| Find the version of Hard Boiled that best suits your needs |
Some brief back-story: I first experienced "Hard Boiled" in 1997 and, like all of it's fans, my jaw hit the floor. I had never seen anything like it in my entire life. Soon after seeing it, I bought the Hard Boiled/Killer VHS pack. That followed with "A Better Tomorrow" on VHS and "A Better Tomorrow 2" on DVD. Every so often, I would see the Criterion Collection version of "Hard Boiled" and "The Killer" but not wanting to shell out the money and believing it would be around forever I never picked it up.
Fast forward to 3 years ago when I make a concerted effort to own the best DVD versions of all the films I love. Believing that Criterion did it better then anyone, that's the one I wanted and that's when I discovered it was out of print. At that moment I made a vow to myself that I wouldn't watch either "Hard Boiled" or "The Killer" again until it was re-released on a special edition DVD.
Fast forward again to this July when I look in the weekly Best Buy ad and see "Hard Boiled: The Ultimate Edition". As quickly as my balloon became inflated, it was popped upon going online to read these facts about it:
1. It was not going to be presented in it's original aspect ratio.
2. Instead of upgraded subtitles, it would be subtitled with the script
from the dubbed version of the film.
3. No John Woo commentary track.
4. No interview or commentary track with Chow Yun-Fat about the film.
It was also disconcerting to read that no DVD version(not even the Criterion) of this classic was without it's flaws but more on that in a bit. Weighing my options, and feeling like a sellout, I purchased the Dragon Dynasty edition of the film.
This week, I finally got around to watching it. How do I feel about my four biggest reservations now?:
1. While not visually presented in the way that it was meant to be seen,
it is a MAJOR upgrade in quality over my VHS version.
2. To not have decent subtitles is ridiculous but the "dubtitles" weren't
so egregious that it ruined my enjoyment of the film.
3. The 37 minute interview with John Woo on Disc 2 almost completely made
up for not having a full length commentary.
4. Chow Yun-Fat was shown doing voiceover work for the game
"Stranglehold" but not having him speak about his experiences during
shooting still bothered me.
In addition, I had a whole new appreciation for Tony Leung's performance after this viewing. I was disappointed he was not included on any bonus features.
A couple of more things before I give my summation...the Bey Logan commentary track gave me more information about Hong Kong cinema then I was ever going to find out otherwise. His enthusiasm and knowledge of the genre made me wonder why I haven't gotten more into Hong Kong cinema beyond a few John Woo films. This makes up for a few of his assertions about the film itself which are probably off the mark. The Terrance Chang, Philip Chan, and Kwok Choi interviews are insightful and entertaining. Overall, the location guide didn't give me a sense that I was seeing where "Hard Boiled" was filmed but that might just be because the landscape has changed so much.
In conclusion, I can't understand why no distributor of this film has ever given it the proper DVD release it deserves. Like the back of this version says, "Hard Boiled" is a landmark in film history and deserves to be treated as such. Why Dragon Dynasty failed to achieve this on their crack at it is beyond me. This means that fans have to compare and contrast the 4 or 5 different editions of the film that are out there and decide which one suits their individual needs the most. Therefore, all I can say is that the Dragon Dynasty version of "Hard Boiled" suited my needs the best because:
1. It was major upgrade in picture quality.
2. It wasn't the dubbed version of the film, just the "dubtitles"
(which still bother me but not enough to not enjoy it)
3. It has some cool bonus features(if not everything that I wanted).
4. I could walk into my local Best Buy and purchase it.
Until a true "Ultimate Edition" comes out(if it ever does) 10, 15, 20 years from now, I will be happy with this edition. But that doesn't mean you are going to be.
|
3 Rating
|
| Ultimate Gun Porn...yawn |
I heard so much about Hard Boiled, and felt let down. It sure puts a lot of empty casings on the floor and cars in the air, but it takes itself far too seriously considering how lame some of the dramatic scenes are.
The heroic rescue of the baby at the end while our hero kills bad guys left and right says it all: Woo wants there to be justice and nobility, but it all seems corny in light of the incredibly over-the-top violence.
The fight scenes are indeed staged very impressively, and the squib boys were working overtime, but after a while it's boring. There's just too damn much shooting! Violence works when it frightens, not when it numbs.
But, if you need to see almost a million shots fired in two hours (30 minutes too long), here's your movie. |
3 Rating
|
