Lets reflect on SPL (2005)

[TibetanWhiteCrane]

1 hour ago, One Armed Boxer said:

If I recall correctly the first pressing of the Mainland DVD contained the cut Mainland version, which removed some of the bloodier scenes, and most significantly

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completely cuts the scene were Sammo smashes Yen out of the window, killing him as well as his own wife and child. This was done due to China's censorship guidelines requiring the good guy to walk away victorious, so instead the scene in the Mainland version cuts once Yen pours himself a drink at the bar after flooring Sammo, and it goes straight to the final beach scene with Simon Yam.

 

But why would anyone buy a mainland DVD of.... well, anything?

[DiP]

The version that was uploaded on the net was the cut China version, which was released on DVD a few weeks after its' initial HK release on November back in the day. The uncut HK version was released 2-3 month after, if my memory serves right.

[legendarycurry]

12 hours ago, TibetanWhiteCrane said:

But why would anyone buy a mainland DVD of.... well, anything?

To be fair it was purchased and viewed in southern China, bought at a DVD and VCD market, otherwise I would not willingly buy censored Mainland Chinese cuts of Hong Kong films :D.

Basically I first saw it online (cut version) and  then when I was in China between late 2005-early 2006. it aired on a TV channel that shows movies that viewers can request (This was in a somewhat rural part of Guangdong so no access to cinemas, which is why films could be requested to be shown on this particular channel despite still being in cinemas and/or only recently released on home media) This version that someone pay-per-viewed was also the cut version ( it was still in Cantonese like all the other versions I have seen, but it also had the altered ending)

Then my friend bought a DVD copy and it again was the cut version lol. So it wasn't until a couple years later I think that I (and my friend whose family I went to China with back in late 2005) saw the original ending while watching the finale on youtube

SPL was a pretty big deal back in 2005-2006, we even had plans to see it in cinemas during a brief stay in HK. But we instead prioritized going to the HK Avenue Of Stars. Also I scored some pretty sweet VCD's and DVD's during my stay in China all those years ago, so I wouldn't be too harsh on shopping for stuff in the Mainland .

[NoKUNGFUforYU]

The PRC censors everything. The cops were a little dirty so they were all punished in one way or another. See the article why isn't China cool I  posted.

[DiP]

27 minutes ago, NoKUNGFUforYU said:

The PRC censors everything. The cops were a little dirty so they were all punished in one way or another.

That's the intention, the story is tragic and depressing. Everyone gets punished dead or alive. It has nothing to do with PRC's influence back then.

[NoKUNGFUforYU]

On 3/21/2022 at 8:47 PM, DiP said:

That's the intention, the story is tragic and depressing. Everyone gets punished dead or alive. It has nothing to do with PRC's influence back then.

Maybe, but my brother in law from HK and others have said that films were strict. No grey areas. And the PRC had huge influence.

[DiP]

SPL was released in 2005, a time when the Hong Kong industry hadn't catered to the Mainland market yet -- that didn't happen until a few years later. So all HK films were still being made for its' own local market. The movie never got a theatrical release in the Mainland but got released censored on DVD immediately instead, which was the norm. One movie, two different cuts; the usual two-way approach that had been in effect for many years. Then when Hong Kong eventually did cater to the Mainland market, things changed and the norm was no more. That meant that films had to be released in both regions with one and the same cut. That's how it has been ever since.

Edited March 28, 2022 by DiP