Review of Magnificent Bodyguards

Introduction

Hong Kong Legends offers us another glimpse into yesteryear with the release of the 1978 Jackie Chan film, Magnificent Bodyguards. It seems typical old school kung fu, with Martial Arts masters in a period setting, facing countless foes with dazzling displays of kung fu styles and blindingly fast swordplay. But Magnificent Bodyguards adds a little extra to the mix, with a plot that isn`t at all cookie cutter, interesting characters, and a remarkably familiar soundtrack.

Lady Lam Nan urgently needs to get her brother to the doctor in the capital city. But to do so in time will require crossing the Stormy Mountains, redoubt of a horde of intractable, vicious bandits. Which is where Master Ting Chun comes in, the fastest fists in the East. But even he is wary of crossing the mountains alone, and he advises that they gather an elite group of bodyguards to guard the lady and her brother. Thrown into the mix are a cunning deaf tanner, and a warrior who likes to skin his opponents alive. These are the good guys by the way. The bandits that await them in the Stormy Mountains are sly and numerous, and not everything is as it seems in Lady Lam Nan`s party.

Video

If I were Ricky Tomlinson, I `d begin this paragraph with a heartfelt, "Ultrabit, my arse!" HKL`s new disc branding really just indicates an absence of extra features. I`m not intending to detract from HKL`s usual stellar transfers. I`m always impressed with the restoration that goes into their Hong Kong flicks of old, with print damage erased, steady images, and no digital artefacts to speak of. The trouble is that you may have the best encode in the world, but if your source material looks as if it`s spent the last twenty years in the spin cycle of a washing machine, then the results aren`t going to be outstanding no matter what.

Magnificent Bodyguards has seen the spin cycle of many a machine, as the source print is grainy and washed out, there`s some print damage that just couldn`t be removed, it`s soft and blurry at times and prone to ghosting. Unfortunately this all manages to obscure some great cinematography. This film was originally shot in 3-D, which explains the profusion of weapon, fists and feet that come flying straight towards the camera. This version of the film doesn`t require those hideous goggles though, and it also seems as if the BBFC have allowed the full version to be released this time.

Audio

You have a choice of DD 5.1 Cantonese and English, as well as DD 2.0 mono Cantonese, with optional English subtitles. The English dub is as usual laughable and to be avoided at all costs. The Cantonese surround takes the mono and upmixes it to less than stellar effect. It`s front focussed, tinny and harsh, with the film`s copious hiss contributing greatly to what passes for surround ambience. The mono track is the way to go here.

Features

You get trailers for 6 other HKL Jackie Chan titles, some animated menus that take far too long to transition, and an audio commentary from Andrew Staton.

It`s not the best commentary in the world. It`s biased more towards opinion than fact, and there really needs to be more information about the film that we are watching, rather than a general appreciation of Hong Kong cinema. Andrew does provide a fair amount of information though; he`s pretty voluble and easy to listen to. It`s just that after years of being spoiled by Bey Logan tracks, anyone else would be a poor substitute. There are a couple of factual errors though. If Andrew ever offers to cook you eggs, better politely decline.

Conclusion

Long, long ago in a Galaxy far, far away… Everybody was kung fu fighting!

Magnificent Bodyguards is a kung fu movie of the old school. It may have Jackie Chan in it, but he`s a stereotypical kung fu master, poised, confident and arrogant. While there is a hint of his trademark cheekiness, this isn`t his classic underdog character, and the film isn`t played for laughs. It`s downright hilarious though, as the filmmakers have gleefully lifted whole passages from the Star Wars soundtrack to score their film. Jackie Chan may be awesome at kung fu, but he`s a poor substitute for an X-Wing, Chang (the guy who skins people), makes his entrance walking straight out of the Jundland wastes, and the Death Star blows up at least twice during this film.

Of course given the film`s original market, the music wouldn`t have raised an eyebrow, but I found it a great source of hilarity. It`s almost a shame really, as the music masks a pretty decent film, which goes far beyond the usual stereotype of kung fu student avenging his fallen master by perfecting a different style of kung fu. In style and tone, Magnificent Bodyguards plays most like a Western (not just because of the Red Indian style bandits), with a group of defenders being hired to protect someone as they travel through hostile territory. Give them all Stetsons and Colts instead of martial arts skills and silk costumes, and the film will be remarkably familiar. In fact Chang`s entrance is in a ghost town that would be at home in any Spaghetti Western.

The story is engrossing too, with a decent plot that ties together well. There has been a great deal of thought gone into the story, and as the film progresses, you`ll be reminded of earlier moments that feed into the plot, and see them in a different light. It certainly isn`t a Hitchcock classic, but it`s miles above the usual kung fu movie of the era in terms of narrative. It`s almost wasted on such a fantastic tale, with this group of uber fighters getting into all sorts of scrapes with bizarre bandit characters. It`s an adventure story that serves to entertain and nothing more.

The kung fu is sublime of course. This isn`t about stunts and rough housing action, rather it`s all elegance and style, and with three distinctly different styles on offer from the heroes, the fight sequences are a pleasure to watch. Magnificent Bodyguards is an enjoyable piece of kung fu whimsy that would be easy to recommend, were it not for the state of the source material. The irrelevancy of the Ultrabit moniker aside, the age and damage actually make this film a chore to watch at times, so your mileage will depend on how forgiving you are when it comes to poor quality film.