The home video distributor Shout Factory is collaborating with Hong Kong Film Archives to bring you the 4K remastering of the most coveted of Chinese action film classics. The films will include works by Jet Li, Chow Yun-Fat, John Woo, Ringo Lam and Tsui Hark. The digital titles will include A BETTER TOMORROWin 4K (starringLeslie Cheung, Chow Yun-Fat),A BETTER TOMORROW II in 4K (starring Leslie Cheung, Chow Yun-Fat), andA BETTER TOMORROW III in 4K (starring Chow Yun-Fat, Tony LeungKa-fai), Tsui Hark’sPEKING OPERA BLUESin 4K (starring Brigitte Lin, Sally Yeh, Cherie Chung), John Woo’sTHE KILLERin 4K (starring Chow Yun-Fat, Danny Lee), Tony Ching’s A CHINESE GHOST STORY (starring Leslie Cheung, Joey Wang),A CHINESE GHOST STORY II (starring Leslie Cheung, Joey Wang), and A CHINESE GHOST STORY III (starring Tony LeungChiu-wai, Joey Wang) and John Woo’sBULLET IN THE HEADin 4K (starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai).
However, the first two big releases are the Chow Yun-Fat films Hard Boiled and City on Fire. The descriptions read:
HARD BOILEDin 4K (*Newly remastered and restored)
Directed by John Woo
Starring Chow Yun-Fat, Tony Leung Chiu-wai
A tough-as-nails cop teams up with an undercover agent to shut down a sinister mobster and his crew.
Chow Yun-Fat stars as a cop hell-bent on bringing down the gun smugglers responsible for his partner’s death. Along with an undercover cop whose secret identity as a hitman hangs by a thread. The film raises gunfights to an art form, with some of the most celebrated action sequences ever.
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CITY ON FIREin 4K (*Newly remastered and restored)
Directed by Ringo Lam
StarringChow Yun-Fat, Sun Yueh, Danny Lee
Chow Yun-Fat (Hard Boiled, A Better Tomorrow)stars in this sizzling, highly influential crime drama from director Ringo Lam (Full Contact, Prison On Fire, Maximum Risk).
Ko Chow is an undercover cop torn between his duty as a police officer and his loyalty to his friends on the wrong side of the law. He wants out – and his commanding officer Inspector Lau reluctantly approves his resignation – but only after he completes one final assignment. Tasked with infiltrating a notorious gang of criminals, Chow bonds with their leader (Danny Lee,The Killer),building a relationship based on mutual trust and respect. But when a planned heist turns into a violent shootout with the law, the tension among the thieves heats up … and they begin to suspect there is an informant in their midst.
Both movies will be available digitally on June 24.
Per the press release from Shout Studios:
Hong Kong cinema in the ’80s and ’90s, renowned for its thrilling action choreography, distinctive visual styles, and emotional storytelling, represents a remarkable era in cinematic history, whose crime thrillers, martial arts classics, and action films, in particular, have left an indelible mark on Hollywood, profoundly influencing everything from Quentin Tarantino’s movies to the iconicMatrixandJohn Wickfranchises. Among these are many acclaimed and popular early works by renowned filmmakers John Woo, Ringo Lam, Tsui Hark, Corey Yuen, Gordon Chan, Johnnie To, and internationally renowned actors Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh, Chow Yun-Fat, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Leslie Cheung, and Tony Leung Ka-fai. Many of these highly sought-after movies from Shout!’s Golden Princess library and seminal Hong Kong classics have been dormant and out–of–print for decades outside of Asia.
Shout! Studios, in collaboration with the Hong Kong Film Archives, has been working diligently to remaster and restore several prized hits, all scanned in stunning 4K from the original camera negatives. The video and audio have been restored, and the subtitles have been newly translated. Action fans and martial arts and movie enthusiasts will relish these definitive releases of Hong Kong cinema masterpieces, available for digital download and on-demand across major digital entertainment platforms in the U.S.
Source: Shout Factory
Tags: Chow Yun-Fat, City on Fire, Hard Boiled, John Woo, Ringo Lam, shout factory
