Full Contact: Hong Kong Cinema Classics – Shout! Factory (UHD/Blu-ray Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Hong Kong, 1992
Director: Ringo Lam
Writer: Nam Yin
Cast: Chow Yun-fat, Simon Yam, Anthony Wong Chau-Sang, Ann Bridgewater, Bonnie Fu, Frankie Chan

Release Date: July 14th, 2026
Approximate Running Time: 99 Minutes 3 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / HDR10 Dolby Vision
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Cantonese, DTS-HD Mono Cantonese Alternate Mix, DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free (4K UHD), Region A (Blu-ray)
Retail Price: $44.98

"In an effort to get his buddy out of a gambling debt, Gou Fei agrees to join forces with his friend Judge in a weapons heist. The job goes bad and Judge betrays him. Gou Fei plots the ultimate revenge on Judge and his followers and sets forth a plan of violence and deceit." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5 (4K UHD), 4.5/5 (Blu-ray)

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "4K Scan from the Original Camera Negative."

Full Contact comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 68.3 GB

Feature: 68 GB

This is another solid transfer from Shout! Factory: the source looks excellent. Flesh tones and colors look correct, image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image retains an organic appearance.

Full Contact comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 43.6 GB

Feature: 28.3 GB

This Blu-ray uses the same master that is used for the 4K UHD disc.

Audio: 5/5 (All Audio Tracks)

This release comes with three audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese, an alternate DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese, and a DTS-HD mono mix in English. All tracks sound excellent; dialogue always comes through clearly, and everything sounds balanced and robust when it should. Included are English subtitles for the Cantonese tracks, English SDH for the English-language track, and English subtitles for Cantonese text when watching the English-language track. It should be noted that subtitles and audio can only be chosen via the audio setup menu, and they cannot be turned off while watching the main feature.

Extras:

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include an audio commentary with James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic at EasternKicks.

Extras on the Blu-ray disc include a poster and lobby card gallery (16 images), a then-and-now image gallery, a theatrical trailer (5 minutes 2 seconds, DTS-HD mono Cantonese with removable English subtitles), an interview with martial arts director Ridley Tsui titled Full Combat and Full Contact (16 minutes 50 seconds, DTS-HD stereo Cantonese with removable English subtitles), an interview with actor Simon Yam titled Fully Fantastic (35 minutes 1 second, DTS-HD stereo Cantonese with removable English subtitles), an interview with Hong Kong cinema expert Frank Djeng titled Full Fledge Classic (17 minutes 46 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English with removable English subtitles for Cantonese film clips), and an audio commentary with James Mudge.

Other extras include a slipcover (limited to the first pressing).

Summary:

Ringo Lam directed Full Contact. He rose to prominence in Hong Kong cinema in the latter part of the 1980s after directing films like City on Fire, Prison on Fire, and School on Fire. Even though he has made three films in Hollywood with Jean-Claude Van Damme, unlike most of his contemporaries, he has also managed to stay active in Hong Kong cinema.

When one of them offends a loan shark, three friends are forced to flee, and needing money, they team up with a trio of unscrupulous criminals.

Ringo Lam is one of a handful of filmmakers who excelled in the Heroic Bloodshed genre, with City on Fire being his most celebrated film. Though Full Contact has all the core elements of Heroic Bloodshed cinema, the result is an askewed version of this genre. Where his earlier forays into Heroic Bloodshed cinema had social commentary and were political, Full Contact is a film that drops all subtext in favour of style.

A key component to Ringo Lam’s most celebrated films, they all feature Chow Yun-Fat, an actor who he worked with for the sixth and final time on Full Contact. Chow Yun-Fat portrays Gou Fei, a bouncer who wears a vest and rides a motorcycle. Though there is a cool aspect to his character, it is not the same King of Cool-type character that he’s known for. That said, he delivers another superb performance in which he dominates every moment he’s onscreen.

Cast in the role of the bad guy is Simon Yam (Naked Killer); he portrays a flamboyant character named Judge who is openly gay. There is a song and dance going on between Judge and Gou Fei, in which the former flirts with the latter, who always rejects him. Judge is a cunning character who uses a handkerchief to disguise his surprise ambushes. He’s a versatile actor who portrayed a range of characters, including a few memorable turns as psychopaths.

Besides these two characters, there is a crew of colorful characters like Deano, a muscular madman with no impulse control, and his slutty girlfriend, who is aptly named Virgin in the English language version. The most surprising performance is Anthony Wong Chau-Sang, who, more than any Hong Kong actor, is known for portraying psychopaths. In Full Contact, he portrays Sam, a meek character who evolves into the type of character that Anthony Wong Chau-Sang is known for.

One thing you can say about Full Contact is that it never skims when it comes to its action sequences. In its opening moments, Judge and his two sidekicks rob a jewelry store. This opening sequence perfectly sets the tone for what follows; it is a bombastic moment of excessive carnage and destruction. When it comes to action sequences, they will not disappoint. That said, the action is more Gung Fu than hand-to-hand combat.

From a production standpoint, Full Contact is a film where everyone involved is clicking on all cylinders. The narrative moves briskly to an explosive finale that somehow tops all the earlier action set pieces. Though Ringo Lam lets his actors take center stage, there is never a shortage of stylish moments. Ultimately, Full Contact is one of the high-watermarks of Heroic Bloodshed cinema and one of this genre's last hurrahs.

Shout! Factory gives City on Fire an exceptional release that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and a wealth of insightful extras. Highly recommended.

Note about the 4K screenshots: It is not possible to make Dolby Vision or HDR10 screenshots that faithfully match the experience of watching a film in motion on a TV. Instead of not having any screenshots, all of the 4K screenshots are m2ts taken with a MPC-HC player and lossless PNGs.

 

Written by Michael Den Boer

The Hourglass Sanatorium: Limited Edition – Radiance Films (UHD/Blu-ray Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Poland, 1973
Director: Wojciech Has
Writers: Wojciech Has, Bruno Schulz
Cast: Jan Nowicki, Tadeusz Kondrat, Irena Orska, Halina Kowalska, Gustaw Holoubek

Release Date: August 3rd, 2026
Approximate Running Time: 124 Minutes 28 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / HDR10 Dolby Vision
Rating: 15 (UK)
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Polish
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region Free (4K UHD), Region Free (Blu-ray)
Retail Price: £24.99 (UK)

"A young man, Józef (Jan Nowicki, O-Bi, O-Ba: The End of Civilization), takes a train into the middle of nowhere to visit his dying father, who he understands is residing in a sanatorium. On arrival he discovers a giant building crumbling into ruin, with the patients seemingly left to their own devices, and time itself behaving in strange, non-linear ways. A doctor then informs him that his father is both alive and not-alive, beginning an epic hypnagogic journey through the hospital and his own mind, with each room unlocking its own sinister, hallucinatory world." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5 (4K UHD, Blu-ray)

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, “The Hourglass Sanatorium was restored in 4K from the original camera negative by Fixafilm with artistic supervision by Piotr Sobociński Jr. and Michal Sobociński, the grandsons of the original director of photography Witold Sobociński. This restoration was provided to Radiance Film as a 4K ultra-high-definition digital fire. HDR grading was performed by Stephen C. Horne for Radiance Films.”

The Hourglass Sanatorium comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 87.8 GB

Feature: 87.5 GB

The source looks phenomenal; it is easily the best that The Hourglass Sanatorium has ever looked on home media. Flesh tones look healthy, colors are perfectly saturated, contrast, black levels, image clarity, and compression are solid, and the image always retains an organic appearance.

The Hourglass Sanatorium comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 37.6 GB

Feature: 33 GB

This Blu-ray uses the same master that is used for the 4K UHD disc.

Audio: 5/5

This release comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in Polish with removable English subtitles. The track sounds excellent; dialogue always comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, and ambient sounds are well-represented.

Extras:

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include an audio commentary with Polish film expert Michael Brooke.

Extras on the Blu-ray disc include an archival Polish TV interview with production designer Jerzy Skarzynski by filmmaker Jerzy Wójcik (15 minutes 1 second, LPCM stereo Polish with removable English subtitles), Wojciech Has’ debut short film titled Accordion (12 minutes 8 seconds, LPCM mono with text in Polish and removable English subtitles), and an audio commentary with Michael Brooke.

Other extras include reversible cover art, a removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings; and a 32-page booklet (limited to 3,000 copies) with cast & crew information, an essay titled History’s Ghosts - The Temporal Odyssey of The Hourglass Sanatorium written by Ela Bittencourt, an archival writing about The Hourglass Sanatorium written by Annette Insdorf, and information about the transfer.

Summary:

Although the screenplay for The Hourglass Sanatorium was primarily adapted from Bruno Schulz’s story collection Sanatorium under the Sign of the Hourglass, it is not a literal adaptation. Wojciech Has's film also integrates other stories written by Bruno Schultz into its narrative. There is a clear foreshadowing of the Holocaust throughout Shultz’s literature, and it is in this regard that The Hourglass Sanatorium remains the most faithful to its source.

The narrative revolves around a young man visiting his dying father at a sanatorium where time unfolds in unpredictable ways and just around every corner lie memories that have languished far too long in the past.

To say that The Hourglass Sanatorium’s narrative is challenging would be a gross overstatement. In fact, there are so many layers to the Hourglass Sanatorium that trying to understand them all with one viewer would be a futile affair. That said, The Hourglass Sanatorium is the type of film that takes several viewings to fully appreciate all it has to offer. As mentioned before, the narrative is far from conventional, and it feels like a series of random moments strung together. When examined by themselves, these individual moments lack the same potency they possess when viewed within the parameters of the story at hand.

Through his journey, the protagonist meets a nurse and doctor who run the dilapidated sanatorium where his mentally ill father is being taken care of. Other characters he meets include a childhood friend whose stamp book ignites long-forgotten memories and a wax museum filled with realistic mannequins located on land in the wilderness. More characters he meets include voluptuous women with great appetites, rabbis who do a song and dance, and several visits from his recently departed father.

While the entire cast delivers outstanding performances, the heart and soul of The Hourglass Sanatorium is Jan Nowicki’s portrayal of Józef, the protagonist. He delivers a remarkable performance that conveys a wide range of emotions and perfectly puts you in his character's state of mind.

When it comes to the look of The Hourglass Sanatorium's visuals and production design, one would be hard-pressed to find any flaws in them. The combination of these two elements ensures that there is never a shortage of atmosphere. Not to be overlooked is Jerzy Maksymiuk’s evocative score, which perfectly reinforces the mood. Ultimately, The Hourglass Sanatorium is an extraordinary piece of film-making that connects with you on an emotional level and lingers in your mind long after its final haunting image.

The Hourglass Sanatorium gets a definitive release from Radiance Films. Highly recommended.

Note about the 4K screenshots: It is not possible to make Dolby Vision or HDR10 screenshots that faithfully match the experience of watching a film in motion on a TV. Instead of not having any screenshots, all of the 4K screenshots are m2ts taken with a MPC-HC player and lossless PNGs.

Written by Michael Den Boer

Toomorrow: Standard Edition – Deaf Crocodile (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: UK, 1970
Director: Val Guest
Writer: Val Guest
Cast: Olivia Newton-John, Benny Thomas, Vic Cooper, Karl Chambers, Roy Dotrice

Release Date: September 22nd, 2026
Approximate Running Time: 93 Minutes 47 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $29.95

"21 year-old Olivia Newton-John stars, pre-Grease fame, in this utterly bonkers Mod-Pop / Sci-Fi musical about a multi-racial group of London art college musicians whose songs are the cure to the computer sterility suffered by the alien Alphoids, circling Earth in their crystal spacecraft." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5

Here’s the information given about the transfers, "Released for barely a week on its original 1970 run and unseen for decades, Toomorrow has been restored by the British Film Institute and Deaf Crocodile from the original 35mm negative for the first time."

Toomorrow comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 42.8 GB

Feature: 27.1 GB

The source looks excellent; flesh tones look healthy, colors are nicely saturated, contrast, black levels, image clarity, and compression are solid, and the image retains an organic appearance.

Audio: 5/5

This release comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in English with removable English SDH and English subtitles. The track sounds clean, clear, and balanced, and the music sounds appropriately robust.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a WWII propaganda short film directed by Val Guest titled The Nose Has It (8 minutes 3 seconds, 1.37:1 aspect ratio, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an experimental short film titled If I Could Turn You On, featuring an avant-garde performance at the Camden Roundhouse, one of the locations used in Toomorrow (12 minutes 43 seconds, 1.37:1 aspect ratio, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an archival interview from 1998 with director/writer Val Guest, conducted by The Guardian newspaper (64 minutes 56 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a video essay by film critic Celeste de la Cabra titled Toomorrow:  Musical Humanism Through the Stars (11 minutes 56 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a video essay by Someone’s Favorite Productions featuring a 1988 audio interview for the British Entertainment History Project with director Val Guest discussing his work on Toomorrow, moderated by Roy Fowler (10 minutes 2 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and an audio commentary with author and music historian Andrew Sandoval.

Summary:

Val Guest wrote and directed Toomorrow. Notable films he’s directed include The Quatermass Xperiment, Quatermass 2, The Abominable Snowman, The Day the Earth Caught Fire, Jigsaw, Assignment K, and When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth.

Aliens on the brink of extinction discover sonic vibrations on Earth that can save them. The sonic vibrations are coming from a rock band that calls itself Tomorrow. The aliens temporarily abducted them to extract the sonic vibrations before returning them back to Earth with no memory of what just happened.

Don Kirshner was the man behind Toomorrow; he had been the producer for The Monkees' earliest output. He wanted to take the blueprint laid out from that experience working with The Monkees and manufacture a band for a theatrical feature film. Toomorrow was the first film in a three-picture deal between Don Kirshner and producer Harry Saltzman, most known for the 1960s James Bond films. Unfortunately, from the outset the two clashed creatively, and a lawsuit by director Val Guest against Harry Saltzman buried Toomorrow for four decades.

Toomorrow is a science fiction film with musical performances. The vibe and look of Toomorrow is entrenched in the late-1960s free love culture. While there are science fiction elements, they are most prominent in the latter-half of the film. That said, when it comes to the special effects and futuristic sets, they look incredibly dated.

Two of the four who portray the band Toomorrow had no acting experience. Only Olivia Newton-John (Grease) and Benny Thomas acted before and after Toomorrow. While most of the performances are serviceable, even at this stage of her career, Olivia Newton-John had star power.

The narrative is essentially the band Toomorrow overcoming a series of obstacles culminating with them getting their big break. The finale serves up a “was it all a dream?" twist that serves as a perfect coda. The music suits the counterculture aspects of the film, and while catchy, none of it really stands out. Ultimately, Toomorrow is a one-of-a-kind cinema experience that greatly benefits from Olivia Newton-John’s presence.

Toomorrow gets a definitive release from Deaf Crocodile. Recommended.

Note: There is a deluxe release of Krakatit that comes in a slipcase and a 60-page book with a transcript of 2002 Q&A with Val Guest at the American Cinematheque, conducted by Dennis Bartok, an essay on Val Guest and Yolande Donlan written by Dennis Bartok, and an essay written by film critic Walter Chaw (Film Freak Central).

Written by Michael Den Boer

Tetsuo: The Bullet Man: Limited Edition – Unearthed Classics (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Japan, 2009
Director: Shin'ya Tsukamoto
Writers: Shin'ya Tsukamoto, Hisakatsu Kuroki
Cast: Eric Bossick, Akiko Monō, Yuko Nakamura, Stephen Sarrazin, Shinya Tsukamoto

Release Date: July 21st, 2026
Approximate Running Time: 71 Minutes 10 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 English/Japanese
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $39.95

"Anthony is a bland and cautious American office worker living in Tokyo with nothing exceptional about him. Or so he thinks. When his young son is killed, Anthony begins a violent and bizarre metamorphosis, his flesh transforming into metal, his body expressing his repressed rage and lust for revenge. Anthony is becoming the weapon that will destroy the man who killed his son and, if his rage cannot be contained, the entire city in the process." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Tetsuo: The Bullet Man comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 40.3 GB

Feature: 20.1 GB

The source looks excellent; flesh tones and colors look correct, image clarity and black levels are solid, and there are no issues with compression.

Audio: 4.5/5

This release comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English and some dialogue in Japanese. The track makes great use of ambient sounds and its score always sounds robust. That said, many times dialogue is much lower than the rest of the soundtrack. Included are removable English SDH and English subtitles for Japanese-only dialogue.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a promotional image gallery with music from the film playing in the background (stills/posters), the original Japanese theatrical trailer (1 minute 57 seconds, DTS-HD 5.1 English with text in Japanese and removable English subtitles), the original US theatrical trailer (1 minute 58 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Tetsuo: The Bullet Man—multi-material version (70 minutes 31 seconds, DTS-HD 5.1 English, no subtitles), an audio Commentary with actor Eric Bossick and Japanese cinema expert Tom Mes, and a slipcover (limited to the first pressing). The extra-titled Tetsuo: The Bullet Man—multi-material version is a making-of-the-film that contains storyboards and behind-the-scenes footage.

Summary:

Tetsuo: The Bullet Man is a standalone sequel to two earlier films directed by Shin'ya, Tetsuo: The Iron Man and Tetsuo II: Body Hammer. It is body horror and cyberpunk elements that link Tetsuo: The Iron Man, Tetsuo II: Body Hammer, and Tetsuo: The Bullet Man, despite having no narrative continuity. Another element that links these three films is that they revolve around the protagonist whose rage after the death of their child transforms their bodies into weapons.

Tetsuo: The Bullet Man is a film that relies more on mood than conventional cinema storytelling; there is just enough exposition to move things forward. Image and sound are more important than what is said. The stylized visuals, which have a monochrome-like color scheme, perfectly fuse with the soundtracks' abrasive use of sounds. The film’s main theme was composed and performed by Nine Inch Nails. When it comes to moments of violence and ensuing carnage, Tetsuo: The Bullet Man does not disappoint. That said, having the cast predominantly speak in English is one area that some may find lacking. Ultimately, while Tetsuo: The Bullet Man is a step back from its predecessors, it is a film that Shin'ya Tsukamoto fans should thoroughly enjoy.

Unearthed Films gives Tetsuo: The Bullet Man a first-rate release that comes with a strong audio/video presentation and a pair of informative extras. Recommended.

 

Written by Michael Den Boer

Circle of Iron: Steelbook – Blue Underground (4K UHD/Blu-ray Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: USA, 1978
Director: Richard Moore
Writers: Stirling Silliphant, Stanley Mann
Cast: David Carradine, Christopher Lee, Jeff Cooper, Roddy McDowall, Eli Wallach, Anthony De Longis, Earl Maynard, Erica Creer

Release Date: August 25th, 2026
Approximate Running Time: 96 Minutes 43 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / HDR10 Dolby Vision
Rating: R
Sound: DTS-HD Mono English, DTS-HD 5.1 English, Dolby Atmos English
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Region Coding: Region Free (4K UHD, Blu-ray)
Retail Price: $59.95

"The Epic Adventure From The Mind of Bruce Lee - The Dream Project He Didn't Live To See!

At the height of his international fame, the legendary Bruce Lee (Enter the Dragon) - along with his friend and student James Coburn (The Great Escape) and Oscar®-winning screenwriter Stirling Silliphant (In the Heat of the Night) - began to write what he believed would be the greatest achievement of his film career. Five years after his mysterious death, Lee's vision would finally be realized.

David Carradine (Kill Bill), Christopher Lee (The Lord of the Rings), Jeff Cooper (Knife for the Ladies), Roddy McDowall (Planet of the Apes) and Eli Wallach (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly) star in this acclaimed cult hit that brings Lee's personal philosophy to the screen with a still-potent combination of mysticism, humor and martial arts mayhem." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5 (4K UHD, Blu-ray)

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "Now Circle of Iron - also known as The Silent Flute - is presented in a brand-new restoration, scanned in 4K 16-bit from its original camera negative, with Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos audio, packed with new and archival Extras!"

Circle of Iron comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 74.2 GB

Feature: 68.5 GB

Blue Underground revisits another title 17 years after they released it on Blu-ray, and the result is a massive improvement over that release. The source looks excellent; flesh tones look healthy, colors are nicely saturated, and contrast, black levels, image clarity, and compression are solid, and the image always retains an organic appearance.

Circle of Iron comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 41.7 GB

Feature: 27.1 GB

This Blu-ray uses the same master that is used for the 4K UHD disc.

Audio: 5/5 (DTS-HD Mono English, Dolby Atmos English), 4.5/5 ( DTS-HD 5.1 English)

This release comes with three audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in English, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English, and a Dolby Atmos mix in English. All tracks sound clean, clear, and balanced, and ambient sounds are well-represented. New to this release is the Dolby Atmos track, which is a solid track that’s more robust than the original mono track while remaining faithful to it. Included are removable English SDH and French and Spanish subtitles.

Extras:

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include a US theatrical trailer (1 minute 59 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an international theatrical trailer (3 minutes 5 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an alternate opening (3 minutes 6 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an archival audio commentary with director Richard Moore, and an audio commentary film historian Frank Djeng and Chris Poggiali.

Extras on the Blu-ray disc include a poster & still gallery (81 images), TV spot #1 (33 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), TV spot #2 (33 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), TV spot #3 (34 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), a US theatrical trailer (1 minute 59 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an international theatrical trailer (3 minutes 5 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an alternate opening (3 minutes 6 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an archival interview with actor David Carradine titled Playing the Silent Flute (13 minutes 58 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival interview with producer Paul Maslansky titled The Producer (28 minutes 47 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival interview with a martial arts coordinator Joe Lewis titled Karate Master (31 minutes 4 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival audio interview with screenwriter Stirling Silliphant (25 minutes 26 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with actor Anthony De Longis titled Circle of Success (18 minutes 6 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival audio commentary with Richard Moore, and an audio commentary Frank Djeng and Chris Poggiali.

Other extras include steelbook packaging.

Summary:

Circle of Iron is the only theatrical film that Richard Moore directed. He’s most known for his work as a cinematographer on films like Myra Breckinridge, The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean, The Stone Killer, and Annie.

A warrior named Cord earns the opportunity to challenge a man named Zeta who guards a highly prized book known as the “Book of All Knowledge." Along the way, Cord will face several obstacles in his quest to obtain the “Book of All Knowledge." Will Cord defeat all those who stand in his way and will he finally find enlightenment once he gazes upon this mysterious book?

Circle of Iron originated as an idea conceived by Bruce Lee shortly before he achieved fame in Hong Kong as a martial arts superstar. When Enter the Dragon solidified his star power, Bruce Lee turned down a chance to make Circle of Iron. After the death of Bruce Lee, interest in Circle of Iron increased and, after many false starts, the film would be finally made.

Circle of Iron is more of a fantasy film than a martial arts film. While there is an abundance of action, unfortunately the fight scenes are fairly standard. That said, at its core, Circle of Iron is a film that tries to explain Eastern philosophies to Western audiences.

Circle of Iron’s main draw is David Carradine (Kill Bill), who portrays four characters: the blind man, monkeyman, Death, and Changsha. If Bruce Lee made Circle of Iron, these are the four characters he would have portrayed. David Carradine is Circle of Iron’s greatest asset and every role he plays stands out as one of the most memorable moments in the film, especially the blind man character.

The cast features several well-known actors, like Christopher Lee (Horror of Dracula) in the role of Zetan, Roddy McDowall (Fright Night), and Eli Wallach (The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly). While Christopher Lee and Roddy McDowall are woefully underused, Eli Wallach’s character delivers Circle of Iron's most memorable and humorous moment. The cast's weakest link is Jeff Cooper in the role of the protagonist Cord. Although he more than holds his own from a physical standpoint, he lacks the charisma needed to really sell the role.

The opening setup does a solid job drawing you in, and the narrative moves briskly as it effectively builds momentum to its big reveal finale. While Circle of Iron is a film with shortcomings, its positives negate its negatives. Areas where Circle of Iron excels are its picturesque visuals and Bruce Smeaton’s (Picnic at Hanging Rock) exemplary score. Ultimately, Circle of Iron feels like a missed opportunity and one has to wonder what might have been if Bruce Lee had made the film on his terms.

Circle of Iron gets an excellent release from Blue Underground that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and a wealth of informative extras. Recommended.

Note about the 4K screenshots: It is not possible to make Dolby Vision or HDR10 screenshots that faithfully match the experience of watching a film in motion on a TV. Instead of not having any screenshots, all of the 4K screenshots are m2ts taken with a MPC-HC player and lossless PNGs.

 

Written by Michael Den Boer