The Bitter Tea of General Yen Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

The Bitter Tea of General Yen Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown December 9, 2024

Re-releasing on Blu-ray via the Frank Capra at Columbia Collection is the director's 1933 The Bitter Tea of General Yen, a film that was controversial in its day but now lingers somewhere between intriguing time capsule and problematic drama. This latest version delivers a new video presentation and lossless mono track (each a slight improvement compared to the 2020 Blu-ray), along with new exclusive extras.

Romance [kinda, sorta] blooms between an American woman named Megan Davis (Barbara Stanwyck) and a Chinese general named Yen (Nils Asther) at a Shanghai party where the assembled multitudes await what they expect to be the wedding of Megan and missionary Robert Strike (Gavin Gordon), a missionary who realizes any "conversions" made were merely those who were gaining information so that they could crucify their enemies. The fact that Capra chooses to follow this alarming anecdote with a whip pan to a seemingly representative Chinese man gives the film a rather uneasy subtext quite a bit of the time. Even this opening sequence shows several Chinese characters obviously decked out to "resemble" Westerners in their attire, with them singing and playing traditional Christian hymns, as if to suggest that the "natives" had been civilized in some fashion... Megan and Richard attempt to save several orphans, which soon results in Megan being taken captive more or less by General Yen, albeit admittedly in an attempt to save her from precarious circumstances. However, the whole central portion of the film deals with the growing intimacy between Megan and Yen, with a few sidebars thrown in courtesy of some supporting characters, notably a concubine named Mah-Li (Toshia Mori) and an American advisor to Yen named Jones (Walter Connolly).

Click here to read the rest of Jeffrey Kauffman's review of the film, which he calls "a decidedly odd picture." Adding, "it's not really hard to see why it didn't connect with audiences very strongly when it was originally released. Probably unfortunately, there are only going to be more obstacles for many modern day viewers whose "PC" antennae may start vibrating due to some of the film's presentational and representational proclivities."

The Bitter Tea of General Yen Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

It's difficult to determine whether this latest 1080p/AVC-encoded video transfer of The Bitter Tea of General Yen is substantively different than its 2020 predecessor. It's presented at 1.37:1 compared to the 2020 version's 1.33:1, so there is a bump in faithfulness to the original photography. But it may be a product of the same master and exhibit strikingly similar video quality. If so, my increased score is largely subjective compared to Jeff's score four years ago, but let's just pretend it's because of the more exacting aspect ratio. Agreed? Moving on. Detail is quite pleasing, though it's a shame General Yen didn't receive the 4K treatment like many of the films in the Frank Capra at Columbia Collection box set. Textures are relatively revealing, particularly since the film is often much softer than modern audiences are accustomed, but the production design and more ambitious exploits of the feature are represented with clean, well-resolved clarity. There isn't any significant artificiality to speak of, nor any substantial edge halos, macroblocking or banding. General Yen may share its disc with another film, but the encode appears to be unaffected. The black and white photography is often especially striking, with inky black levels, gorgeous gray mid-toning, and bright whites. Contrast is beautifully balanced too, and I didn't find much -- outside of several optical shortcomings -- to be distracting to anything other than the modern eye and modern expectations.

The Bitter Tea of General Yen Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Similarly, I was a bit more satisfied with the film's DTS-HD Master Audio mono offering than my colleague. Whether that's the product of an improved mix or something more subjective is a matter for another day. Dialogue is clean, intelligible at all times, and neatly prioritized within an occasionally eruptive soundscape, and is never smothered or overwhelmed by more chaotic moments or bursts of score. Effects sound quite good, despite a more shallow ting to their tenor, and very little is overly thin, which only helps matters.

The Bitter Tea of General Yen Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Previously a barebones Blu-ray release, this edition of The Bitter Tea of General Yen includes an Audio Commentary with film and fashion historian Kimberly Truhler and a featurette with Martin Scorsese and Ron Howard titled "Defining Capra's Early Style" (HD, 9 minutes).

The Bitter Tea of General Yen Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Viewed in 2024, The Bitter Tea of General Yen is a strange, well-intentioned but slightly offensive film with a non-Asian playing the titular lead character. It's confusing really. Likely too controversial for its day or, skipping ahead nearly ninety years, via a modern viewing, it's place in the Frank Capra at Columbia Collection is simply a completist's dream come true. Never mind the film itself. Come for its role in Capra's development and to see a feature that bridges more influential works like Dirigible and Lost Horizon. Fortunately, Sony's latest Blu-ray edition includes a more faithful video presentation, another solid audio track, and new extras (the previous release was barebones).