Blu-Ray – Dramatic Movies

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon / Curse of the Golden Flower / House of Flying Daggers Trilogy [Blu-ray]

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Named “Best Picture of the Year” by over 100 critics nationwide! Two master warriors (Chow Yun Fat and Michelle Yeoh) are faced with their greatest challenge when the treasured Green Destiny sword is stolen. A young aristocrat (Zhang Ziyi) prepares for an arranged marriage, but soon reveals her superior fighting talents and her deeply romantic past. As each warrior battles for justice, they come face to face with their worst enemy – and the inescapable, enduring power of love. Set against 19th-century China’s breathtaking landscape, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is the action-packed, box office smash from acclaimed director Ang Lee (Sense and Sensibility, The Ice Storm) featuring stunning martial arts choreography by Yuen Wo Ping (The Matrix).

Curse of the Golden Flower
From the director of Hero and House of Flying Daggers comes the martial arts epic masterpiece whose savage beauty and exquisite elegance has mesmerized and captivated audiences around the world. Set in the lavish and breathtakingly colorful world hidden from the eyes of mere mortals behind the walls of the Forbidden City, a tale of a royal family divided against itself builds to a mythic climax as lines are crossed, trust is betrayed, and family blood is spilled in the quest for redemption and revenge. Starring Chow Yun Fat of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon as the embattled Emperor and Gong Li of Memoirs of a Geisha as his poisoned Empress, Curse of the Golden Flower grants you entry into a dazzling and spectacular world of betrayal, vengeance and passion that will change the way you think of martial arts forever.

House of Flying Daggers
“Prepare your eyes for popping,” in this “martial-arts fireball that throws in a lyrical love story, head spinning fights and dazzling surprises” (Rolling Stone). “A gorgeous entertainment” (A.O. Scott, New York Times). Mei is an exotic, beautiful blind dancer, associated with a dangerous revolutionary gang, known as the House of Flying Daggers. Captured by officers of the decadent Tang Dynasty, Mei finds herself both threatened – and attracted – to the most unusual circumstances. Here, her heart and loyalties battle each other, amid warriors in the treetops and dazzling combat – the likes of which have never before been seen!

These are three of my favorite Asian epic films; with other favorites being “Musa The Warrior”, “The Legend of Suriyothai”, “Painted Skin”, “Hero”, “The Emperor and the Assassin” and “The Banquet”. Many people are upset about having to buy this set in order to get the blu-ray for “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon”. I previously bought “Curse of the Golden Flower” and “House of Flying Daggers” on blu-ray as well. Once I heard about this three pack blu-ray set, I traded them in towards something else. I ordered this set from Amazon and received great service and fast shipping. “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon” looks fabulous on blu-ray as does “Curse of the Golden Flower”. The mpeg2 encoded, 25gb “House of Flying Daggers” disc is a mixed bag visually. But overall, the box set is worth it. Can’t wait until “Hero” comes on blu-ray on September 15th. But which version of “Iron Monkey” will be released on blu-ray September 15th, original or edited version. Here are some of my other foreign film blu-ray recommendations: “Re-cycle”, “The Host”, “Kung Fu Hustle”, “In The Realm Of The Senses”, “CJ7″, “Let The Right One In”, “District B-13″, “Ghost In The Shell 2: Innocence”, “Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children”, “Dragon Tiger Gate”, “Invisible Target”, “20th Century Boys”, “The Storm Riders”, “Death Trance”, “Old Boy”, “Chocolate” and “Fearless”. Hopefully “Ong Bak 2″ will be released on blu-ray this fall.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon – Daniel J. Cook – Rochester, NY
How about releasing Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon separately for those of that already own the other two or for people that are only interested in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon? Seems like a ludicrous marketing ploy to me. As much as I want Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, I am not going to buy the set when I already have the other two. By the way, the low rating is not for the films, but it is for the already stated packaging of an unnecessary bundled product.

Greedy Sony – nr2134 – Addison, IL
With Sony hemorrhaging money left and right, they try to make up with unwanted bundles. Well, anyone that just wants to purchase CTHD, just go to Amazon.co.uk and place the order there. It cost me around and it plays in my BD player. Problem solved.

Un poco de decepción – Carlos Tutiven Roman – Guayaquil. Ecuador
Me animé a comprar esta edición triple de películas chinas contemporáneas porque la publicidad en Amazon decía que venían subtitulados en español. Especialmente Crouching Tiger. Para mi sorpresa, el dvd no viene con subtítulos en español, a pesar que en la propia caja del disco dice que sí. A esto se le llama, “publicidad engañosa” y es lamentable.

I encouraged her to buy this edition triple of contemporary Chinese films because the publicity that came from Amazon said Spanish subtitles. Especially Crouching Tiger. To my surprise the dvd does not come with subtitles in Spanish, although in-house disc box says yes. This is called “misleading” and is regrettable.

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Add comment July 2nd, 2010

Curse of the Golden Flower [Blu-ray]

From the director of Hero and House of Flying Daggers comes the martial arts epic masterpiece whose savage beauty and exquisite elegance has mesmerized and captivated audiences around the world. Set in the lavish and breathtakingly colorful world hidden from the eyes of mere mortals behind the walls of the Forbidden City, a tale of a royal family divided against itself builds to a mythic climax as lines are crossed, trust is betrayed, and family blood is spilled in the quest for redemption and revenge. Starring Chow Yun Fat of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon as the embattled Emperor and Gong Li of Memoirs of a Geisha as his poisoned Empress, Curse of the Golden Flower grants you entry into a dazzling and spectacular world of betrayal, vengeance and passion that will change the way you think of martial arts forever.

This is a movie that begs for a spectacular high definition release but this Sony blu-ray falls a little bit short.
Certainly this is one of the most visually stunning films ever made. The colors in this film rival SPEED RACER (and this ain’t a Speed Racer sort of movie)! The costumes are never short of dazzling and the set design is so ornate, detailed and opulant that it is difficult to describe. The story is the great stuff of an over the top soap opera and the action scenes are loud and exciting. Chow Yun Fat and Gong Li are superb and Jay Chou is a revelation as the dashing Prince Jai. This is a great film. The blu-ray transfer looks pretty good, but not as good as you might expect it to. The colors are vibrant and beautiful and fine detail is evident in the costumes and long shots but some scenes look a bit soft (perhaps this is a fault of the source print and not the transfer). The soundtrack offers several variations from a Mandarin PCM 5.1, Mandarin Dolby 5.1 and English dub in 5.1. All of it sounds pretty good but nothing really special. Subtitles can be turned on or off for any version. The extras are just ported over from the DVD release with the 3 minute premier being a bore and the short documentary being fairly interesting and informative. Sony didn’t seem to go the extra mile for this release and that is a shame because director Zhang Yimou went the extra mile to make an extraordinary and higly entertaining picture.

an excellent movie – Robert L. Smith – Sacramento, CA
The movie did reveal the inside turmoils of the royal family. The scene is really beautiful, and each character has their own struggles and concerns.

Lies, Deception, Revolt: One Big Bloody Mess (literally) – Erika Borsos – Gulf Coast of FL, USA
Any film by Zhang Yimou is sure to leave the viewer with enormous expectations for a meaningful plot, sensational scenes, a sense of wonder at the creativity and artistic expression of this media and satisfaction and fulfillment at the end. This film met some of the criteria mentioned but for me it fell short in the most important aspect which is “satisfaction and fulfillment.” I was appalled at the bloody scenes and carnage which was the aftermath of an unsuccessful revolt. Having viewed the film twice, my overall impression remains it was not worth the great cost and amount of research it took to try to create authenticity and special effects to impress the viewer. The film is an epic tragedy about an Imperial family from the Tang Dynasty whose hidden lives behind the walls of the Forbidden City were filled with secrets, deception and tragedy. The plot is complex, filled with subterfuge and subplots making this a highly suspenseful interesting film despite its drawbacks. The Emperor lived during an era when male domination was total. For reasons which were later made clear, he was slowly poisoning his wife. His word was law, he seemed formidable and unapproachable. The Empress and his sons were expected to be obedient to his will and intentions. This naturally created tension in his marriage and jealousy among his sons. Gradually, the film reveals the multilayered subplots within the story. It seems every important member of the Imperial family has a hidden agenda: the Emperor, the Empress, and each of the Princes. There are secret love affairs, one of which is very shocking in scope, although the parties involved engage innocently in the relationship, not knowing the eventual consequences. It leads to a tragic ending.

The Emperor had been a general in the Imperial Army before he staged a coup many years ago in order to achieve the highest position of authority and power in the realm: to become Emperor. He committed some murders to quiet any opposition. Therefore, he had great reason for paranoia and distrust. One of the most unique aspects of this film is how it depicts the gradual unraveling of secrets which destroys the family bonds beyond repair. This DVD provides a great special feature: an outstanding interview with the Zhang Yimou, the director. He provides unique insights about the film’s contents and his intentions. He and his staff did painstaking research for several months to provide the lavish designs and colorful décor to recreate the Imperial palace as it would have been decorated during the Tang Dynasty. This is the first Chinese film which staged such a large battle scene, using so many soldiers on screen. I give 5 stars for the story and the complex interrelationships of the characters. Zhang Yimou deserves high accolades for selecting outstanding actors to play the major roles. The director’s explanation of the Chinese virtue called “xiao” which means filial duty to one’s parents, clarifies why the eldest son of the Empress chose to lead the revolt against his father regardless of the limited chance for success. The Prince chose to act only after learning the Emperor was poisoning his mother …

For me, there is an overpowering sense of suffocation due to the large scope of this epic. Even the dazzling mega stars who play the leading roles to perfection, Chow Yun Fat (Emperor) and Gong Li (Empress) can not eliminate this feeling. The film begins with highly dramatic orchestral music accompanying the anticipation of the arrival of the Emperor. There are literally thousands of female servants, male workers and soldiers many of whom are dressed alike, presumably those in the same class, who serve the needs of the Imperial family, all of them are dressed in the finest silk costumes of the Tang Dynasty era, awaiting his arrival, ready to serve his every need or desire. It is so very overwhelmng and this sense of “too much” continues throughout the film which is why I give an overall rating of 3 stars. Even when the Empress, her entourage, the Princes or the Emperor walk down the corridors, everything is too bright and too colorful. The décor is way over the top. The displays of so much wealth and riches, detracts from the plot. For me, the final insult to the senses occurs during the revolt in the Imperial courtyard, where a wall to wall field of yellow chrysanthemums are trampled and destroyed. When it is all over, the clean up crew wash the courtyard of all the blood and replace the dead chrysanthemums with live ones, as if nothing out of the ordinairy happened. The servants wash the bloody corridors, roll up the soiled carpet and replace it with a new, all in a day’s work at the palace. In the end, the film is one bloody mess and I heave sigh of relief when it is over! Amazingly, it is exactly the creative efforts which Zhang Yimou describes that he adds to this film which I find annoying: too many servants and too much opulence. He explained the film is based on a famous Chinese play, which I totally understand because on stage it would be impossible to create the special effects which are overpowering on film. This is one Shakespearean tragedy that went totally awry. In my opinion, it is NOT Yimou’s best work. Erika Borsos (pepper flower)

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Add comment April 5th, 2010

Elizabeth: The Golden Age [Blu-ray]

In 1998′s Elizabeth, Shekhar Kapur added a layer of suds to his history lesson; the director follows the same audience-pleasing recipe in Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Since the first film, Blanchett scored an Oscar for her note-perfect rendition of Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator, and she plays the preternaturally bemused monarch in a similar fashion. By 1585, Elizabeth I is an experienced ruler about to face two of her biggest challenges: betrayal by her Catholic cousin, Mary Stuart (Control’s Samantha Morton), and invasion by the Spanish Armada. It isn’t so much that the Protestant Elizabeth wishes to rid England of “papists,” but that she wants her country to remain free from foreign domination. Closer to her home, she enjoys a sisterly relationship with lady-in-waiting Bess (rising Aussie star Abbie Cornish). That changes when Sir Walter Raleigh (a dashing Clive Owen) hits the scene. In order to continue exploring the New World, he seeks the queen’s sponsorship. She is charmed, but Raleigh only has eyes for Bess. As in the previous picture, Elizabeth enjoys better luck at affairs of state than affairs of the heart, but the conclusion is more beatific than before (and Kapur intends a third installment if Blanchett is willing). Elizabeth: The Golden Age is a rush of royal intrigue, bloody torture, fantastic headpieces, and irresistibly ripe dialogue, like “I have a hurricane in me that will strip Spain bare if you dare to try me!” To Kapur, victory for the Virgin Queen was a viable alternative to sex. –Kathleen C. Fennessy

Beyond Elizabeth – The Golden Age on DVD

More from Cate Blanchett

British Royalty on DVD

More Drama from Universal Studios

Stills from Elizabeth – The Golden Age (click for larger image)

This movie may not be everyone’s cup of tea, as it’s dense on politics at times, and gruesome at others. However, for those reviewers who claim this film demonstrates religious bigotry, I beg to differ. Written and visual portraits from this time period reveal that the Spanish did indeed behave and dress the way they appeared in the film. Dour, black-wearing, bearded, somber, and convinced that Elizabeth was an Infidel who deserved to be destroyed. In addition, Philip II’s infirmities and strange physique were portrayed as they truly were at the time; the House of Hapsburg and its various branches was becoming so inbred in early modern Europe that many of its members were physically deformed. This is no different than discussing how that the House of Tudor, for whatever physical/genetic reasons, clearly had reduced fertility during Henry VIII’s time and afterward — and saying so is hardly anti-Protestant prejudice. These are historical facts, and histories of the time period make them abundantly clear.

The movie does not try to absolve Elizabeth from all religious prejudice; indeed, it does show her ministers’ gruesome vengeance — with confessions extracted from torture — against Catholics suspected of plotting her demise. However, it is important to keep in mind that context of the times, and that the religious wars were brutal across Europe. Compared to the Spanish Inquisition, Elizabethan England was far less violent.

Her reign was also less violent than her father Henry VIII’s by far — he whose rule saw widespread oppression and terrorism against Catholics and Protestants alike, depending on how the religious/political winds were blowing across Europe at any given moment, and given the views and actions of Henry’s enemies/allies/wives/lovers of any given moment.

Frankly, I find it hard to believe that even the most devout of Catholics of today would still claim that it would have been better for autocratic Spain, which had practically NO democratic tradition, and in which the Inquisition against Protestants, Jews, Muslims, accused heretics, etc. etc. was in full swing, to have conquered England in 1588…. The movie is also very useful in demonstrating how Elizabeth’s victories and her enduring rule were in large part a result of her turning herself into a quasi-religious icon for her realm — something the first film in the series makes even more clear — and the price she had to pay for that decision. Subtle people will detect the subtleties in the film, and appreciate them. People with a major religious axe to grind, however, probably will not.

Rubbish! – Charlie A – Wichita, KS United States
This dreadful movie takes extraordinary artistic license with the facts of history to be polite. The Spanish Ambassador looked more like an Arab than a real Spaniard and the portrayal of King Philip was akin to an evil and ugly scheming Klingon captain of Star Trek fame. In actuality, Elizabeth I was not all she was cracked up to by the propagandistic British historical establishment. That mad woman embroiled England in a war(1585-1604) against Spain that actually bankrupted it and forced her successor, King James I, to sue for peace with Spain and sign a peace treaty that was largely on Spanish terms.

Elizabeth – The Golden Age (Widescreen Edition) – Arnita D. Brown – USA
Two faiths, two empires, two rulers, colliding in 1588. Papist Spain wants to bring down the heretic Elizabeth. Philip is building an armada but needs a rationale to attack. With covert intrigue, Spain sets a trap for the Queen and her principal secretary, Walsingham, using as a pawn Elizabeth’s cousin Mary Stuart, who’s under house arrest in the North. The trap springs, and the armada sets sail, to rendezvous with French ground forces and to attack. During these months, the Virgin Queen falls in love with Walter Raleigh, keeping him close to court and away from the sea and America. Director Kapur interestingly puts dramatic and chilling appeal and emphasis on Elizabeth’s Golden Age to reveal her personality and struggles to keep her throne and save her country from falling into the hands of conspirators and invaders. Blanchett is magnificent in her strange, enigmatic and multi-dimensional character, constantly faced with the challenges of her foes plotting and counter-plotting to take her down at her Court, in her government, and, from foreign lands. This movie does entertain, sending me on a delightfully exciting spell-bound journey to separate legend and myths from historical facts. This movie makes English history fun to browse all over again.

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Add comment March 5th, 2010