Fist of Legend is one of the best martial arts movies ever made. After the jump, you can see if the Dragon Dynasty blu-ray lives up to the movie.
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1, 1080p
Length: 1hr 42 min
Discs: 1
The Package: Fist of Legend comes to us in a standard blu-ray case. The cover art is attractive, replicating the dvd cover art, almost. The picture is the same, but the dvd cover had the picture against a silver backdrop, whereas the blu-ray has the picture against a blue and black backdrop. This is one instance where I prefer the blu-ray cover art to the dvd. As usual, there is no insert.
The Picture: What is this? A 1080p transfer from Dragon Dynasty? Yes, Dragon Dynasty has finally given us a progressive transfer. After striking out with 36th Chamber of Shaolin and The Killer, DD has seen the error of their ways. The transfer here is nice. There are no compression artifacts. Film grain is present and there is a fair amount of detail. There are scratches and other problems with the film, but this is not the transfers fault. I think that these slight blemishes added to the overall viewing experience, making it feel like you are watching an actual film print instead of a digital form of the movie.
The Sound: Even though DD has stepped up to the plate in terms of the transfer, they have struck out when it comes to the audio and, more importantly, the subtitles. The audio is the same audio from the dvd. No lossless audio for Fist of Legend. However, the real kick to the nuts comes in the form of dubtitles. The dvd version of Fist of Legend had proper subtitles, whereas the blu-ray has dubtitles. Why would DD go back and redo the subtitle track when they had a perfectly good track? You would think that it would be an easy port.
The Goodies: Dragon Dynasty has ported over all of the special features from the 2-disc set released a few years back.
-Audio Commentary: Hong Kong movie expert Bey Logan gives us a great commentary. If you have been following Dragon Dynasty's dvd releases or the now defunct Hong Kong Legends, then you know how incredibly detailed his commentaries are. Logan does let a breath in when he is talking and there is a wealth of information to be said about this movie and people behind it.
-Deleted Scenes (5 min, SD) we get five deleted scenes. Not much here, just a little more character development.
-The Man Behind the Legend (35 min, SD) This is an interview with director Gordon Chan. He speaks very highly of Jet Li and the film. He talks about remaking the Bruce Lee classic Fist of Fury and how he wanted this movie to be different, but hold the same values.
-Brother in Arms (23 min, SD) This is an interview with co-star star Chin Siu-ho. He speaks about his roots in martial arts and his progression into martial arts movies.
-Way of the Warrior (29 min, SD) This is an interview with actor Kurata Yasuaki. He speaks about his past, where he first wanted to be a director, and his time at Shaw Brothers.
-The School of Hard Knocks (26 min, SD) We get to go behind the scenes at the famed Kurata Action School. We see how much work go into making fight scenes look authentic. I found this extra, besides the commentary to be the most interesting.
-A Look at Fist of Legend (9 min, SD) Elvis Mitchell and Brett Ratner talk about the movie. Ratner isn't as annoying as people make him out to be, but some of his info is wrong. Mitchell, on the other hand, knows his stuff and gives us his own perspective on the movie and it's terms.
-Trailers: We get the original theatrical trailer (2 min, SD) and the US trailer (2 min, SD)
Overall, the extras are outstanding.
The Film: Jet Li was already a big star when he made Fist of Legend, but this is the movie that made him a superstar.
Fist of Legend is a remake of the Bruce Lee classic Fist of Fury, but the two movies are very different. I think this has to do with the fight choreography. While Bruce Lee was a master at martial arts, I never found his fight scenes in his movie all that exciting. Lee was trying to give an realistic depiction of martial arts on the screen.
Times have changed and martial arts in the movies have changed. While the styles of martial arts have not changed, the style in which they are depicted on screen has. The movements in older martial arts movies have a stagey feel to them. Movements in newer movies have a fluidity to them.
Regardless of the differences, Fist of Legend is a great movie. Jet Li gives a performance that rivals Lee's. The fight scenes are outstanding and really get you pumped. This is Jet Li's masterpiece.
The Scores
The Picture: ***1/2
The Sound **
The Goodies ****
The Film ****
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