Member DiP Posted March 17, 2012 Member Share Posted March 17, 2012 US-based Shout Factory will release the film - directed by Soi Cheang, produced by Johnnie To, and starring Louis Koo; Stanley Fung; Richie Ren, Michelle Ye and Lam Suet - on bluray and dvd. Release date is set to June 12. http://www.schlockmania.com/sw-accident/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Sheng Posted March 17, 2012 Member Share Posted March 17, 2012 The pretty acceptable HK Blu Ray of ACCIDENT has been out for over two years, for chrissake! Sometimes I’m baffled by the release policy of US distributors (or European ones for that matter). I mean, the market for Asian cinema in general and HK cinema in particular has been shrinking rapidly, bigger distributors like DD were shut down, others struggle, lay off staff and trim their release schedules. To be competitive in this climate the least one can do is not to allow too much of a time lag between the Asian and the R 1 issue to make sure that the existing fan base will still be on board when the product drops. ACCIDENT is a cleverly constructed, suspenseful but rather low-key Milkyway release with a very perplexing and overtly contrived end. Its certainly not an easy sell, in other words, and an even harder one if the core market has already been saturated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DiP Posted March 17, 2012 Author Member Share Posted March 17, 2012 I'm sure you have a great point. However, the R A might be an improvement to the HK BD as the extras were left unsubbed. Plus, most HK films on BD/DVD released locally have lousy subs making it hard to understand the real meaning of dialogue scenes as its' lost in translation. Therefore, other releases in other countries might come in handy if you really want a better presentation of HK films you love. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Sheng Posted March 17, 2012 Member Share Posted March 17, 2012 Let’s be fair and not generalize here, DiP. I think the dark days of lousy subs and “lost in translation” head-scratching are definitely behind us. Matter of fact, I find a lot of BD releases of current HK fare very good by any standards (wish I could extend this compliment to catalogue titles though…). On recent films like THE LEGEND IS BORN – IP MAN, OVERHEARD 2, WU XIA to name but three there’s hardly a trace of Chinglish left, typos or spelling errors are pretty much non-existent and, as far as I can tell, the translations themselves are adequate and the subs are properly timed. Unfortunately the latter problem has still not been rooted out. Meaning there’s still way too many HK-made BD / DVD releases where subs, albeit grammatically correct, seem to be programmed by (and apparently for) people accustomed to (the much higher) Chinese reading speed. A pretty tragic recent example is the CN Entertainment BD issue of last year’s Chinese box office Godzilla, LET THE BULLETS FLY. What makes it so unbearable is that this is a film where the most incisive action is verbal … and you’re forced to sit there feverishly clutching your remote and freezing almost every second line because otherwise you don’t understand jackshit of what’s going on. Having done this recently I also felt that a lot of the dark humour, the allusions and references could at least occasionally been explained by way of brackets to get a better grasp of the verbal sparring that makes this Jiang Wen / Chow Yun Fat hook-up so great. And BTW… irrespective of personal genre preferences, this is a film that anyone with even the remotest interest in Chinese language cinema just need to see! So I really keep my fingers crossed that the announced April 24th R1 release of WellGo USA will rectify those problems and give us the reference quality BD that this film truly cries out for! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DiP Posted March 17, 2012 Author Member Share Posted March 17, 2012 Fair point. But if anything, some HK distributors still have to step it up because they don't even bother to take their time subbing a bit correctly as well as subbing stuff like making-ofs, bts footage, trailers etc. And like I said, the Mega Star BD of the film left the extras unsubbed which is a shame because I, for one, really love to see in-depth stuff how certain films are made through the perspectives of the people involved in productions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted June 20, 2014 Administrator Share Posted June 20, 2014 I just watched this last night for the first time. I went into it knowing nothing other than the director and star, no clue what the plot was, and I have to say- this is definitely the best way to go into it. It's a drama/thriller with a great amount of suspense, a fascinating premise, occasional, brutal violence, and terrific performances. ACCIDENT is a cleverly constructed, suspenseful but rather low-key Milkyway release with a very perplexing and overtly contrived end. I did think that the director tried to add a bit of an "epic" or "cosmic" statement to under-line the film's otherwise very earth-bound story. But it didn't spoil it or anything, at least not for me. Just seemed a bit far-reaching. A pretty tragic recent example is the CN Entertainment BD issue of last year’s Chinese box office Godzilla, LET THE BULLETS FLY. What makes it so unbearable is that this is a film where the most incisive action is verbal … and you’re forced to sit there feverishly clutching your remote and freezing almost every second line because otherwise you don’t understand jackshit of what’s going on. Having done this recently I also felt that a lot of the dark humour, the allusions and references could at least occasionally been explained by way of brackets to get a better grasp of the verbal sparring that makes this Jiang Wen / Chow Yun Fat hook-up so great. That shit (crazy-fast subtitles) really made this film a chore to watch. A shame, because it's a great film. And like I said, the Mega Star BD of the film left the extras unsubbed which is a shame because I, for one, really love to see in-depth stuff how certain films are made through the perspectives of the people involved in productions. Yes, that's a shame. I wanted to watch these features too, but my Chinese DVD doesn't have English subs. Has anyone picked up the R1 release of this? Does it include the special features on it? If so, I may check that out. Anyway, I recommend the film. I rate it an 8 out of 10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Superfly Posted June 20, 2014 Member Share Posted June 20, 2014 I just watched this last night for the first time. I went into it knowing nothing other than the director and star, no clue what the plot was, and I have to say- this is definitely the best way to go into it. It's a drama/thriller with a great amount of suspense, a fascinating premise, occasional, brutal violence, and terrific performances. I did think that the director tried to add a bit of an "epic" or "cosmic" statement to under-line the film's otherwise very earth-bound story. But it didn't spoil it or anything, at least not for me. Just seemed a bit far-reaching. That shit (crazy-fast subtitles) really made this film a chore to watch. A shame, because it's a great film. Yes, that's a shame. I wanted to watch these features too, but my Chinese DVD doesn't have English subs. Has anyone picked up the R1 release of this? Does it include the special features on it? If so, I may check that out. Anyway, I recommend the film. I rate it an 8 out of 10. I have the Blu-Ray of this in my "to see" pile. I think I will move it near the top now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted June 20, 2014 Administrator Share Posted June 20, 2014 Enjoy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator One Armed Boxer Posted June 21, 2014 Moderator Share Posted June 21, 2014 I did think that the director tried to add a bit of an "epic" or "cosmic" statement to under-line the film's otherwise very earth-bound story. But it didn't spoil it or anything, at least not for me. Just seemed a bit far-reaching. This pretty much summarizes my own feelings on the movie. Great all the way through and fantastic buildup of suspense, slightly let down by an ending that seems intent on going for an epic conclusion which doesn't quite fit in with all that's come before. For me director Soi Cheang also did the same thing with his 2006 movie 'Dog Bite Dog', fantastic all the way with a left of field ending. This is the guy who's bringing us 'SPL 2', so let's hope that one delivers on the promise he shows as a director. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted June 21, 2014 Administrator Share Posted June 21, 2014 This pretty much summarizes my own feelings on the movie. Great all the way through and fantastic buildup of suspense, slightly let down by an ending that seems intent on going for an epic conclusion which doesn't quite fit in with all that's come before. For me director Soi Cheang also did the same thing with his 2006 movie 'Dog Bite Dog', fantastic all the way with a left of field ending. This is the guy who's bringing us 'SPL 2', so let's hope that one delivers on the promise he shows as a director. Right on the money in regards to the ending thing OAB. Throughout DOG BITE DOG I was totally on board, then the end had sort of a "say what?" moment that threw me. But that ending does work in that film too, and IMO it gets better with each viewing. I like that ACCIDENT kept me guessing the whole time. Are things happening the way the lead character thinks they're happening, is it all paranoia, are one or more people not who they say they are? I had a theory for most of the second half that I was sure would be right, but it wasn't. I enjoyed being kept in suspense like that. It's refreshing after seeing so many cookie-cutter plots driving films these days. I'm excited about what Director Cheang will bring to SPL 2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DiP Posted June 21, 2014 Author Member Share Posted June 21, 2014 Cheang outdid himself with Motorway imo. A fine throwback to classic late 1990s/early 2000s HK film-making with intensity and suspense in acting and action scenes through the minimal scope within the narrative while employing economical character development only when it's necessary. Some people complain about the film being underdeveloped but for me, the only characters that deserved all the attention due to their memorability were Anthony Wong and Guo Xiao-Dong's. The other roles were standard fill-ins just to bring "more" life in the story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted June 21, 2014 Administrator Share Posted June 21, 2014 Cheang outdid himself with Motorway imo. A fine throwback to classic late 1990s/early 2000s HK film-making with intensity and suspense in acting and action scenes through the minimal scope within the narrative while employing economical character development only when it's necessary. Some people complain about the film being underdeveloped but for me, the only characters that deserved all the attention due to their memorability were Anthony Wong and Guo Xiao-Dong's. The other roles were standard fill-ins just to bring "more" life in the story. Both ACCIDENT and MOTORWAY were recently brought to my attention here on the forum and I sought out copies based on what I read. I'll likely be watching MOTORWAY soon. Your comments above have definitely kept my interest peaked about this film DiP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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