Review of Young Master, The

Introduction

I love Jackie Chan movies. We`re not talking about the big budget Hollywood crossovers with the high production values that he`s been in recently, though I do enjoy those as well, but the brilliant movies that were made in Hong Kong during the eighties. Lets face it; Hollywood doesn`t really know what to do with Jackie Chan. In Hollywood, action has to be jarring and visceral with fights that are brief and bone crunching. Jackie`s style is more graceful and rhythmic. The choreography and timing is such that much of the humour comes with the action. Adapting this to the Hollywood preconceptions is difficult, and it`s no surprise that early crossovers like Rumble In The Bronx and Mr Nice Guy weren`t all that successful. Recently, Hollywood has struck on the bright idea of teaming Jackie up with a more recognizable face. The new formula has Jackie providing the action and a sidekick providing the laughs. Cue Chris Tucker, Owen Wilson and Jennifer Love Hewitt. Don`t get me wrong, these films work well with audiences, and the buddy concept is a well tried one in Hollywood. I loved Shanghai Noon, and Jennifer Love Hewitt definitely has her talking points. But these films don`t hold a candle to classic Golden Harvest productions like Police Story, Project A, Armour of God and the brilliant Wheels on Meals. The Young Master was made in 1980 and was Jackie Chan`s directorial and writing debut. For the first time he was given the budget and the control to bring his vision of Martial Arts comedy to the screen.

Two orphans have been raised in a Martial Arts school. Keung (Tiger) is the star pupil and when the time comes for the annual lion dance against a rival school he is expected to uphold the schools honour. However he feigns injury and Lung (Dragon) has to take his place. Lung`s admirable efforts are in vain, as during the contest he finds that Keung has accepted money from the rival school to compete for them. The irate master expels Keung and he soon joins up with a gang of outlaws led by the feared Master Kim. Lung persuades his master that he should forgive Keung and leaves the school to find and bring him back. A case of mistaken identity sees Lung identified as White Fan, Keung`s new criminal moniker, and soon the police are after him.

Video

The picture is amazing. The 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer is sharp colourful and clear. The print is clean with nary a hint of dirt or damage. The degree of restoration is marvellous and the lush vibrant image does credit to the effort that Hong Kong Legends put into it. When it comes to action, Jackie Chan is a masterful director, and the choreography and stunt work put into The Young Master make it a visual feast. From the first moment, the senses are engaged as the enthralling lion dance captures our attention. Such a simple concept is brought to life on the screen and the film ensnares you until the closing credits.

Audio

The Young Master originally had a mono soundtrack, but on this disc you get a DD 5.1 Cantonese soundtrack as well as a DD 5.1 dubbed soundtrack. My disdain for dubbed soundtracks is limitless and I stuck faithfully to the original Cantonese with the convenient English (or Dutch) subtitles. The sound is clear and sharp but other than that it is a faithful recreation of the original sound. The surround is hardly used, but the sound is perfectly acceptable the way it is. I did notice that the lip-synching wasn`t spot on, but if you consider the varied cast, speaking Mandarin and Cantonese as well as Wong In-sik who is Korean, the production is as cosmopolitan as the Sergio Leone Spaghetti Westerns. Also given the frenetic nature of the action, any potential boom operator would be risking severe injury just trying to keep up. Understandably the dialogue is looped in postproduction. The music is a little unexpected though, with Holst`s The Planets seeming a little incongruous in a Hong Kong movie.

Features

Hong Kong Legends have packaged the movie with a good amount of extras in the midst of some beautiful animated menus.

The Further Attractions are just that, trailers for other DVD releases from HKL with the necessary specifications. 6 movies are listed with three of them Jackie Chan films.

In the extras proper you will find the UK Promotional trailer as well as the Original Theatrical Trailer all presented in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio.

The Master is an interview with Master Wong In-sik. He discusses his philosophies and techniques regarding his teaching of Hapkido, he also discusses how he got into films and what working with Jackie Chan was like. This interview is 28 minutes long and presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic with 2.0 Stereo sound.

The Cutting Room has one short deleted scene, which is ironically available in the shorter dubbed prints but not the original Cantonese print.

The Director`s Workshop (6 mins) has Jackie Chan explaining how he structures and cuts together a typical action sequence, and how he uses different fighting styles for each character.

Finally there is the audio commentary with Hong Kong film expert, Bey Logan. This is a discrete 2.0 soundtrack that plays over the silent film. Bey Logan is a remarkably well-versed and voluble speaker, and those willing to pay attention to his comments will find a cornucopia of information. I found that he tended to speak too much though barely pausing for breath. He may have spoken a great deal about the film specifically, but I had to ferret this information out as he also provided a brief history of martial arts schools as portrayed in the film, detailed filmographies of most of the actors as well as his insights into the politics in the Hong Kong film industry. It truly was information overload. However I did notice that towards the end of the film he kept to more relevant commentary. His expertise tends towards the martial arts side of the film rather than the comic side and that bias was apparent in his comments.

Conclusion

After waxing lyrical about the classic Jackie Chan movies in my intro, you`ll be surprised to know how few of them I own. Back when I first started watching them, the only versions available in those distant days of video were dubbed pan and scan versions. In those days, only Channel 4 used to show the films in the original language and in a format approaching widescreen. Several late nights were lost as I carefully screened out the adverts on some tenderly treasured tapes, but I have to say that my first experience with Hong Kong Legends has been a revelation.

HKL have produced a disc of outstanding visual quality with a good choice of extras that showcases Jackie Chan in the best possible way. While The Young Master isn`t his most memorable film, it readily shows what a comic genius he already was back in 1980. I`ll be the first to say that the story is wholly lacking in The Young Master, but intricate narrative is hardly necessary when it`s only incidental to some amazing action set pieces and great comedy. Lung`s quest to redeem his friend Keung provides ample opportunity for the kind of kung fu comedy that Jackie Chan is best known for. Unlike more serious characters, Jackie Chan`s characters are usually the underdog, who manages to survive on his wits. He also will receive affair few knocks on his way to victory. This film is full of such memorable confrontations where fast moving kung fu choreography is combined with classic pratfalls and slapstick. From the memorable lion dance to the fan fight and sword fight, each confrontation is brilliantly performed and planned and every move is beguiling in its ease and style. Along the way, the characters get into some classic farce resulting from mistaken identity and they just get in deeper and deeper. The ultimate climactic confrontation is an amazing 12 minute combat between Lung and Master Kim, something that would be unheard of in Hollywood, yet I was engrossed for the entire length of the fight, as it is brilliantly paced and filled with little comic gems. I still laugh when I think about Lung disregarding his training and settling for a good old-fashioned pinch. The final scene is a great punchline that caps a brilliant 100 minutes of entertainment.

The only downside that I found to the disc was the special features. While they were generous, there wasn`t enough of the man himself. Jackie Chan`s contribution to the disc was only 6 minutes worth and I would have hoped for much more. Second, none of the extras have subtitles, sorely missed here. But these are minor quibbles as the film more than makes up for them.

For those of you who have only seen Jackie Chan in his Hollywood outings, and have marvelled at his skill in Rush Hour and The Tuxedo, you`ll be introduced to a whole new facet of his talents when you look at his Hong Kong movies, and The Young Master is a great place to start.