Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		3.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		2.5

She Shoots Straight Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov August 26, 2023

Corey Yuen's "She Shoots Straight" (1990) 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; vintage trailer for the film; and more. In Cantonese or English, with optional English subtitles. Region-B "locked".

In 1990, Corey Yuen must have thought that She Shoots Straight a.k.a. Lethal Lady was a very safe project. A couple of years earlier, he had directed Yes, Madam! and with it effectively launched the careers of Cynthia Rothrock and Michelle Yeoh. She Shoots Straight works with the same blueprint, which is a variation of the classic buddy cop blueprint that produced various cult films. What was different about this blueprint? It replaces the traditional duo of male leads with a duo of female leads.

But the gap in quality between She Shoots Straight and Yes, Madam! is pretty substantial, and not because Yuen somehow mishandled the blueprint. She Shoots Straight has a crucial flaw that Yes, Madam! does not, which is a lack of charismatic leads. To be clear, She Shoots Straight does have other consequential flaws as well but they do not affect its quality as much. They are technical flaws that are reflective of the size of the production and the management of the resources that were provided for it.

The short prologue has two oddly contrasting parts. In one of them, a gang of vicious Vietnamese criminals attacks an upscale venue hosting a modeling event but not everything goes as planned. In the other, fellow detectives Mina (Joyce Godenzi) and Huang (Tony Leung Ka-Fai) tie the knot in a large ceremony but the latter’s sister (Carina Lau), also a detective, throws a tantrum and reveals how she really feels about their union. Soon after, while pursuing the Vietnamese criminals, detective Huang is killed, so to avenge his death and destroy the gang his heartbroken wife and sister overcome their differences and become partners.

The opening credits state that Yuen and two more writers worked on the screenplay for She Shoots Straight, but it seems fair to speculate that Yuen had the final say on how the entire film would be structured and shot. Also, Sammo Hung has a small part and is credited as a producer but apparently was not closely involved with the action choreography.

Despite several good looking action sequences, She Shoots Straight is one seriously underwhelming film. Frankly, it resembles an oddly edited long episode of a soap opera whose creators could not agree on whether it should impress with over-the-top violence or poignant melodrama. Unsurprisingly, its leads are forced through numerous situations that hurt and then effectively destroy their credibility.

But even though Yuen’s direction should have been far more convincing it is difficult to imagine how She Shoots Straight could have been a better film without some serious adjustments in the work of its two female leads. Indeed, not only is their chemistry unconvincing most of the time they are clearly contributing to completely different genre films, creating contrasting material that does not blend well. For example, Godenzi reveals a range of emotions that are suitable for a serious romantic drama, so while her husband is alive it feels like the action is being tuned up to complement a more realistic film. However, Lau’s performance is almost unbearably melodramatic and very much at odds with the drama and action up until the moment when she teams up with Godenzi. As a result, the progression of the story and the character arcs never look convincing.

The only genuinely likable material features the Vietnamese criminals. They infuse She Shoots Straight with what is undoubtedly the proper energy for it, which happens to be the same type of energy that gives Yes, Madam! its genre identity. Unfortunately, in She Shoots Straight this energy is controlled to ensure that the female leads can compete with their opponents.

She Shoots Straight 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, She Shoots Straight arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.

The technical presentation of She Shoots Straight is quite underwhelming. The press materials I received state that the film was restored in 2K, but what I saw on my system looked more like an oddly mismanaged digital remaster. What do I mean exactly? This release produces visuals that are very, very similar to the type of visuals you would get from a master that was finalized in Italy more than a decade ago. Do you remember the old masters for various cult and genre films that were covered with machine noise and used for so many disappointing Blu-ray releases? There is a lot of material here that looks like that -- it has a processed, at times obviously smeary appearance. Obviously, I do not know precisely what was done when She Shoots Straight was restored in 2K, but it is not difficult to conclude that some sort of electronic sharpening was applied. Needless to say, grain exposure is not convincing and most visuals do not have an attractive organic appearance. A few could look decent, but they are typically static visuals from darker footage that hides the most damaging effects of the sharpening. Fast-moving footage will produce smearing, and the larger your screen is, the easier it will be for you to notice it. Color balance is good. The primaries are solid and there are good ranges of supporting nuances. Image stability is excellent. The entire film looks spotless. (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)

She Shoots Straight Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: Cantonese LPCM 2.0 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Optional English subtitles are provided for the Cantonese track.

I viewed the entire film with the Cantonese LPCM 2.0 track but tested a few areas with the English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. The original Cantonese track is good but reveals some limitations. For example, there are several areas with noticeable dynamic unevenness. The effects are not distracting but when you reach these areas you will notice them. The dialog is stable and easy to follow but also a bit uneven at times. The English translation and the size of the subtitles are excellent. (For what it's worth, this is my preferred size of subtitles, not the very small size the likes of Kino Lorber and recently Mondo Vision are using on their releases).

She Shoots Straight Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage trailer for She Shoots Straight. In Cantonese, with English subtitles. (3 min).

• English Opening/Closing Credits - the film is presented here as Lethal Lady. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Shooting Locations - presented here is now-and-then footage from key locations where segments from She Shoots Straight were filmed. In English, not subtitled. (13 min).

• Filmmaker Valerie Soe On "She Shoots Straight" - in this new program, filmmaker and professor of Asian American studies at San Francisco State University, discusses She Shoots Straight. In English, not subtitled. (8 min).

• Commentary One - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by Mike Leeder and Arne Venema. These gentlemen have done quite a few audio commentaries for various Hong Kong cult and classic action films. These commentaries follow a very similar format and, in my opinion, for a good reason. So, here you will hear plenty of observations about the production history and style of She Shoots Straight, the exact period in which the film emerged, some trends in the Hong Kong film industry, and of course the careers of the people that made the film.

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

• Cover - a reversible cover.

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

She Shoots Straight Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

She Shoots Straight enjoys something of a cult status that I find perplexing because it is not a good film. I gather that it was conceived to replicate the success of Yes, Madam!, which came out a few years before it, but its two female leads are quite underwhelming. I would never argue that Yes, Madam! is a masterful genre film because it is not. However, its two female leads have good chemistry together and manage to make it entertaining despite the fact that the camera does not feel comfortable treating them as legit stars. This upcoming release introduces a brand new 2K restoration of She Shoots Straight. However, if you plan to add it to your library, I suggest that you find a way to test it first because the makeover is not as convincing as it should have been.