Lady Reporter – Vinegar Syndrome (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: USA/Hong Kong, 1989
Director: Mang Hoi
Writers: Sai-Shing Shum, Michael Swift
Cast: Cynthia Rothrock, Elizabeth Lee Mei-Fung, Chin Siu-Ho, Mang Hoi, Ronny Yu, Melvin Wong, Wu Ma

Release Date: April 23rd, 2024
Approximate running times: 87 Minutes 49 Seconds (Original Hong Kong Cut), 89 Minutes 57 Seconds (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 Mandarin (Original Hong Kong Cut), DTS-HD Mono English (Export Cut)
Subtitles: English (Original Hong Kong Cut), English SDH (Export Cut)
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $44.98

"When the FBI learns of an international counterfeiting operation being run through a Hong Kong newspaper, they send one of their leading agents, Cindy, undercover as a reporter in order to investigate. Upon arriving in Hong Kong, Cindy quickly becomes a headline herself after being photographed by a rival tabloid saving a child from a burning building. It doesn't take long for the criminals to realize what is happening and soon they are after Cindy and her good friend Judy. To make matters worse, Judy's father is the lead prosecutor trying to convict the head of the counterfeiting ring and the criminals will stop at nothing to remove him from the case. With the help of a few new friends, Cindy soon finds herself facing off against a wave of henchmen and hitmen all hellbent on stopping her from exposing the truth." - synopsis provided by the distributor

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

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "Newly restored by Vinegar Syndrome from existing 2k studio masters."

Lady Reporter comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray. 

Disc Size: 46.1 GB

Feature: 21.5 GB (Original Hong Kong Cut), 20.5 GB (Export Cut)

Right now is a great time to be a fan of Hong Kong cinema from the 1970s, 80s, and 90s. There have been numerous films released in North America and the UK by different companies. Though there have been instances where one release looks better than the other, that is not the case here; this release looks similar to Eureka Video’s release. The sources used for both versions are comparable, and the sources used are in excellent shape. Colors are nicely saturated; image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid.

Audio: 4.25/5 (DTS-HD Mono Cantonese), 3.75/5 (DTS-HD Mono English, DTS-HD Mono Mandarin)

The Hong Kong cut comes with two audio versions, a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese and a DTS-HD mono mix in Mandarin. It should be noted that there is some dialog in English. The Cantonese language track is in excellent shape. Dialogue always comes through clearly; everything sounds balanced, and fight scenes sound robust. The Mandarin language track feels constrained and lacks the range that the Cantonese language track has. Included are removable English subtitles for the Cantonese-language track.

The export cut comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in English. Though this track sounds clean and is in very good shape, it does not sound as robust as the Cantonese track. Also, there are times when the audio sounds muffled; this might be a by-product of the post-dubbing. That said, dialog comes through clearly enough to follow, and ambient sounds are well represented. Included with this track are removable English SDH.

Extras:

Extras for this release include an image gallery with music from the film playing in the background, Cantonese language theatrical trailer (2 minutes 38 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese with removable English subtitles), English language theatrical trailer (3 minutes 53 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an interview with actor Vincent Lyn titled Playing the Villain (20 minutes 46 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with actress Cynthia Rothrock titled No Mediocre Action (13 minutes 58 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an audio commentary with martial arts film historian Frank Djeng for the Hong Kong cut, reversible cover art, a spot gloss slipcover limited to 6,000 units, and a 16-page booklet with an essay titled Skirt-Wearing Inspectors: Action and Cultural Barriers in Mang Hoi’s Lady Reporter written by Francesco Massaccesi.

Summary:

By the time Cynthia Rothrock made Lady Reporter, she had already established herself as one of the premier women working in Hong Kong action films. Having appeared in films like Yes, Madam and Righting Wrongs, though these films gave her ample screen time to showcase her fighting skills, she was always paired with another actor and was not the lead. With Lady Reporter, she would be given the opportunity to headline a film, and she would prove that she was more than up for the challenge.

The narrative revolves around an FBI agent named Cindy who goes to Hong Kong masquerading as a reporter to look for counterfeiters who are using newspaper printing presses to make counterfeit money.

Hong Kong cinema is filled with films that are known for their resourcefulness, using whatever they can get their hands on to complete a film. A film like Lady Reporter takes this to another level with the way it disregards obvious continuity. The original director, Mang Hoi, who was making his directorial debut, would not be the only director; Corey Yuen (Yes, Madam) would direct additional moments, notably the finale. The most noticeable issue related to continuity is Cynthia Rothrock’s changing hairstyles, sometimes even within the same scene.

Lady Reporter features a solid cast. Cynthia Rothrock is the main attraction in the role of an FBI agent named Cindy. Throughout Lady Reporter, male characters underestimate Cindy, thinking that because she’s a woman, she will be easy to dispose of. Unfortunately for them, Cindy proves that she can more than hold her own against any opponent. The rest of the cast is very good in their roles, especially Ronny Yu (The Bride with White Hair) in the role of the villain, a man named Ronny Dak who's behind the counterfeit operation.

Despite the aforementioned continuity issues, there really is no area where Lady Reporter does not come out ahead. The narrative is a good balance of exposition and action that does a great job building momentum. Also, when it comes to the stunts and action sequences, they are exemplary. Hong Kong action sequences are known for their inventiveness and crazy stunts, and in both of these areas, Lady Reporter delivers in spades. Another strength of the action sequences is how the characters use their surroundings and nearby objects to gain an upper hand. Ultimately, Lady Reporter is a solid action film that fans of Hong Kong action films and Cynthia Rothrock should thoroughly enjoy.

Lady Reporter gets an excellent release from Vinegar Syndrome that comes with a strong audio/video presentation, two versions of the film, and informative extras, highly recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer