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Armour of God: Deluxe Collector's Edition – 88 Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Hong Kong, 1986
Director: Jackie Chan
Writers: Barry Wong, Eric Tang, Ken Lowe, Szeto Chuek-Hon, John Sheppard, Jackie Chan
Cast: Jackie Chan, Alan Tam, Lola Forner, Rosamund Kwan, Božidar Smiljanić

Release Date: December 13th, 2021
Approximate running times: 98 Minutes 28 Seconds (Original Hong Kong Theatrical Cut), 88 Minutes 29 Seconds (International Cut)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (Both Versions)
Rating: 15 (UK)
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Cantonese (Original Theatrical Mix), DTS-HD Mono Cantonese (Home Video Mix), DTS-HD Mono English (Classic English Dub), DTS-HD Mono Cantonese/English Hybrid, DTS-HD 5.1 English (Original Hong Kong Theatrical Cut), LPCM Mono English (International Cut)
Subtitles: English (Original Hong Kong Theatrical Cut), English SDH (Both Versions)
Region Coding: Region B
Retail Price: OOP

"Former musician Asian Hawk (Chan) becomes embroiled in a dangerous quest to seek out the last three parts of lost treasure the Armour of God, in order to save his ex-band mate’s girlfriend from the clutches of a ruthless cult." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5 (Original Hong Kong Theatrical Cut), 4/5 (International Cut)

Here’s the information given about the original Hong Kong theatrical cut's transfer, "88 Films present a brand new and exclusive 2K restoration of the main feature."

Armour of God, the original Hong Kong theatrical cut, comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 43 GB

Feature: 30.4 GB

The source used for the original Hong Kong theatrical cut is in excellent shape. Colors and flesh tones are accurate, and image clarity, contrast, black levels, and compression are all solid.

Armour of God, the International Cut, comes on a 25 GB single layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 21.2 GB

Feature: 20.9 GB

The source used for the International Cut is in great shape.

Audio: 4.25/5 (DTS-HD Mono Cantonese - Original Theatrical Mix, DTS-HD Mono Cantonese - Home Video Mix, DTS-HD Mono Cantonese/English Hybrid), 4/5 (DTS-HD Mono English - Classic English Dub, DTS-HD 5.1 English, LPCM Mono English)

The original Hong Kong theatrical cut comes with four audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese (the original theatrical mix), a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese (the home video mix), a DTS-HD mono in English (the classic English dub), a DTS-HD mono mix in a Cantonese/English hybrid, and a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English. All four audio options allow you to choose Lorelei or Flight of the Dragon for the end credits song. All of the audio mixes sound clean, clear, and balanced. Range-wise, ambient sounds are well-represented. Also, the Cantonese language tracks sound more robust than the English language tracks. Included are removable English subtitles for the Cantonese language track, removable English subtitles for the Cantonese/English hybrid track, and removable English SDH.

The International cut comes with one audio option, a LPCM mono mix in English, and included are removable English SDH. The audio sounds clean, clear, and balanced, and fight scenes sound appropriately robust.

Extras:

Extras on the disc with the original Hong Kong theatrical cut include Hong Kong Cantonese theatrical trailer (4 minutes 23 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese with removable English subtitles), Hong Kong Mandarin theatrical trailer (3 minutes 56 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Mandarin with removable English subtitles), Japanese theatrical trailer (1 minute 9 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Japanese with removable English subtitles), English language theatrical trailer (2 minutes 5 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), 88 Films Blu-ray trailer (1 minute 43 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), High Upon High music video (6 minutes 3 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), High Upon High split screen (2 minutes 8 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), High Upon High behind the scenes (4 minutes 16 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Japanese release outtakes (4 minutes 29 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), Locations: Then and Now featurette (6 minutes 2 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo), an archival interview with editor Peter Cheung (4 minutes 42 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Cantonese with non-removable English subtitles), an archival interview with producer Willie Chan (3 minutes 44 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival interview with actor Jackie Chan (4 minutes 9 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with Steve Lawson titled Jackie Chan on VHS - The VPF Years (7 minutes 52 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with Radek Sienski titled Rise of the Phoenix (20 minutes 49 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with Scott Adkins and Matt Routledge titled The Art of Action (30 minutes 57 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an episode of Celebrity Talk Show with Jackie Chan (58 minutes 21 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese with removable English subtitles), an audio commentary with Asian cinema expert Frank Djeng, an audio commentary with Mike Leeder and Arne Venema, and an audio commentary with Kenneth Brorsson and Phil Gillon of the Podcast on Fire Network.

Other extras include six replica Lobby Cards, reversible cover art, a double-sided foldout poster, and a 88-page perfect bound book with an essay titled Eastern Heroes written by Tim Murray, an essay titled Jackie Chan, A Trademark Designed to Succeed written by Thorsten Boose, Pixelated Punch: The Early Video Game Years of Jackie Chan written by Audi Sorlie, an Interview with Thorsten Nickel by Audi Sorlie, and information about the transfer.

Summary:

Made during the height of Jackie Chan’s popularity, Armour of God saw him make a different kind of film at that time. Armour of God has a spectacular opening sequence in which a daring stunt went wrong, nearly killing Jackie Chan.

Though Armour of God started off with another director because of a delay in the shooting due to Jackie Chan’s near-death experience, when Jackie Chan recovered, he assumed the role of director. This change of directors contributed to Armour of God’s uneven narrative.

The narrative revolves around a treasure hunter named Asian Hawk who is reluctantly enlisted to recover a treasure known as the Armour of God. Though the tone of Armour of God has a similar vibe to the films that Jackie Chan was making at this time, the premise feels like it was inspired by the Indiana Jones films.

Though the cast is very good in their roles. The main attraction is Jackie Chan (Police Story) in the role of Asian Hawk. This character gives Jackie Chan all the elements he needs to showcase his martial arts skills and knack for psychic humor, which are on full display. Another performance of note is Lola Forner's (Wheels on Meals) in the role of May, the daughter of a wealthy collector of rare artifacts.

Content-wise, Armour of God has all the elements that one would want from a Jackie Chan film. And yet, the result is a film where the sum of the parts doesn’t work as well as it should. And nowhere is this clearer than in the narrative, which starts and ends strong while losing its focus in the middle. Also, though there are many crazy stunts in Armour of God, it is light when it comes to flight scenes. The first fight scene does not happen until the 35-minute mark. Ultimately, despite its shortcomings, Armour of God still has plenty to enjoy for those who are fans of Jackie Chan.

Armour of God gets a definitive release from 88 Films, highly recommended.

Note: 88 Films has rereleased Armour of God in a standard edition.