The Iceman Cometh – Vinegar Syndrome (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Hong Kong, 1989
Director: Clarence Fok
Writers: Johnny Mak, Stephen Shiu
Cast: Yuen Biao, Yuen Wah, Maggie Cheung, Elvis Tsui, Jing Wong, Corey Yuen

Release Date: September 27th, 2022
Approximate Running Times: 114 Minutes 56 Seconds (Original Hong Kong Cut), 122 Minutes 2 Seconds (Mandarin Export Cut)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (Both Versions)
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Cantonese, DTS-HD Mono English, DTS-HD Mono English Alternate Mix (Original Hong Kong Cut), DTS-HD Mono English (Mandarin Export Cut)
Subtitles: English (Original Hong Kong Cut, Mandarin Export Cut), English SDH (Original Hong Kong Cut)
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $42.98

"Fong Sau Ching is the Chief Royal Guard during the Ming Dynasty, whose job is to protect the Emperor at all costs, including with his own life. One day, Ching discovers that one of his men, Fung San, is a sadistic rapist with a penchant for murdering his victims by breaking their limbs. After Fung San attacks the Princess and several other women, Ching is tasked by the Emperor with hunting down and killing him in order to restore his own honor. However, things take an unexpected turn when the two men come face-to-face for a duel to the death, only to become literally frozen in time by a mystical device known as the "Wheel of Life and Death." 300 years later, in modern Hong Kong, Ching and Fung San are accidentally thawed out. Unfamiliar with his surroundings, Ching struggles to adapt to his strange new environment and soon finds himself at the mercy of an obnoxious call girl named Polly while attempting to continue to search for Fung San, but little does he know that Fung San is adapting quite nicely to both the weapons and crime ridden modern world and is beginning to resume his murderous ways." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5 (Original Hong Kong Cut), 4.25/5 (Mandarin Export Cut)

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfers, "The main version for our release of The Iceman Cometh is the original Hong Kong cut featured on disc #1. Both versions of this film were sourced from studio masters that were supplied to us by Fortune Star. Additional color grading and restoration work was performed by Vinegar Syndrome on the principle Hong Kong version. The Mandarin language version that you are about to watch is presented as-is, as supplied to us by the studio."

The Iceman Cometh original Hong Kong cut comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 44.8 GB

Feature: 34.3 GB

The Iceman Cometh Mandarin export cut come on a 25 GB single layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 22.7 GB

Feature: 22.5 GB

Though the sources for both versions are in great shape, the additional color grading and restoration that Vinegar Syndrome did for the Hong Kong cut give that version the edge over the Mandarin cut. That said, color saturation looks very good, flesh tones look correct, image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid, and both versions retain an organic look.

Audio: 4.25/5 (DTS-HD Mono Cantonese-Original Hong Kong Cut, DTS-HD Mono English-Original Hong Kong Cut, DTS-HD Mono Cantonese-Mandarin Export Cut), 4/5 (DTS-HD Mono English Alternate Mix-Original Hong Kong Cut)

The original Hong Kong cut comes with three audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese, a DTS-HD mono mix in English, and a DTS-HD mono mix in English (alternate mix). This version comes with removable English subtitles for the Cantonese language track and removable English SDH subtitles for the English language track.

The Mandarin cut comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese, and this version comes with removable English subtitles.

All of the audio mixes sound clean, clear, and balanced. The only difference being that the other three tracks sound noticeably more robust than the alternate English language track.

Extras:

Extras on disc one include alternate English title sequence and end credits (2 minutes 42 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), English language theatrical trailer under the title Time Warriors (2 minutes 9 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English with removable English SDH subtitles), Hong Kong theatrical trailer (3 minutes 52 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese with removable English subtitles), an archival interview with actor Yuen Wah titled Nemesis (14 minutes 56 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Chinese with removable English subtitles), an archival interview with actor Yuen Biao titled Warrior Prince (11 minutes 4 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Chinese with removable English subtitles), an interview with cinematographer Poon Hang Sang titled Frame by Frame, Frame by Frame (Dolby Digital stereo English with removable English SDH subtitles), and an audio commentary with film historian and author Samm Deighan.

Other extras include a reversible cover, an embossed and a spot gloss slipcover (limited to 5,000 units), and a twelve page booklet with an essay written by John Charles.

Summary:

The Iceman Cometh was directed by Clarence Fok, a filmmaker who is most remembered for directing the Cat III film, Naked Killer.

The Iceman Cometh is a rare example of a Wuxia film that takes place in the present (the initial setup takes place three hundred years before the beginning of the narrative). That said, despite taking place in a world that is the opposite of what one normally associates with Wuxia films, the result is a film that never strays too far away from the core elements of Wuxia films.

The Iceman Cometh is a tale about good versus evil that has ample moments where the two main characters are able to show off their material arts prowess: Fong Sau Ching (good), a chief royal guard, and Fung San (evil), a royal guard who has killed a princess. And yet, as exceptional as the action set pieces are, the most surprising aspect of The Iceman Cometh is how effectively it employs humor. Most notably, when it comes to Fong Sau Ching trying to fit into a world that is foreign to him.

But the performances are all very good. The performances of the three leads that carry The Iceman Cometh are Yuen Biao (On The Run) in the role of Fong Sau Ching, Yuen Wah (Police Story 3: Supercop) in the role of Fung San, and Maggie Cheung (The Heroic Trio) in the role of Polly, a woman who takes Fong Sau Ching in when it becomes clear that she can exploit him. Also, Yuen Biao and Maggie Cheung’s onscreen chemistry excels when it comes to comedic moments.

From a production standpoint, there is not an area where The Iceman Cometh does not deliver and then some. The premise is well-executed, and the narrative is a very satisfying balance of action and humor. That said, everything in The Iceman Cometh is intended to be amusing and should not be taken seriously. It should be noted that there are some dialog exchanges in The Iceman Cometh that some viewers might find offensive. Ultimately, The Iceman Cometh is a highly entertaining martial arts film that showcases Biao and Yuen Wah's jaw-dropping, high-flying martial arts prowess.

The Iceman Cometh makes its way to Blu-ray via an exceptional release from Vinegar Syndrome that comes with a solid audio/video presentation, two versions of the film, and a wealth of informative extras, highly recommended.

                                             Original Hong Kong Cut Screenshots.

                                            Mandarin Export Cut Screenshots.

Written by Michael Den Boer