Flying Swords of Dragon Gate (Long men fei jia) (2011)

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General		Extras
Category	Action Adventure	Main Menu Audio Trailer-4
Rating
Year Of Production	2011
Running Time	117:13
RSDL / Flipper	RSDL (68:10)	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Hark Tsui
Studio Distributor	Icon Entertainment	Starring	Jet Li Xun Zhou Kun Chen Lunmei Kwai Yuchun Li Mavis Fan Siu-Wong Fan Chia Hui Liu
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Wai Lap Wu

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	Chinese Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	2.35:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	2.35:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English (Burned In)	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

    I have reviewed quite a lot of historical Chinese action epics over the years and so I was keen to see the latest film from Tsui Hark, Flying Swords of Dragon Gate which also happens to be the first 3D production from China. The Blu-ray version of this title has previously been reviewed by my colleague RayN here.

    I find myself to be very much in agreement with Ray's view on this film, it is too convoluted, with too many characters and subplots and the CGI and 3D effects are overdone, resulting in an impressive spectacle but not an impressive film. It is a shame because with some judicious re-writing (probably by someone other than the director/writer/producer) and a bit more restraint in the effects this could have been a really good film. Tsui's previous film, Detective Dee, was not as flashy but was a significantly better film, due to its interesting plot. Some of the fight and action scenes are certainly entertaining, although the shooting style of lots of quick cuts makes it hard to work out who is who at times. Four major female roles, at least as many major male roles (some of whom look alike) plus lots of other minor characters, makes for confusing watching at times. However, if you just sit back and roll with it there are certainly elements to enjoy in this film.

    If you are looking for a good plot synopsis take a look at Ray's review.

    I would certainly say that genre fans should take a look at this film but it wouldn't be my recommended first film in the genre to show people who have never tried one.

Video

    The feature is presented in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio which is the original aspect ratio. It is 16x9 enhanced.

    The picture was very clear and sharp throughout although there was some obvious CGI which added some shimmer and haloing at times. Shadow Detail was very good.

    The colour is very good although there are certainly some scenes which seem somewhat pale, usually ones with lots of CGI & 3D effects.

    Artefacts included some minor aliasing and some small passages of mild background grain but nothing too obvious.

    There are subtitles available in English which are burned-in to the print. They contain a few grammar errors and are too small and thin to be always easily read.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The audio quality is excellent for DVD.

    This disc contains a Chinese soundtrack in Dolby Digital 5.1 at 448 Kbps.

    Dialogue seemed clear but my Chinese is non-existent.

    The music by Wu Wai-lap is over the top and can be intrusive at times.

    The surround speakers were used constantly for actions scenes, insects, birds and lots more.

    The subwoofer was also used very well for storms, action and other effects along with supporting the music.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

    The menu included music and allowed for scene selection.

Trailers

    Four trailers for other Chinese films.

    There is no evidence of either a UK or US release for this film currently. There is a Region 3 DVD version available in Hong Kong which is NTSC but similar otherwise. There is also a two disc edition from Hong Kong. I would just stick to the local version at this point.

    The video quality is very good.

    The audio quality is excellent.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall