Customer Reviews

Heart of Dragon [VHS]

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is in response to the Feb. 5th review titled "ORIGINAL IS BETTER~!"

While I agree with the message, it was put the wrong place. While in most cases the R1 releases of Hong Kong films are heavily cut and dubbed, these releases by Fox, are actually done by the fantastic HK company Fortune Star, and only released under Fox. They contain the UNCUT film in the original Cantonese language (DTS too!), as well as the English dub. As usual the picture quality is more than fantastic. The only downpoints are the usual Fortune Star downpoints: Hardly-to-no extras, and slightly edited sound fx,(but in this case no original mono sound). Also the subtitles are actually dubtitles, but are not terrible. In all, this is still one of the better versions of this film on DVD, especially for under $10.

PS. As for the argument that "no other countries have their own cuts, like France," maybe you should look into Luc Besson's distribution of Asian (especially Thai) films.

Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung completely re-invented the Hong Kong action movie in the 1970's and 1980's, and Jackie especially was the undisputed king of the HK box office. Heart Of The Dragon was a brave step for them, a movie that largely eschews action and focuses on drama. I guess they wanted to prove that there was more to them than best-in-the-world action direction, and here they prove it beyond doubt. The dramatic performances of both are excellent, and Sammo's direction is wonderful. It's a really moving story, very well told.

Obviously they knew that the fans out there expected action though, so the movie has a few small fights and then a largely unnecessary but brilliantly filmed action finale that lasts a good 20 minutes. The movie would probably have been just as good without it, but one cannot complain about a 20 minute action scene when such masters of the art were behind it. Even if the action is all you care about, the quality of the finale here is so good you will not want to miss this movie.

First, this is not your typical Jackie Chan movie. Although the action's there, it's sandwiched between the real focus of this movie--a touching tale of a man torn between responsibility towards his handicapped brother (portrayed memorably by Samo Hung), and the chance to realize his dream of becoming a sailor. If you're looking for action, you may want to look elsewhere . . . if you want to be suprised by Jackie's acting range, or if you're a completist, don't miss this one. It's certainly a quality film. And if you're into sappy foriegn films, you may be suprised just how good this one is. Samo and Jackie are brilliant together.

Although a great mix of action and drama, this movie made in the mid-80s, which has recently seen the light of day in the states, is missing too much. This movie is missing about 2 fight scenes that add nearly 10 minutes. Two fight scenes mean too much missing. Some of the action in the finale was deleted also. Where would a Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, and Hong Kong action film be without numerous fight scenes? Some of the music has been changed or taken out that enhanced the mood of the scenes. I am a great fan of Jackie Chan and Hong Kong cinema but I am tired of seeing fantastic action films cut of their action. This movie would have been 5 stars had it not had too much missing.

While this has action-and whenever Sammo directs, expect Jackie to be a juggernaut, the real story is the bond between them. Through the story(and the real life events behind this movie) Jackie and Sammo show themselves as inseperable. Jackie walks hand in hand with Sammo at a time when critics were circling around Sammo like vultures on roadkill. While the story will lead you to be upset with yourself for laughing at a person with disabilities(which you will) you will find redemption in seeing them staying in a relationship no matter what. Jail, jewel thieves and the merchant marines cannot split this duo. Their bond comes through, even if you see the film in Japanese with English subtitles, which was my first experience with it.

This is a drama/action. Jackie plays an officer burdened by the responsibility taking care of his retarded brother, Samo. When Samo accidentaly gets involved in a robbery, he is kidnapped by thugs and Jackie's forced to rescue him.

This movie was a big surprise! Jackie Chan is a very good actor, as is Samo Hung. The story is about a frustrated cop who must sacrifice his dreams to care for his retarded brother. The action actually takes a back seat to the story, for a change. It's very moving, somewhat reminiscent of "Rainman". Chan's performance has surprising depth to it. It takes a minute to get used to the British voices in the English dubbing--weird to hear Chan & Hung with English accents, although this dubbing job was far less jarring than most of the American dub jobs I've heard. Highly recommend!!

I watched this as "The First Mission" too. I was pleasantly surprised as the acting skills of Jackie Chan & Sammo Hung was broght to the fore. This is more of an emotional drama than the regular Jackie Chan action flicks. However there's still enough fight scenes for the martial arts fan.

This Jackie Chan film is dramatic. There is little comedic material. When Sammo Hung's character is getting tutored, it's frustrating to see the tutor shout at him. To their credit, Sammo never launches into kung fu mode. He pretty much does a good job as a mentally challenged person. This film was different from what I expected. Jackie uses guns in this film.

This film was Jackies first movie that concentrated more on the drama than on the Action. There is still enough action to keep the pace going, but Jackie and Sammo really put their effort into the dramatic scenes.

The movie is about a police officer (Jackie) burdened with the responsibility of taking care of his mentally retarded older brother (Sammo). Sammo is accidentally caught up in a robbery and is kidnapped, and Jackie must save the day.

The action is good, very good. I really was gobsmacked when Jackie ran up the wall and summersaulted backwards off of it, but the dramatic scenes are just as good. When the theme tune kicks in, the scene is intensified to a point where your eyes feal like somebody is peeling 1000 onions right in front of your face.

I think that this is a quality film and that you should buy it.