Review by Leonard Norwitz
Studio:
Theatrical: Morgan & Chan Films
Blu-ray: MegaStar (Media Asia/Hong Kong)
Disc:
Region: A
Runtime: 125 min
Chapters: 20
Size: 50 GB
Case: Standard Amaray Blu-ray case
Release date: July 18, 2008
Video:
Aspect ratio: 2.35
Resolution: 1080p
Video codec: AVC
Audio:
Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1; Mandarin Dolby True HD
7.1; Cantonese DD EX 5.1. Bonus: DD 2.0 & 5.1
Subtitles:
Feature & Bonus: Traditional Chinese, Simplified
Chinese, English.
Extras:
• 117 Days: Production Journal (35:23) DD 2.0 @ 480i
• 20 Deleted Scenes (Mandarin) with optional subtitled
commentary in Chinese & English (30:00) DD5.1 @ 480i
• Director's Feature Film Commentary
The Film:
7.5
The time is the middle nineteenth century during what is
known as the Taiping Rebellion – a period of
catastrophic loss of life from war and famine. Three men
from different on different paths come together as blood
brothers, sworn to protect each other, even from each
other, in their mission to right the wrongs presented by
the government.
The first of these is General Pang (Jet Li), whose army
has just been obliterated in a single battle – he, by
feigning death, the only survivor. Pang wanders
aimlessly for a time until he is found and nursed back
to health and life by Lian, a woman who happens upon him
when he collapses.
Pang wakens to find Lian gone. He continues his
wanderings until he finds himself in the company of
bandits, led by Er-Hu (Andy Lau) and his second, Wu-Yang
(Takeshi Kaneshiro). Lian, it turns out, is Er-Hu's
wife, and has attempted several times to leave the life,
but always returns. It is not that she is mistreated in
any way – far from it – but that she feels homeless, as
do most all the people under Er-Hu's protection and, for
that matter, everyone in China.
With the arrival of Pang, this bandit village is imbued
with a fresh sense of dedication, courage and strength.
The men of the village, now led by Pang, go off to join
the army to fight the good fight, where they score
victories facing overwhelming odds. Such success comes
at a cost, however – among them, the heartbreaking
massacre of POWs at Suzhou. While the powers that be
plot to use Pang and Er-Hu for their nefarious ends,
betrayal lies in wait from an unexpected source.
Like Peter Chan's
Perhaps Love before it,
The Warlords
is filled with passion and wisdom, but the narrative
does not always support them – at least I felt not. This
said, the power of the story and the performances by all
the principals, especially Jet Li in a non martial arts
role that will have you scratching your skin, are
totally worth of the price of admission.
Image:
8.5/9
The first number indicates a relative level of
excellence compared to other Blu-rays on a ten-point
scale. The second number places this image along the
full range of DVDs, including SD 480i.
With its desaturated color of alternating hues and foggy
sharpness, Arthur Wong's cinematography suggests the
antique look of musty nineteenth century photographs.
Close-ups, on the other hand, have a reach out and touch
it translucence to complexions. It's as if the director
wants us to be involved in the act of bringing his
characters to life in these close-ups after so many
dreary-looking, though intensely dramatic action shots.
For all its emphasis on war and brutality, if we fail to
make a connection to the characters, all is lost. This
is probably why the riveting (and relatively unknown to
Western audiences) Xu Jinglei - a face that seems to
express all of China's sadness, determination and
checked passion - is always in sharp focus, as her
character is intended to be the fulcrum between the
three male leads. Average bit rate: low-to mid 30s.
Audio & Music:
9/8
Noise and more noise, then reflective dialogue,
wandering, marching, imploring, and more noise: the
noise of battle in every conceivable dimension that the
nineteenth century could muster. Surrounds are used to
good effect in some of the interiors, as when the three
brothers meet with the elders and during the archery
attack in one of the later battle scenes, though I can't
say that I heard nearly the difference between DTS-HD &
Dolby True as I did with the new reissue of Ghost in the
Shell: Innocence. Bass is very powerful. Watch your LFE
levels. Dialogue is clear in the uncompressed audio, and
once again demonstrated why I prefer the expressive
musicality of Mandarin to the clipped rhythms of
Cantonese.
Operations:
10
Media Asia's edition of The Warlords is one of the first
Blu-rays to earn a full 10 points in this category. It's
quick to load, with just a couple of logos to assure us
of MegaStar/Media Asia's participation but no
promotional theatrical or video previews. The chapter
menu has expanding thumbnails to the right of the row of
scenes. But what really nails it for this video is that
there are selectable subtitles for the running
commentary as well as for the various languages for the
feature. The choices for audio and all the subtitles are
accessible from the remote without having to return to
the pop-up menu. The main bonus feature has subtitles as
well. The English translation had no glaring grammatical
or spelling mistakes. The subtitles remain within the
frame.
Extras:
8
There are three principle extra features: The first is
the feature film audio commentary in Mandarin,
subtitled) by director, Peter Chan who discusses his
vision of the movie, and the challenges to that
realization. Then there is the 35-minute 117 Days
Production Journal in DD 2.0 @ 480i which is filled with
interesting and funny bits about the 4 months of
production. (It still amazes me that, even taking into
account the months of pre- and post-production, that a
movie of such breadth can be shot in only 4 months.) One
of my favorite segments is where the principle actors
each confront the director with their ideas about how
their character would and should behave. The other bonus
feature, in less than superb 480i, though 5.1 DD, are
the half hour's worth of 20 Deleted Scenes (Mandarin)
with optional subtitled commentary in Chinese & English.
Kaneshiro's final scene is to die for. Definitely worth
checking out.
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Bottom line:
9
As usual for Peter Chan, this is a movie with all stops
wide open. It's awesome to look at, magnificently
scored, and compellingly acted. The Blu-ray is first
rate, given its desaturated look.
Leonard Norwitz
September 6th, 2008
