Overview: He was the biggest movie star in the East for two decades, but Hong Kong action legend Jackie Chan had never successfully cracked the West ... until the 1990’s kicked off a six-film run of phenomenal smash hits that would finally make him an international household name, instantly synonymous with the most jaw-dropping and death-defying stunts ever put on screen!

1994’s Drunken Master II sees Jackie back as Wong Fei-hung, the role that first made his name, and teaming up with Shaw Brothers legends Lau Kar-leung and Ti Lung to deliver the ultimate, era-defining love letter to classic kung fu. The following year saw Jackie’s first number one box office success in America thanks to Rumble in the Bronx, in which he visits New York City and must defend his friends and family against vicious street gangs and ruthless smugglers, followed by Thunderbolt in which Jackie is forced to compete behind the wheel against a criminal street racer who has kidnapped his sister.

In the fourth entry of the much-beloved Police Story series (also known as First Strike), Jackie chases a stolen nuclear warhead on an explosive globe-trotting secret mission; Chan’s big brother Sammo Hung takes the director’s chair in Mr. Nice Guy as Jackie plays a TV chef in Australia forced to do bloody battle against the mob; and finally in Who Am I?, our hero is an ass-kicking amnesiac on the trail of a mysterious new power source as well as his own lost identity.

Finally, together and restored in 4K for the first time, this collection of unparalleled martial arts madness chronicles Jackie Chan’s crossover to worldwide superstardom (just before Rush Hour made him a bonafide Hollywood icon), in which no bone in his body is left unbroken in his quest to leave you entertained!

Blu-ray Verdict: First up is DRUNKEN MASTER II (1994) where a young martial artist is caught between respecting his pacifist father’s wishes or stopping a group of disrespectful foreigners from stealing precious artifacts. Jackie Chan shows off (and delivers) the goods in this film. While the action and comedy are top notch, there are also serious themes underlying the mayhem, and it’s all too easy to root for Wong and his compatriots. The dramatic moments are potent, as Wongs’ father (Lung Ti, only eight years older than Jackie in real life) forbids his son from indulging in this style of fighting known as drunken boxing, as he knows it can all too easily lead to full-blown alcoholism.

With a bunch of nefarious villains whom you just can’t wait to see punished, and a highly amusing, spirited performance by Anita Mui as Wongs’ supportive stepmother, this rates as solid entertainment for Jackie Chan fans. Co-director Chia-Liang Liu also appears on screen as the character Master Fu; he and Jackie have a great fight underneath the train.

Next we get RUMBLE IN THE BRONX (HONG KONG CUT) (1995) where a young man visiting and helping his uncle in New York City finds himself forced to fight a street gang and the mob with his martial art skills. While the action sequences were excellent, they were a bit sparse, and there was too much plot between them. Normally that wouldn’t be something to complain about too much, but in this case the plot was almost nonexistent. I’ve decided that the movie was basically an excuse for two big scenes: the kung-fu battle with the gang, and the hovercraft scene.

There were several scenes in the movie which had me laughing out loud - the kind of clever humor and subtlety that has become Jackie Chan’s trademark. But during a great portion of the movie, I was scratching my head wondering where that refreshing humor had gone. Some scenes were just too serious for a Jackie Chan movie.

Then comes THUNDERBOLT (1995) where in order to release his kidnapped sister, sports car mechanic Chan Foh To (Jackie Chan) has to beat a super criminal street racer. Writers Gordon Chan, Hing-Ka Chan, Paul B. Clay and Wai Chung Philip Kwok put together a good and enjoyable script and storyline. It’s a pretty straightforward storyline that has a good amount of action and fighting in it, just as you would expect from your typical Jackie Chan fronted movie.

Aside from Jackie Chan, the movie does have some familiar faces on the cast list, with the likes of Anita Yuen, Michael Wong, Wai-Kwong Lo, Corey Yuen, Collin Chou and Shing Fui-On. The acting performances in the movie were good, aside from the casted villain played by Thorsten Nickel, as he was stripped of acting talent entirely.

There is a lot of good stunts in the movie, but then again, that pretty much sums up all of Jackie Chan’s movies, now doesn’t it? Needless to say that the stunts and action sequences were nicely choreographed and executed.

Up next is POLICE STORY 4: FIRST STRIKE (HONG KONG CUT) (1996) where in this fourth installment of Jackie Chan’s Police Story film franchise, our hero is trying to locate a missing nuclear warhead. Possibly the craziest thing about this movie was seeing it listed as First Strike only to then realize after that it’s the fourth installment in a franchise. How can the fourth be the first? It wrinkles my brain!

Anyhow! It’s a Jackie Chan movie! So you know the action scenes are going to be awesome because nobody fights quite like he does. There was a lot or nostalgia in this for me, not for this movie in particular but for fun Jackie Chan movies in general.

Jackie Chan is a fun charming guy. All he has to do is show up with a silly baby seal hat and it’s a fun time for everyone. The plot is a mess. A few more rewrites and it could pass for a bad Bond movie. This would be a bad movie without Jackie. With him, this has a few good chuckles and some great stunts.

Along next is MR. NICE GUY (JAPANESE & HONG KONG CUTS) (1997) where a Chinese chef accidentally gets involved with a news reporter who filmed a drug bust that went awry and is now being chased by gangs who are trying to get the video tape. This film is a chain of highly dangerous action sequences, done excellently without wires, CGI, or stuntmen. The thing is there is nothing else!

The plot has been done for at least million times before; they watched the bad guy while doing bad thing, then Catch Them BADLY! which always and forever means a long chase of a movie, with all the hot action and the attempts to killing. There is no comedy, unless we’re talking about slight nanoseconds during the fights, mostly with Jackie’s reactions. There is no developing romance. There is no drama. And there is no good line time either. So it’s only Jackie Chan’s Circus Presents, a dry circus for that matter!

But most fans are going to watch this for the fight scenes and stunt work, and they aren’t going to be disappointed. It’s by far no way near the best work, whether acting or stunt work from Chan, not even reaching the heights of previously released Rumble In The Bronx, but there’s enough here to make it somewhat enjoyable.

Finally, we get WHO AM I? (HONG KONG CUT) (1998) where a Secret Agent loses his memory after falling from a crashing helicopter. He is then chased by several other agency operatives, but he has no idea why! This is a Jackie Chan action comedy. The African stereotyping could be worst. I’ve seen plenty worse in Hong Kong movies. The white villains are forgettable. Honestly, I couldn’t pick them out of a lineup. As always, Jackie does his own stunts. Of course, he is fighting plenty of bad guys. There are two big stunt setups. Jackie is driving a car with the two lady leads which reminds me of the recent Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning’s.

The other is the slide down a glass building. The high building work is scary although the slide is a little deceptive. It looks less scary than it should. I have to give Jackie full credit for always putting his neck on the line. I can recommend this movie to people who are into their action/adventure/comedy movies about a man who loses his memory and tries to piece his flashbacks together, whilst fighting against armed assassins and corrupt CIA agents.

LIMITED 10-DISC 4K UHD COLLECTION CONTENTS:
Brand new 4K restorations of each film from the original negatives by Arrow Films
Limited edition packaging featuring newly commissioned artwork by Sam Hadley
160-page perfect bound book featuring an archive interview with Jackie by Craig D. Reid plus new writing by Thorsten Boose, Peter S. Bruce, Matt McAllister, Elaine Chung and Jialu Zhu
Twenty-four lobby card reproductions
Reversible poster with vintage poster artwork

DISC 1 – DRUNKEN MASTER II:
4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentations in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) of three versions: the uncut 102-minute Hong Kong Cut, the 100-minute International Cut and the American Cut re-titled The Legend of Drunken Master (102 mins)
Original lossless Cantonese, Mandarin and English mono audio for the Hong Kong Cut
Original lossless English mono audio for the International Cut
Original English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio for The Legend of Drunken Master
Optional English subtitles and subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Brand new commentary by martial arts cinema experts Frank Djeng and F.J. DeSanto
Before the Breakout, a new featurette in which stuntman Wang Yao, academic Dr. Wayne Wong and critics David West and James Mudge look back at Jackie Chan’s earlier career
Breakout! Part 1, a new featurette in which Wong, West, Mudge and stuntman Mars look back at the film
Deadly When Drunken, a new interview with co-writer Yuen Kai-chi
Tipsy Tribulations, an expanded interview with stuntman Mars
Period Postures, a new interview with academic Dr. Lars Laamann on the historical context behind the film
Drunken Defiance, a new appreciation of the film by martial arts cinema expert Ricky Baker
Archive interview with Jackie Chan filmed for the American release in 2000
Alternate Mandarin drinking scene (contains standard-definition inserts)
Textless outtakes
Chinese New Year messages recorded by Jackie for the Taiwanese and Malaysian openings
Trailer gallery
Image gallery

DISC 2 – RUMBLE IN THE BRONX (HONG KONG CUT):
4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
Original lossless Cantonese/English (sync-sound) stereo audio and English (export dub) mono audio
Optional English subtitles and subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Brand new commentary by martial arts cinema experts Frank Djeng and F.J. DeSanto
Breakout! Part 2, a new featurette in which stuntman Mars, stuntwoman Kathy Hubble, martial arts cinema expert Ricky Baker and critics David West and James Mudge look back at the film
Rumble Recollections, an expanded interview with Hubble
Alternate footage
Textless outtakes
Image gallery

DISC 3 – RUMBLE IN THE BRONX (INTERNATIONAL CUT):
4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
Original English-dubbed lossless stereo audio and DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Electronic press kit interview with Jackie Chan
Two scenes added for the network TV version with dubbing unique to this version
US trailer and TV spots

DISC 4 – THUNDERBOLT:
4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) of the uncut 110-minute International Cut
Original lossless Cantonese/English (sync-sound) stereo audio, English (export dub) stereo audio and English (US dub) DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio
Optional English subtitles and subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing 97-minute Japanese Cut with lossless Cantonese/English sync-sound stereo audio (high-definition only)
Brand new commentary by martial arts cinema experts Frank Djeng and F.J. DeSanto
Breakout! Part 3, a new featurette in which stuntman Mars, critics David West and James Mudge, and dubbing supervisor Paul Clay look back at the film
A Thunderous Presence, an expanded interview with Clay on his collaborations with Jackie Chan
Alternate English export credits
Textless outtakes
International trailer
Japanese trailers
Image gallery

DISC 5 – POLICE STORY 4: FIRST STRIKE (HONG KONG CUT):
4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
Original lossless Cantonese/English (sync-sound) stereo and Mandarin (dubbed) stereo audio
Optional English subtitles and subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Brand new commentary by martial arts cinema experts Frank Djeng and F.J. DeSanto
Breakout! Part 4, a new featurette in which critics David West and James Mudge look back at the film
Textless outtakes
Image gallery

DISC 6 – POLICE STORY 4: FIRST STRIKE (INTERNATIONAL CUT):
4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
Original English-dubbed lossless stereo and DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Striking Back, a new interview with martial arts cinema expert Frank Djeng
Scenes added for the US network TV version with dubbing unique to this version
US trailer

DISC 7 – MR. NICE GUY (JAPANESE & HONG KONG CUTS):
4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
Original lossless English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround and lossless stereo audio for both cuts
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Brand new commentary by critic James Mudge
Breakout! Part 5, a new featurette in which stuntman Mars and critics David West and James Mudge look back at the film
Nice Thoughts, a new appreciation by martial arts cinema expert Frank Djeng
Alternate English credits
Textless outtakes
Original trailer
Image gallery

DISC 8 – MR. NICE GUY (INTERNATIONAL CUT): Original lossless English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround and lossless stereo audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
US trailer

DISC 9 – WHO AM I? (HONG KONG CUT):
4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
Original lossless English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround and lossless stereo audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Brand new commentary by critic James Mudge
Breakout! Part 6, a new featurette in which critic James Mudge, actor Glory Simon and second unit cinematographer Ray Wong look back at the film
From Drunk to Slam Dunk: Jackie Chan in the New Millennium, a new featurette in which Mudge, Simon, Wong, stuntwoman Kathy Hubble, stuntmen Wang Yao and Mars, critic David West and others look at Jackie’s career in the years since
The Making of Who Am I?, a three-part archive behind-the-scenes featurette
Alternate English credits
Textless outtakes
Original trailer
Image gallery

DISC 10 – WHO AM I? (INTERNATIONAL CUT):
4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
Original lossless English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround and lossless stereo audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Who, When & Where, an expanded interview with Wong
Jostling with Jackie, an expanded interview with Simon
US trailer

Official Purchase Link

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