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A Chinese Torture Chamber Story & A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2 – Vinegar Syndrome (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Dates: Hong Kong, 1994 (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story), Hong Kong, 1998 (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2)
Directors: Bosco Lam (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story), Cho Kin-Nam (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2)
Cast: Yvonne Yung, Lawrence Ng, Tommy Wong, Ching Mai, Oh Yin-hei, Kenny Wong, Elvis Tsui, Kingdom Yuen (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story), Mark Cheng, Yolinda Yam, Lam Wai-Kin, Yeung Fan, Yang Hsiung, Chu Ben-Ke (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2)

Release Date: July 23rd, 2024
Approximate running times: 93 Minutes (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story - Hong Kong Theatrical Cut), 91 Minutes 50 Seconds (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (Both Films)
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Cantonese (Both Films), DTS-HD Mono English (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story)
Subtitles: English (Both Films), English SDH (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story)
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $44.98

A Chinese Torture Chamber Story: "A beautiful young woman named Little Cabbage is sold by her family to a wealthy scholar named Yang in order to become his future concubine. However, Yang's overbearing wife becomes jealous of Little Cabbage and arranges to have her married off to a well-endowed peasant. When Little Cabbage's new husband is found dead, poisoned by a powerful aphrodisiac, Little Cabbage and Yang are brought in front of a bloodthirsty court to face charges of conspiring to commit murder. Maintaining their innocence, Little Cabbage and Yang are forced to endure unspeakable torture at the hands of a corrupt judge in an attempt to make them confess. Cleverly told in a series of flashbacks, this horrific and hilarious film features wall-to-wall sex and violence, culminating in an explosive "climax" unlike anything you've seen before." - synopsis provided by the distributor

A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2: "Ma, a man rising in the ranks of politics, is traveling to the capital when he is accosted by two down-on-their-luck bandits, Wong and Cheung. Taking pity on the two lowly peasants, Ma agrees to help his new friends better their lives, partly due to Ma's attraction to Wong's sister (who also happens to be Cheung's fiancée), the young and beautiful Lotus. When they all arrive in the capital to take Ma up on his generous offer, they discover that Ma has embroiled them in an elaborate con, and soon find themselves caught up in a saga of jealousy, betrayal, and of course...torture. An equally deranged follow-up to its infamous predecessor, this in-name-only sequel does its best to increase not only the amount of sex and eroticism, but also the levels of cringe-inducing violence." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.25/5 (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story - Hong Kong Theatrical Cut), 4/5 (A Chinese Torture Chamber Story - Alternate Mandarin Language Edit, A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2)

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfers, "Newly scanned and restored in 2K from their 35mm original negatives."

A Chinese Torture Chamber Story comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 45 GB

Feature: 24.8 GB (Hong Kong Theatrical Cut), 19.7 GB (Alternate Mandarin Language Edit)

A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2 comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 34.3 GB

Feature: 24.6 GB

All of the sources are in great shape; any source imperfections are very minor and never intrusive. Flesh tones look correct, colors are nicely saturated, black levels are strong, and image clarity and compression are solid.

Audio: 4.25/5 (All Audio Tracks)

A Chinese Torture Chamber Story comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese and a DTS-HD mono mix in English.

Included are removable English subtitles for the Cantonese language track, removable English SDH for the English language track, and a second removable English subtitle track for Cantonese dialog and text when watching the English language track.

A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2 comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese with removable English subtitles.

All of the audio tracks sound clean, clear, and balanced. Range-wise, they should sound robust when they should, and ambient sounds are well-represented.

Extras:

Extras on disc one include an alternate Mandarin language edit of A Chinese Torture Chamber Story (92 minutes 19 seconds, DTS-HD mono Mandarin with removable English subtitles), and an audio commentary with film historian Samm Deighan for A Chinese Torture Chamber Story, the Hong Kong theatrical cut.

Extras on disc two include a English language theatrical trailer for A Chinese Torture Chamber Story (1 minute 55 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), a Cantonese language theatrical trailer for A Chinese Torture Chamber Story (2 minutes 5 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese with removable English subtitles), a theatrical trailer for A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2 (2 minutes 15 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese with removable English subtitles), English opening title sequence for A Chinese Torture Chamber Story (1 minute 8 seconds, Dolby Digital mono with English text), an interview with Wong Jing, producer of A Chinese Torture Chamber Story and A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2 (5 minutes 20 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Cantonese with removable English subtitles), a video essay by film historian Erica Shultz titled Titillating Torture (17 minutes 58 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a video essay by Justin Decloux of The Important Cinema Club titled The CAT III Films of Wong Jing (17 minutes 31 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and an audio commentary with film historian Frank Djeng for A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2.

Other extras include reversible cover art, a spot gloss slipcover (limited to 6,000 units), and a 20-page booklet with an essay titled A Taste of Sugar, A Taste of Shit: Two Wong Jing Torture Chamber Stories written by Grady Hendrix.

Summary:

A Chinese Torture Chamber Story: A young woman named Little Cabbage falls in love with her master, a scholar named Yeung Naai Miu. When her master is away, Little Cabbage discovers that his wife has been having an affair. Then the master's wife finds out that Little Cabbage knows her secret; she then marries off Little Cabbage to a poor villager with an unusually large member. To cover up her affair, the scholar's wife sets up her husband and Little Cabbage for a murder to keep her secret hidden.

A Chinese Torture Chamber Story wastes no time establishing itself as one of the most notorious Category III films ever made. The opening credits set the tone immediately, with various acts of torture on display, including the severing of a man’s balls and penis. After the opening credits have finished, the narrative moves quickly, and we learn most of the story through flashbacks. In-between each flashback, there are torturous scenes.

Though the moments of torture are what A Chinese Torture Chamber Story is most known for, not far behind is its sex-themed martial arts sequence. In this sequence, there are two lovers who incorporate sex into their martial arts battles. Some of the names of the martial arts moves are “Invincible Mouth,” “Oral Attack,” “Invincible Wheel,” and “Wonder Screw,” all of which make up their wondrous arsenal of carnal fun. You cannot fully appreciate this style of martial arts until you see it in all its glory.

Despite its graphic moments of torture, humor actually plays a role in the story that unfolds. One such moment of note is a running gag where the song Unchained Melody plays every time Little Cabbage touches her husband with the usually large member. The funniest moment in the film is when Little Cabbage’s husband's penis is about to explode, and she mounts him so he can go out with pleasure instead of pain. This scene borrows heavily from the scene in the movie Ghost where Demi Moore is making pottery.

From a production standpoint, A Chinese Torture Chamber Story is a film that achieves its goals and then some. Its well-constructed narrative does a phenomenal job building moments towards its climax, and brisk pacing ensures there is never a moment to catch your breath. Also, when discussing A Chinese Torture Chamber Story, one cannot overlook Wong Jing’s connection to this film. In the 1990's, no one brought the masses trashy violent cinema like producer Wong Jing, whose other Category III classics include Naked Killer and Naked Killer 2: Raped by an Angel. Wong Jing would hit the peak with A Chinese Torture Chamber Story. Ultimately, A Chinese Torture Chamber Story is a perfect blend of violence and sex, making it a must-see film for fans of Cat III cinema.

A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2: This time around, the narrative is mostly told via a series of flashbacks. A well-connected political man befriends a trio of bandits, two men and a woman, who revolve around him. Two bandits, despite coming from different worlds, lower their guard. When it becomes apparent that someone has betrayed them, it's too late for them to take action. The third party has already taken advantage of their momentary lapse.

Many sequels fail to live up to their predecessor, case in point: A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2. Though it carries over violent scenes of torture and moments of erotica, the two staples of its predecessor, the result is a film that never reaches the delirious heights that A Chinese Torture Chamber Story did.

Though A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2 might feel like a letdown when compared to its predecessor, at least when it comes to moments of torture, this is one area where it's on par. In the main torture set piece, the female bandit is restrained by a spider web-like net, and she is sliced with 1,000 slices, resulting in the removal of her own nipples. Ultimately, A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2 is a much darker film and has a more serious tone than its predecessor.

Vinegar Syndrome gives A Chinese Torture Chamber Story and A Chinese Torture Chamber Story 2 a solid release, highly recommended.