Director: Tsui Hark
Screenplay: Raymond To Kwok-Wai
Starring: Brigitte Lin, Sally Yeh, Cherie Chung Cho-Hung, Mark Cheng Ho-Nam, Cheung Kwok-Keung, Wu Ma
Country: Hong Kong
Running Time: 105 min
Year: 1986
BBFC Certificate: 18
Arrow Video continue to mine the Golden Princess Film Production gems that have long been held back from HD/4K releases, with UHD and Blu-ray discs of Tsui Hark’s Peking Opera Blues coming out soon. It’s a title I’ve heard great things about and have wanted to watch for a long time. I actually already owned a DVD copy released with a magazine, as well as a bootleg Blu-ray from the notorious Hong Kong Rescue label, but hadn’t watched either yet. I’m glad I waited though, because Arrow’s new UHD is certainly the better way to watch this Hong Kong classic.
Peking Opera Blues was an early title produced by Tsui Hark’s own production company, Film Workshop, which was set up to give some of Hong Kong’s top directors the chance to make films of artistic merit but that also had commercial appeal. In production at the same time as Peking Opera Blues at Film Workshop was A Better Tomorrow, directed by John Woo but still with Hark as producer. Both films were critical and commercial successes, but it was Woo’s film that had a greater impact on Hong Kong cinema going forward, ushering in a wave of heroic bloodshed films.
A Better Tomorrow stole a little of Peking Opera Blues’ thunder perhaps, but now the dust has settled, it’s time to see Hark’s film as the classic it truly is.
To sum up the plot, let me quote from Arrow’s press material; “Beijing, 1913. In a time of violent turmoil when local tyrants vie for supremacy, three women’s lives converge in the local Peking Opera house. Together they hatch a revolutionary plan to stop President Yuan Shikai from reinstating the monarchy and proclaiming himself emperor. With the help of a righteous freedom-fighter and a disillusioned palace guard, the rebels must use all their wits and brawn to protect their democratic principles and save the emerging Chinese republic.”
As mentioned, I’d had Peking Opera Blues on my watchlist for a long time and, thankfully, it did not disappoint. First and foremost, it’s incredibly entertaining. There’s a perfectly balanced mix of action, drama and comedy in the film, alongside an engrossing plot full of twists and turns. Mixing disparate genres is something Hong Kong cinema is often known to do, and some see this as a criticism. Personally, it’s part of what I love about their output and Peking Opera Blues shows how skilfully different styles can be blended together to make a cohesive and wholly successful film.
It’s slickly produced too, as you might expect from Tsui Hark. The lighting is atmospheric, great use is made of camera movement, and the production design is lavish and colourful. The editing is fast and sharp too, without turning into a dizzying mess like some more recent fast-cutting action movies.
Speaking of action, there’s a fair dose of this in the film too, with plenty of elaborately choreographed gunfights and chase scenes rubbing shoulder-to-shoulder with some gorgeous Peking Opera sequences.
The film isn’t just a shallow bit of fun though. Its exploration of a turbulent period in Chinese history and clashes between tradition and modernity can be seen as a comment on the worries about the handover that Hong Kongers would have felt at the time of the film’s release. It must be noted though, that the film came out a few years before the Tiananmen Square massacre, so the level of fear wasn’t quite what it would later become.
Also intriguing in the film is its treatment of gender. On top of playing with the fact that only men were allowed to act in Peking Opera at the time, you have an action film that focuses largely on three women. These characters are all very different too, and represent a range of gender dynamics themselves. One woman wants to take a man’s role in the opera, another dresses like a man and takes the typically masculine role of a freedom fighter. The third female lead seems a little more stereotypical on the surface, but she remains a well-rounded and interesting character.
I also appreciated the fact that Hark doesn’t bother pairing them all up with love interests. There’s a hint of romance in the story, but not enough to get in the way of the core narrative.
Overall then, Peking Opera Blues presents Hong Kong cinema at its best, perfectly balancing action with comedy and drama to deliver stylish, well-paced entertainment of the highest order. All with a refreshingly female-led cast.
Peking Opera Blues is out on 16th February in the UK in separate UHD and Blu-Ray releases, courtesy of Arrow Video. I watched the UHD version, and I thought that the depth and level and detail were impressive. Colours are rich too, whilst avoiding the contrast-heavy look I’ve seen on some 4K transfers. It felt quite dark and a touch faded overall, but this might have been my less-than-ideal 4K setup, which I’m very new to, so I might not have configured it correctly. The reds struggled a little in a couple of moments too, during the busier Peking Opera sequences, but largely, it looks gorgeous. I’ve used screengrabs throughout this review to give you an idea of how it looks, though these have been compressed. As for audio, you get a choice of either Cantonese or English dub mono tracks. I opted for the former and thought it sounded great.
4K ULTRA HD LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS
• 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• Original lossless Cantonese mono audio
• Optional lossless English mono audio
• Optional English subtitles for the Cantonese audio and hard of hearing subtitles for the English audio
• Brand new audio commentary by film critic James Mudge
• An Opus for Peking: Starring in a Tsui Hark Classic, a brand new interview with actor Mark Cheng
• An Operatic Achievement, a brand new interview with cinematographer Ray Wong
• Hong Kong Confidential: Inside Peking Opera Blues, a brand new interview with author and Hong Kong cinema expert Grady Hendrix
• Peking Provocations, a brand new interview with film critic David West
• Peking History Blues, a brand new interview with historian and academic Dr Lars Laamann
• Archival interview with star Sally Yeh
• Archival interview with composer James Wong
• Original theatrical trailer
• Image gallery
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Xinmei Liu
• Collectors’ booklet featuring new writing on the film by critic Camille Zaurin and Professor Jamie Zhao
* The Blu-ray version is basically the same but with a 1080p presentation of the film, of course.
James Mudge provides a commentary. This is dense with background information and analysis, as he puts the film in historical and cultural context, and also digs into what makes it special.
There’s also an interview with actor Mark Cheng. He talks about his experiences in making the film and discusses the links between it and A Better Tomorrow, which was being made at the same time. It’s a decent interview.
‘Peking Provocations’ begins by looking at where Tsui Hark was in his career at that time before digging into Peking Opera Blues itself. It’s a fascinating piece.
‘Peking History Blues’ puts the film in historical context. This is great, helping you much better appreciate and understand the story being told.
Composer James Wong is also interviewed in an archival piece. He’s a lively sort and talks about Sally Yeh before giving his thoughts on film music.
There’s also an archival interview with Sally Yeh. She talks about the challenges of shooting the Peking Opera sequences as well as her relationship with Tsui Hark and her co-stars.
Finally, there’s an interview with cinematographer Ray Wong. He shares some illuminating stories about the production, looking more specifically at the technical aspects, which was a welcome change.
I didn’t get a copy of the booklet to comment on that, unfortunately.
So, Arrow have compiled another excellent package to accompany one of the many gems finally being released from the Golden Princess vaults. Highly recommended.
Disc/Package: 