The release also arrives with a 44-page illustrated booklet featuring rare promotional materials for the film. In Cantonese and English, with optional English subtitles. Region-B "locked".

Serious business

Is it accurate to say that Miracles is a remake of Frank Capra’s final film, Pocketful of Miracles? Well, a significant portion of its narrative most definitely borrows from Capra’s film, which is actually a remake of his earlier film Lady for a Day. But there is a lot more content that is unique, plus Miracles is a Jackie Chan film, which means that for the most part the narrative is just a platform for a whole lot of sizzling action. Therefore, the clear answer should be no.

Most of the obvious similarities are in the first half. In the early 1930s, the clueless immigrant Charlie (Jackie Chan) arrives in Hong Kong ready to start a new life, but immediately gets cheated by a local con artist (Bill Tung) operating as a job recruiter. Shortly after, Charlie reluctantly purchases a beautiful red rose from Madam Kao (Ah-Lei Gua) and somehow finds himself in the middle of a heated dispute between two rivaling gangs. (This is one of the most striking sequences in the entire film, featuring some absolutely breathtaking stunt work). He follows his instincts and rescues a notorious crime boss, but when later on the man dies in his hands, his people choose him to be his replacement. The newcomer’s life then instantly changes, and he becomes one of Hong Kong’s most influential residents. But Charley also becomes a walking target for the dead boss’ former competitors, so while trying to get used to his new lifestyle, he routinely dodges bullets as well. He manages to stay alive by purchasing more of Madam Kao’s red roses -- each time she hands him one, his attackers miss, and he walks away unharmed.

As Charley’s confidence grows, and he becomes comfortable managing the gang’s many businesses, amongst them a spectacular new nightclub, he learns from Madam Kao that her daughter has left Shanghai and is coming home to get married to a wealthy bachelor -- and this is a serious problem because the young girl is completely unaware that for years her mother has been selling flowers on the streets to support her. The grateful Charley then decides to help Madam Kao become the wealthy and respectable lady her daughter believes she is, and begins making arrangements for the transformation with a few of his closest assistants. However, almost immediately after the young girl, her fiancé and his parents arrive in Hong Kong, Charley’s powerful rivals go on the offensive.

The film has a rather striking period appearance that was definitely not cheap to put together. Costumes, decors and vintage cars, everything looks great and functional. So, there is period beauty galore, but it does not feel overdone either.

However, this film is all about the sizzling action, which frankly is a bit disappointing because once it gets going it takes over the narrative in such an uncompromising fashion that it simply becomes impossible for the drama and romance to be taken seriously. Do they need to be? Yes, because otherwise the film begins to look like an expensive parody that is wasting time promoting characters that do not need the viewer’s attention. They can just utter their lines and then move on to prepare the next big action number.

The action choreography offers a little bit of everything that makes Jackie Chan’s films exciting and attractive, plus the energy is truly off the charts. But the end product is still pretty rough, so the only way to avoid disappointment is to approach it with modest expectations.

*There are two versions of the film on this release. The original uncut Hong Kong Version, Mr. Canton and Lady Rose (127 min), and the International Version, Miracles (107 min). Additionally, Jackie Chan’s character is identified as Kwok Chun-Wah, from Zhongshan (and Canton in the International Version).

Miracles: The Canton Godfather Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Miracles arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of 88 Films.

The release is sourced from a brand new 4K master, and I think that overall the film looks really, really good now. There are a couple of sequences where it feels like in backgrounds color balance can be a tad better, but it is quite clear that the noticeable unevenness is in fact part of a stylistic preference. (Just to be perfectly clear, this is a period production with a period stylization). All of the primaries are solid, with supporting nuances that are equally nicely balanced, so I don't see any serious anomalies in the color scheme pointing to problems with the existing range of color values. Depth, clarity, and especially fluidity are very good. Also, it is pretty easy to tell that the restored master is new and of very high quality because its density levels are outstanding. Image stability is excellent. Finally, there are no distracting large debris, cuts, stains, damage marks, torn or warped frames to report in our review. (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).

Miracles: The Canton Godfather Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The following audio tracks are available on the disc: Original Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and Alternate Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 for the Hong Kong Version, and English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 for the International Version. Optional English and English SDH subtitles are provided for the Hong Kong Version, and English SDH subtitles are provided for the International version.

I viewed the longer Hong Version with the original Cantonese audio track. I thought that it was perfectly fine -- clean and stable, with a some sporadic small but predictable dynamic unevenness. So, the native qualities are retained. I did not test the other two tracks. Finally, that the subtitles on this release also tend to switch very fast. This is also the case on a few recent releases of Hong Kong films from Eureka Entertainment, and I wonder if they were all done by the same person(s). There are sequences where it is basically impossible to read the full text on time, and I never complain about 'reading' films.

Miracles: The Canton Godfather Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Teaser - Hong Kong teaser trailer highlighting Jackie Chan's work. With music. (5 min).

• Trailer - Hong Kong trailer. In Cantonese, with imposed English subtitles. (5 min).

• Jackie Chan: Film Director - new video appreciation by critic Steve Lawson. In English, not subtitled. (11 min).

• The Canton Godfather Opening - with music (1 min).

• Booklet - 44-page illustrated booklet featuring rare stills, posters, lobby cards, behind the scenes photos, production stills and more.

• Cover - reversible cover with vintage poster art.

Miracles: The Canton Godfather Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There is a lot of action in this film, some of it very, very impressive, but the end product is quite rough. The drama, comedy and romance cannot be taken seriously, and this is why at times the film begins to look like a very ambitious and very expensive parody. My guess is that Jackie Chan fans would see this as an utterly meaningless piece of criticism, but folks that require more than just fast and flashy action to be entertained should keep it in mind. 88 Films' new release of Miracles is sourced from a solid 4K restoration. RECOMMENDED only to the fans.