The Bride with White Hair: Ultimate Edition – Plaion Pictures (UHD/Blu-ray Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Hong Kong, 1993 (The Bride with White Hair, The Bride with White Hair 2)
Directors: Ronny Yu (The Bride with White Hair), David Wu (The Bride with White Hair 2)
Cast: Brigitte Lin, Leslie Cheung, Leila Tong, Francis Ng, Elaine Lui, Yammie Lam, Joseph Cheng, Eddy Ko, Law Lok-lam, Pau Fung, Jeffrey Lau (The Bride with White Hair), Sunny Chan, Joey Meng, Christy Chung, Brigitte Lin, Leslie Cheung, Eddy Ko (The Bride with White Hair 2)

Release Date: March 10th, 2022
Approximate Running Times: 88 Minutes 58 Seconds (The Bride with White Hair), 80 Minutes 37 Seconds (The Bride with White Hair 2)
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 (The Bride with White Hair), 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (The Bride with White Hair), 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (The Bride with White Hair 2)
Rating: FSK 16 (Germany)
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Cantonese (Both Films), DTS-HD 5.1 Cantonese (The Bride with White Hair), DTS-HD Mono German (Both Films), DTS-HD 5.1 German (Both Films)
Subtitles: English (Both Films), German (Both Films)
Region Coding: Region Free (4K UHD), Region B (Blu-ray)
Retail Price: OOP

"A violent, mystical time ruled by the power of swords: The brave Yi-hang (Leslie Cheung) falls in love with the beautiful fighter of an enemy clan (Brigitte Lin) - but one day her love can only be fulfilled by the Flower of Immortality ..." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 3/5 (The Bride with White Hair - 4K UHD, The Bride with White Hair - Blu-ray), 4/5 (The Bride with White Hair 2)

The Bride with White Hair comes on a 66 GB dual layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 39.2 GB

Feature: 37.7 GB

Plaion Pictures' release uses a German source and it looks nowhere as great as Eureka Video’s 2020 Blu-ray does. The image looks soft, and there appears to be some digital filtering going on.

The Bride with White Hair comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 30.4 GB

Feature: 29 GB

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

The Bride with White Hair 2 comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 25.5 GB

Feature: 24.5 GB

Unlike its predecessor, The Bride with White Hair 2 comes from a Hong Kong source and it looks really good. Flesh tones look correct, colors are nicely saturated, image clarity and black levels are strong, and there are no issues with compression or digital noise reduction.

Audio: 4/5 (DTS-HD Mono Cantonese - The Bride with White Hair, DTS-HD Mono Cantonese - The Bride with White Hair 2), 4.25/5 (DTS-HD 5.1 Cantonese - The Bride with White Hair)

The Bride with White Hair comes with four audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in Cantonese, a DTS-HD mono mix in German, and a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in German. For this review I only listened to the Cantonese language tracks, and they both sound clean, clear, and balanced. That said, the 5.1 Cantonese track sounds more robust. Included are removable English and German subtitles.

The Bride with White Hair 2 comes with three audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese, a DTS-HD mono mix in German, and a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in German. For this review I only listened to the Cantonese language track, and it sounds clean, clear, and balanced and robust when it should. Included are removable English and German subtitles.

Extras:

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include a German-language theatrical trailer (1 minute 1 second, Dolby Digital mono German, no subtitles), a Cantonese-language theatrical trailer (3 minutes 35 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese, no subtitles), and an archival audio commentary with Ronny Yu, in English.

Extras on the Blu-ray disc with The Bride with White Hair include a German-language theatrical trailer (1 minute 1 second, Dolby Digital mono German, no subtitles), a Cantonese-language theatrical trailer (3 minutes 35 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese, no subtitles), and an archival audio commentary with director Ronny Yu, in English.

Extras on the Blu-ray disc with The Bride with White Hair 2 include Cantonese-language theatrical trailer #1 (2 minutes 13 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese, no subtitles) and Cantonese-language theatrical trailer #1 (2 minutes 13 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese, no subtitles).

Extras on a third Blu-ray include an archival interview with Ronny Yu (23 minutes 16 seconds, LPCM stereo English with non-removable German subtitles), an archival interview with screenwriter Jason Lam Kee-To (46 minutes 41 seconds, LPCM stereo Cantonese with non-removable German subtitles), an archival interview with Cherogpoaher/stunt double Jackie Yeung (14 minutes 20 seconds, LPCM stereo Cantonese with non-removable German subtitles), an archival interview with French film critic Julien Seveon titled Portriat of Filmmakers Ronny Yu (40 minutes 4 seconds, LPCM stereo French with non-removable English subtitles), an archival interview titled From book to film with author Brigitte Duzan (16 minutes 12 seconds, LPCM stereo French with non-removable English subtitles), an archival interview titled The Fantasq Cinema Hong Kong with Julien Seveon (23 minutes 47 seconds, LPCM stereo French with non-removable German subtitles), and an archival Making Of featurette (12 minutes, LPCM stereo Cantonese with non-removable German subtitles).

Other extras include an 84-hardback book with a text piece titled The Bride with White Hair 1 & 2: Die Eine Rose, Auf Ewig Am Blümchen (The One Rose, Forever On the Blooming), a text piece titled Die Filme (The Films): The Bride with White Hair 1, a text piece titled Die Filme (The Films): The Bride with White Hair 2, a text piece titled Eine Weitere Einordnug Die Hongkonger Filmindustrie Anno 1993 (Another classification: The Hong Kong film industry in 1993), a text piece titled Das Wuxia-Genre (The Wuxia genre), a text piece titled Das Filmpersonal (The film crew): Ronny Yu, Leslie Cheung, and Brigitte Lin, and still photos.

Summary:

The Bride with White Hair: Ronny Yu directed The Bride with White Hair. Notable films he’s directed include The Postman Fights Back, Legacy of Rage, and The Phantom Lover. The Bride with White Hair marks a high point for Ronny Yu as a filmmaker. In 1997, Ronny Yu, like many of his contemporaries, would transition from Hong Kong to Hollywood cinema, directing films like Bride of Chucky and Freddy vs. Jason.

The narrative revolves around a young swordsman named Zhuo Yihang, who’s been groomed since birth to become the leader of his clan, falling in love with a swordswoman named Lian Nichang from a rival clan. Their love is soon put to the test when Lian Nichang gets framed for killing Zhuo Yihang’s master.

At the heart of The Bride with White Hair is a story about two enemies who become lovers and how they try to navigate their doomed romance. The narrative moves along briskly, with just enough time devoted to character development. It should be noted that the opening sequence also serves as the moment that opens The Bride with White Hair 2.

While the narrative is solid, the most striking aspect of The Bride with White Hair is its visual style. The visuals are breathtaking, as they flawlessly mix dreamlike and nightmarish imagery. Standout moments include the scene where Zhuo Yihang spies on Lian Nichang, who’s bathing, and the scene that shows their love’s evolution before they are each confronted by their clans about their forbidden love.

Brigitte Lin's (Police Story) and Leslie Cheung’s (Farewell, My Concubine) performances are the heart and soul of The Bride with White Hair. They have a tremendous amount of onscreen chemistry. Another performance of note is Francis Ng’s megalomaniac portrayal of the male half of psychopath Siamese twins.

Hong Kong cinema is known for its elaborate action set pieces that often defy gravity, and when it comes to action set pieces, The Bride with White Hair delivers and then some, with each one somehow topping the last. Weapons are another staple of Hong Kong martial arts cinema. Brigitte Lin’s character, Lian Nichang, uses her hair as a weapon and a whip that cuts bodies in half. Ultimately, The Bride with the White Hair is a haunting story about a doomed love affair that perfectly mixes drama and action.

The Bride with White Hair 2: David Wu directed The Bride with White Hair 2. He’s most known for his work as an editor for John Woo and Tsui Hark. The Bride with White Hair 2 was quickly rushed into production after the success of The Bride with White Hair and released four months after its predecessor. 

Framed for murder, Lian Nichang exacts her revenge by killing all the members of the eight clans. It has been ten years since Zhuo Yihang saw Lian Nichang. He has been waiting for a rare flower to bloom, which has the power to end the curse he has put upon her for killing his master. Will Zhuo Yihang be able to break the curse that has been placed upon Lian Nichang or will her lust for revenge be too powerful to overcome?

While The Bride with White Hair 2 uses the two main characters from its predecessor, Zhuo Yihang and Lian Nichang, their love affair is not the focal point. The bulk of The Bride with White Hair 2’s narrative revolves around Zhuo Yihang’s nephew and his bride. That said, where Zhuo Yihang is resigned to moments at the beginning and end, Lian Nichang is front and center as the leader of a clan of men hating women who she uses to exact her revenge.

When it comes to the performances, Zhuo Yihang and Leslie Cheung, who portrayed him, are greatly missed. His onscreen chemistry with Brigitte Lin is what made The Bride with White Hair work so well. That said, in Leslie Cheung’s absence, Brigitte Lin is given a considerable amount of screentime and she delivers a performance that perfectly captures her character's lust for revenge. Out of the new cast, the most surprising performance is Christy Chung’s (The Bodyguard from Beijing) portrayal of Ling Yue'er, a tomboy character who more than holds her own against any of her male counterparts.

Where love was central to The Bride with White Hair, revenge takes over for The Bride with White Hair 2. The opening setup does an excellent job laying the foundation and the narrative is very effective as it builds momentum. The narrative's only shortcoming is how much it favors action set pieces over exposition. Ultimately, The Bride with White Hair 2 is another sequel that does not live up to the high bar set by its predecessor. That said, the result is a film that is always engaging and never fails to entertain.

Plaion Pictures' The Bride with White Hair is hugely disappointing considering it bills itself as an ultimate edition.

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