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Flash Point: Ultimate Edition
R1 - America - Genius Products Review written by and copyright: Andreas Petersen (5th May 2008). |
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The Film
 These days, when I get a film in the mail from Dragon Dynasty, I feel as though I’m about to flip a coin. Heads up, the film will be awesome. Screw that, it will be better than awesome. This the case with films like "The City of Violence" (2006). Tails, however, and the film sucks. I’m talking about "Legend of the Black Scorpion" (2006) or "PTU" (2003); movies that just do nothing for me. So which side did the coin land for "Flash Point?" I’m glad to say, heads up. "Flash Point" is the latest film to hit stateside from Yip Wai-Shun, director of the brilliant "Sha Po Lang" (2005). The story centers around a group of cops, the main characters being Ma Jun (Donnie Yen) and undercover agent Wilson (Louis Koo). After a sting goes down all wrong, Wilson is injured by a trio of evil brothers, one of whom is arrested. The two free brothers promise to get rid of any evidence that would incriminate their sibling. Or something like that. To be perfectly honest, I’m not entirely sure what was going on for a good 40% of the film, at least concerning the plot. But what I was sure of was that there was a whole lot of ass being kicked in this film. This leads to me why I loved "Flash Point". This movie sports phenomenal fight sequences, the type of stuff you wish were in every kung fu/Asian crime film. I feel as though the latter generation of Chinese films have either A) abandoned cool fights in lieu of stupid wire stunts, or B) just fail to deliver on the kick ass action. Flash Point has revitalized my faith in Hong Kong cinema. It has been far too long since I’ve seen a movie have fight sequences that just please the eye. Every kick is calculated and executed flawlessly, and isn’t masked by some close-up shakey cam, but rather complimented by swooping shots and smooth pans. Which leads me to the direction of the film. The director really has grown since "Sha Po Lang". An awesome movie, for sure, but it just lacked this certain visual flair. However, "Flash Point" is the type of movie that just contained shot after shot that made me go “Ooooh…” Literally. I’m not joking. Specifically, the final 15 minutes of the film, which are literally one big fight sequence, are masterfully shot, full of amazing colors and interesting camera movements. Sure, I may not have the clearest idea what this movie was about. Sure, when some characters died, it was coupled with some cheese-tastic music, and I really didn’t care about them, but you know what? No big. Because this is the type of movie that really is just awesome fight sequences strung together by watchable dialogue. All the performances are strong enough that I never got bored in between fights, and honestly, I’d have no problem going back and watching the film again to see if I can figure out the story a little better.
Video
"Flash Point" is offered in a rather brilliant 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer. I feel as though many movies coming out of the Hong Kong scene these days are shot on HD hand-held cameras, or at least look that way, so it is nice to see a movie like "Flash Point", that just looks like it was shot on film, and with color in mind. At times, the picture quality looked near-HD, even to the point of someone asking me if I was watching this movie on Blu-Ray (granted, I was watching it on a 1080p upcoverting DVD player, and my friend doesn’t really know anything about picture-quality). The film quality really just compliments the overall beauty of the movie.
Audio
"Flash Point" is offered in a Cantonese Dolby Digital 5.1 track, as well as a Cantonese DTS 5.1 track, and an English Dolby Digital 5.1 track. This film really sports a high quality sound mix. Fight scenes especially flow out amazingly, as every sound comes out just right, and completely clear. My only real complaint is that for some reason, whenever someone is cut in the movie, the sound effects were horrible. It just seemed strange, juxtaposed to the amazing sounds of gun-shots and face-punches. Optional subtitles are included in English, English for the hearing impaired and Spanish.
Extras
As much as I rag on some Dragon Dynasty films, one thing that is consistent with every release is that the extras are piled high onto a two-disc set, including a commentary, making ofs, interviews, and more. They are examined further below: DISC ONE: First up is the feature audio commentary with actor Donnie Yen and Hong Kong film guru Bey Logan. I always enjoy hearing Logan’s enthusiasm for Asian cinema, and Yen is a very personable guy. Because Yen both starred in the film and choreographed the fights, he has a wealth of information of offer the viewer. Logan does a great job of asking questions, making it so the is rarely a silent spot on the track. This disc also includes bonus trailers for a few Dragon Dynasty films. This includes: - "Fatal Contact" running for 23 seconds. - "PTU" running for 1 minute and 41 seconds. - "Triple H: The King of Kings" running for 1 minute and 23 seconds. DISC TWO: The first featurette on Disc 2 is "Collateral Damage: The Making of Flash Point", running for 18 minutes and 11 seconds. This is a fascinating look at how involved the director was with every aspect of the making of this film. It’s really refreshing to see someone so involved with such passion, for I feel many contemporary filmmakers are starting to get lazy and less hands-on. The cast and crew are interviewed as well, all offering their take on why the story is told the way it is, and offer anecdotes of training for the film’s elaborate fights. Next is "Flash Point Explored" featurette, running for 28 minutes and 29 seconds. This continues as a sort of making-of for the film, just much more detailed than "Collateral Damage", examining specific aspects of the film, such as “The Good Guys” or “The Villains”. I sort of wish this was combined with Collateral Damage into a feature length making-of, solely because I love those, but that is really a minor gripe. "Perpetual Motion" featurette, running for 2 minutes and 33 seconds, offers a montage of the actors training in a gym. Donnie Yen also offers his inspirations for the fight-choreography for the film. The disc also offers three deleted scenes. They are: - "Three Men and a Little Lady", running for 1 minute and 14 seconds, which expands on the trio’s mother, and adds on to their relationship with her. - "Nowhere to Run", running for 49 seconds, is an extension of when the police catch up with one of the brothers. Half of the scene has no dialogue. - "Dissension in the Ranks", running for 1 minute and 1 second, in which a few of the cops mourn the loss of a colleague. Also, Ma has his suspicions that Wilson is going to break. There is another featurette entitled "Gladiators", running for 3 minutes and 6 seconds, which serves as a montage of behind the scenes footage, some of which has already been shown in other featurettes on the disc. Also included is "M.M.A on Display" featurette, running for 7 minutes and 6 seconds, which is an inside look at the gym used in some scenes of the film. The owner of the gym in interviewed, and offers insight into what it means to be a fighter. "On Deadly Ground: An Exclusive Interview with Leading Man and Action Director Donnie Yen", running for 31 minutes and 50 seconds, is a thorough discussion with the star of Flash Point. This is a really entertaining interview, because, as stated before, Yen just comes off as such a genuine guy, and I love to listen to him talk about his inspirations from other movies. "Gala Premiere" is a featurette, running for 2 minutes and 41 seconds, has footage from the film’s premiere in Hong Kong, including a red-carpet walk with the cast and crew. Lastly, the disc offers the original theatrical teaser running for 1 minute and 16 seconds, the original theatrical trailer running for 2 minutes and 44 seconds, as well as three TV spots, the first running for 18 seconds, the second running for 18 seconds, and the third running for 33 seconds.
Overall
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