I only saw Black Mask when Artisan released it in the U.S. in 1999. So the Eureka Blu-ray is the first time I’ve ever seen the Chinese language version.
It really took me back to see some good old visible wires like in the pre-CGI days. And I’m not talking about the SWAT guys’ repelling cables that are supposed to be there. The wires for Jet Li sometimes show up on camera, but we love it because it’s still impressive that he can do those moves on a wire.
All the dutch angles may not be as dynamic as director Daniel Lee thought they were, but he still keeps action in frame. The blue tint holds up well in HD.
The 5.1 sound works too. Chemicals splash in the rear, lasers zap around. Rain, thunder and explosions fill the room.
These Eureka editions of Hong Kong movie are also becoming a great archive for these artists before it’s too late. We probably can’t even get through them all right now, but we’ll be glad they’re here in the future when we want to look back.
On Black Mask, it’s a long interview with stuntman Mike Lambert. It’s great to see his action reel because that’s original material, and he even incorporates visual effects.
Andrew Heskins and Leon Hunt provide critical and career context. In the commentaries, Frank Djeng compares the film to the comic book in addition to his background on the actors and filmmakers, and how Black Mask relates to their future work too.
Mike Reeder and Arne Venema can speak to the period of Hollywood releasing dubbed versions of Hong Kong movies with hip hop soundtracks. Even they are surprised by the level of violence in Black Mask.