7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Having been demoted to a lowly traffic cop for his, unorthodox policing methods, officer Ka-Kui quits the force in protest. But it isn't long before he's back in action, racing the clock to stop a band of serial bombers and win back his much-put-upon girlfriend May.
Starring: Jackie Chan, Maggie Cheung, Kwok-Hung Lam, Bill Tung, John CheungForeign | 100% |
Martial arts | 33% |
Crime | 23% |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.34:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Cantonese: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
Cantonese: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English
Blu-ray Disc
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 2.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Note: This title is currently available only in this bundle: Jackie Chan: Police Story / Police Story 2.
Jackie Chan is one of the most recognizable international superstars of the past several decades, but as with many
celebrities, that universal recognition didn’t come easily. Chan had already been working in the Hong Kong film industry
since he was a child, and eventually gaining some adult work as a stuntman (including in such legendary fare as the
Bruce Lee film Enter the Dragon
). But as odd as it may seem to us now, there really wasn’t that huge of an international market for martial arts
films back in the day (despite the success of the Bruce Lee outings), and Chan, once he matriculated into starring roles
himself, found his career hobbled and he actually left the film industry for a brief time in the late seventies. Despite a
couple of stellar opportunities (including a role in an early John Woo film, the brass ring seemed to be frustratingly out
of reach, even in Chan’s native land. That finally all changed with the release of Drunken Master in 1978, and
that film became a formidable template for much of what was to follow in Chan’s film career. Broad physical comedy
mixed with over the top action sequences and some incredible stunt work (always performed by Chan himself) became
the norm for many (maybe even most) Chan outings from then on, and the Police Story films are
certainly no exception. 1985’s Police Story, also co-written and directed by Chan, was Chan’s intentional choice
to mimic the high octane approach of American action films mixed with liberal doses of character based comedy (think Lethal Weapon with a Chinese accent).
And what could be more American than a sequel to an incredibly successful franchise starter—hence Police Story
2.
Police Story 2 is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Shout! Factory with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.34:1. Perhaps because the bar was set so low with regard to the first Police Story, this high definition presentation actually popped quite a bit better by comparison. Colors are noticeably more robust and the image is significantly sharper and better defined. It appears that Chan utilized soft focus in a lot of shots featuring Cheung and those should not be mistaken for "softness" in the traditional sense of the term. The elements here are in somewhat better shape than in the first film with fewer blemishes dotting the premises. While things are better than in the first film, they're still far from reference quality. Midrange and wide shots still look fairly soft and there are some persistent issues like motion judder that crop up due to Chan's hyperkinetic camera moves in this film. On the plus side, edge enhancement is much less of an issue in this outing and this film doesn't have anywhere near the artificial, digitally tweaked appearance that marred the first film, and in fact I'd say that at times at least this presentation rises above the 2.5 level to approach 3.0 territory, at least in passing.
Police Story 2 features the same quartet of mixes that the first film did, DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0 outings in both Cantonese and English. Once again the dialogue is mixed higher in the Cantonese version than in the English, though it's not quite as much of a difference as with the first film. This is also a fairly front heavy mix, though this film does offer more consistent use of the surround channels, especially in the action sequences. There's also more consistent bursts of LFE in this film courtesy of some earth shaking explosions. Fidelity is very good in both languages, with generally well prioritized mixes. Once again the music choices for this film leave more than a bit to be desired.
Police Story 2 is a significantly more accomplished film from a number of angles. The performers are more at ease, the whole production is more professional, and Chan's directing skills are hugely improved (just pay attention to how graceful the camera moves are in this film, even in relatively static scenes). That said, this outing just isn't as much fun as the first film. Part of that is due to some unnecessary melodrama between Chan and May, as well as a too long third act that puts one too many perils in Chan's way. But for fans of the first film, this is a pretty satisfying follow up despite its flaws. This Blu-ray offers better video quality than the first film (which may be damning with faint praise), and provides the same very good audio and brief but enjoyable supplements.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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