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 S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r

(aka 'Jackie Chan's Crime Story' or 'Cheung ngon cho" or "Zhong An Zu")

 

directed by Kirk Wong
Hong Kong 1993

 

Crime Story is based on the real-life kidnapping of a Hong-Kong tycoon, and it’s a serious, straight dramatic thriller without the comedic elements that frequently make their way into a Jackie-Chan movie. (The action choreography is toned down compared to most of Chan’s other efforts, but this is about a real-life detective and not a superman.) As with the other times he has played policemen, Chan delivers a very good performance, one mixed with genuine emoting, solid stunt work, and conviction. I’m not sure why Chan is drawn to playing policemen, but he’s frequently shown the Hong Kong Police at its best. Perhaps even more than the Police Story series and New Police Story (which are centered squarely on how great Chan’s characters are), Crime Story is about the dedication and diligence of law-enforcement officials in an often-chaotic city.

David McCoy

Theatrical Release: August 1993

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DVD Review: Genius Products - Region 1 - NTSC

Big thanks to David McCoy for the Review!

DVD Box Cover

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Distribution

Genius Products

Region 1 - NTSC
Runtime 103 min
Video

1.85:1 Original Aspect Ratio

16X9 enhanced
Average Bitrate: mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate

Audio DD 5.1 Cantonese Chinese, DD 2.0 mono Cantonese Chinese, DD 5.1 English
Subtitles Optional English, English SDH, and Spanish
Features Release Information:
Studio: Genius Products

Aspect Ratio:
Widescreen anamorphic - 1.85:1

Edition Details:
• audio commentary by Kirk Wong and Bey Logan
• deleted scenes
• A Journey to the Underworld: An Interview With Kirk Wong
• From the Page to the Silver Screen: An Interview With Writer Teddy Chen
• trailers

DVD Release Date: 7 August 2007
keepcase

Chapters 14

 

 

 

Comments:

Video:
The 1.85:1 video image shows the movie’s age. Some shots are very faded and filled with grain/noise. There is a general softness that renders some of the darker scenes rather murky. It’s obvious that the movie did not receive a restoration, though the source print is fairly clean and free of debris/damage.

Audio:
You can watch the movie with its original mono audio (in DD 2.0 mono Cantonese Chinese guise), or you can watch it with a DD 5.1 Cantonese Chinese re-mix. As expected, the mono track has muffled bass and is best characterized as “flat”. The 5.1 re-mix is fairly robust when it comes to explosions, though it is about as front-heavy as the mono track.

You can also watch the movie with a DD 5.1 English dub. Optional English, English SDH, and Spanish subtitles support the audio.

Extras:
Bey Logan contributes yet another informative and enjoyable audio commentary to the Dragon Dynasty line, and this time, he’s joined by director Kirk Wong. Sometimes, Logan interviews Wong, but this is mostly a two-way conversation.

The DVD has a couple of deleted scenes, though they’re not very interesting. There are also separate, stand-alone interviews with the director and writer Teddy Chen. Finally, there are trailers for this and other Genius Products DVDs.

 - David McCoy

 

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subtitle sample

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DVD Box Cover

CLICK to order from:
Distribution

Genius Products

Region 1 - NTSC




 

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