Police Story 3: Supercop 4k (88 Films)

The last couple of reviews I did strict summaries and commentaries. Even though I was viewing the Criterion Collection when it came to these Police Story films, I knew it wasn’t the definitive edition (Eureka 4k Trilogy) so there was literally nothing to be gained by “Disc Reviewing” those versions. Also, almost everyone who has an interest in the Police Story films has at least seen the first couple of films. Police Story III: Supercop is a different bird though. For one, I had the 88 Films 4k copy which came out this year and two, despite it’s popularity, this film is still not known by many people. Unlike the first two, I remember parts and pieces of the film. Furthermore, I’m about 95% certain, I watched only the US version and not the original Hong Kong version. So much like the reading audience, this is probably an almost brand new experience. Let’s dive in and give this one a whirl.

For viewing purposes, this review is primarily based off of the Hong Kong Version which runs about 96 minutes long. There will be comments regarding the US Supercop version (90 minutes) which is also included on the 4k disc but it will not be the focus.

To start us off, we get a very vivid description of how drug smugglers hide their drugs. Or where exactly they hide their drugs. You might never look the same at a prophylactic ever again. This leads to a discussion that they need to capture the number one drug lord in China. His name is Chaibat, and if the police want to bring him down, it will require a cop that will have to be better than all of the rest. He needs to be a Super Cop! Who should we call? Let’s call Ka-Kui (played by Jackie Chan)!

In the next scene, we see Ka-Kui walking in like he’s Rambo on his day off to the police station. He sits down and is able to overhear Bill Wong (played by Bill Tang) and Superintendent Chan (played by Phillip Chan) talk about his assignment. Superintendent Chan is all for it and “Uncle” Bill doesn’t really want Ka-Kui to get in over his head. After the conversation and the head Superintendent departs, Ka-Kui has a word with both him and Bill. He is able to successfully convince both of them that he is the right man for the job. Bill eventually relents but wants him to be careful.

Ka-Kui talks to his long time girlfriend May (played by Maggie Cheung) (aren’t they married yet?). As expected, she doesn’t want him to do anything risky. Ka-Kui gives May the keys to the safe deposit boxes as a goodwill measure in case something were to happen. They kiss passionately. It’s really heartwarming to see these two kids together especially after what they went through in the first two films, I sure don’t want to see anything happen to May again. I feel I might be eating my words.

Next up is a meeting with the Chinese Public Security. Then Ka-Kui is transported to the Southern China Military Police Headquarters. The police there have arranged for some lessons with Section Chief Yang (played by Michelle Yeoh) who Ka-Kui is surprised that she is a woman. He will need to assume a new identity and be transported to the New Life Labor Camp. There he will need to gain the confidence of Panther (or as the Hong Kong version calls him, Pau) (played by Yuen Wah) who is the brother of drug lord, Chaibat. He has been imprisoned at the labor camp and it will be up to Ka-Kui in his new identity to break him out.

The true meat and potatoes of the film is when Ka-Kui (now known as his new identity – Lam Fuk Sang) finds his way to his “home” village of Fat San and enlists the help of his “sister” which is Michelle Yeoh also taking on a new identity. It’s where the movie really starts to gel and become the action powerhouse movie that we were all hoping for. It flat out delivers. This is on the level of Rambo, Bad Boys, and those other classic action franchise type movies. Want explosions? Check. Want lots of kung fu? Check. Want May in trouble? Checkity check. By the way, can we possibly get an update on May? Holy unresolved plot lines Batman. In fact, this character was never resurrected past this film. Ouch.

That brutal point aside, Michelle Yeoh is a wonderful insertion into this movie. She has some good lines, she really holds her own with Jackie Chan and her performance was so good that it actually got a spinoff called SuperCop 2. Good luck finding a copy of that movie though. I think the rights are stuck with Warner Bros though, so maybe a Warner Archive release? Anyway, wishful thinking aside, this film is really a lot of fun. It moves well and the ninety six minutes runtime goes by in a fast with very little slowdown except to set up the next major action point.

US Supercop notes: Dubbing and music aside, the differences are pretty striking if you watch them within a week of each other. I mean it is the same movie more or less, but there is so much subtlety throughout the film, especially if you pay attention to the subtitles (which I do because I always leave them on). Jokes are altered and omitted on a regular. Two come to mind very easily, and that is the removal of the Cantonese joke by Yeoh which makes sense since the film is being English Dubbed and then what I like to call the “Fat” joke when Jackie sees Michelle as his “sister” for the first time. In the Supercop version, it’s all very complementary. In the Hong Kong version, it feels more akin to sibling banter.

Other items of notice, the intro about how smugglers hide drugs, completely gone from Supercop (as is anything about smuggling and abuse). Also, the treatment of Panther (any mention of Brother Pau is gone) is much more stereotypical villain here. I felt in the Hong Kong version, there was a period of time where you might feel some sympathy towards him (even though it’s quickly gone by the final fight scene) and that has been removed here. Also, Michelle’s character falls into the typical female 80’s/90’s role here by the altering of various conversations. She doesn’t seem as skeptical of Jackie and is less “tough” at the beginning. It’s funny how simple words can change a character from one film version to the next. Certainly prefer the Hong Kong version, but in a pinch I don’t mind watching the US version.

A full list of changes can be found at https://www.movie-censorship.com/report.php?ID=1464936

Video

The video is in 2.39:1 widescreen in HEVC / H.265 and native 4k presentation. It arrives on a BD-100 Disc. The mbps for this film runs in the 80’s which is quite excellent. It has peaks in the 90’s and valleys in the 60’s but most of the time it’s right at the low 80’s mark. It’s an excellent presentation and doesn’t suffer from location to location nor from inside to outside spots. It’s very crisp and the detail on various items even when blown up is exactly what we have been hoping we would get with this disc. The Dolby Vision considerably helps the outdoor scenes and gives it more of that “pop”.

Unfortunately, I can’t really compare this to the Eureka 4k disc, but the palette is very vibrant here and all of the colors seem to be in the right place. There is no difference when switching from the Hong Kong to the US version which I was kinda concerned that one version would be graphically superior to the other. (Which is usually pretty common in multi-version packages). Resolution is on spot and while grain can be thick at times, I don’t think anyone can really strike down against the video presentation here.

Audio

Lots of audio options for this one. We get the Cantonese Dolby Atmos 7.1, 1.0 original track, 2.0 original home video track and even the English 1.0 dub on the Hong Kong version. Meanwhile, for the US Cut, we get DTS-HD 5.1 in English and a 2.0 Cantonese DTS-HD mix. Subtitles are provided in English and English SDH. Let’s start with the good, the Dolby Atmos track for the Hong Kong version is absolutely fantastic. There is lots of life in this one and this will stand up with just about any action movie from this era. Surrounds are greatly used and really immerse the viewer with consider volume in the sub. The other tracks with the Hong Kong version are also adequate for the music, dialogue, etc.

However, for the DTS-HD 5.1 track in the US Cut, it’s okay. I mean, there is still plenty of volume but it’s not as rich as the HK. The dubbing is always particularly jarring and maybe that’s adding to my lack of interest in this track. I might actually prefer the 2.0 Track on the US Cut as it at least feels more natural even when it comes to effects.

Special Features

4K/Blu-Ray Disc

Audio Commentary by Hong Kong Cinema Expert Frank Djeng: A pretty in-depth talk from Frank here as he goes over all things Jackie Chan and Police Story. It’s very informative and should give the average listener a few more tidbits to add to their useless trivia collection. I jest but there is plenty here to digest. Great commentary overall.
Hong Kong Trailer 4:05: Straight trailer, nothing special. It’s amazing how much time is taken to do all of the this company, and that company jazz. The trailer is only a couple of minutes long.
English Trailer 2:10: Standard trailer, just this time with poor dubbing. Of note, Michelle Khan is used rather than Michelle Yeoh which was her name for many of her earlier films.
US Theatrical Teaser 1:39: The way they market this movie here is always a tad bit comical.
US Theatrical Trailer 1:38: Oddly the trailer is a second less than the teaser. In reality, these two are particularly identical which makes this a little more puzzling.
US TV Spots (7) 2:49: Want seven spots with Jackie Chan clicking his tongue? I know you do. Interesting fact about these seven, only one really mentions Michelle Yeoh by name. But after watching the Hong Kong version followed by the Supercop US version, the subtlety comes through.
US Video Screen Promo 1:37: This is from 1997 so it’s a little weird to see this film being compared to Rumble in the Bronx (which didn’t hit the US until 1996) and Crow: City of Angels among others. However, US promotional reels rarely make sense in the long run.
Japanese Teaser 0:41: A more traditional teaser complete with Jackie’s Rambo-esque pull up to the police station.
Guy Laroche 1984 Commercial with Jackie Chan & Michelle Yeoh 0:33: Finally, we get a French luxury watch commercial with Jackie, Michelle & horses. Everyone, SMILEEEEE.

Blu-Ray Disc Only

Flying High: Interview with Jackie Chan 19:21: In English w/no subs. Jackie explains his movie making process and how he interacted with the director Stanley Tong. He mentions that he likes to use different directors because he wants to learn something unique from each of them. An interesting point he does make in regards to Crime Story, another film that he wants things to make sense (and apparently making love in an elevator doesn’t do that). Anyway, Jackie certainly takes ownership of the movie and it reflects in his work.
Dancing with Death: Interview with Michelle Yeoh 23:12: In English w/no subs. Before I say anything else, Michelle is so darn eloquent, this is probably the best extra in this set next to the commentary. Anyway, she talks about how she’s really been thrown into the deep end when it comes to martial arts. She has had to learn all of these moves on the fly. She also talks about her time in England and Malaysia. Much like Jackie, she does her own stunts which has certainly been helped by her time as a ballerina and being nimble on her feet.
The Stuntmaster General: Interview with Stanley Tong 19:33: In English w/no subs. Stanley describes the working relationship with Jackie Chan and his movie making process. The directors mentions some arguments in passing, but is very complimentary of his number one star. He also talks here about Rumble in the Bronx, a movie that really needs a restoration. Hopefully I see one in the next 5 to 10 years.
The Fall Guy: Interview with Ken Lo 21:45: In Cantonese w/English subs. Ken is the one-time bodyguard that has worked with Jackie for over twenty years. Ken talks to us about how he got affiliated with Jackie and in the process has done everything from stunt double to action choreography. They show clips from Crime Story again (which I really need to see this movie) but he’s actually talking about New Police Story (or as he refers to it, Police Story V). I’m guessing this one along with the other interviews to this point are from about 2004.
Stanley Tong Interview 17:16: In Cantonese w/English Subs. Looks to be a much older interview, and this one is different from his earlier interview in that he goes into much more detail about the actual scenes and filming of the movie.
Outtakes and Behind the Scenes 51:33: No words or noise, just music in the background. Plenty of scenes here but the music rather than actual sounds really hurt this as an interesting feature. One of the favorites is Michelle Yeoh and her motorcycle jump which really is a bunch of wire action. But it’s very funny to see her floating in air almost as they try to get the right shot. Stunting ain’t easy folks.

Notes About the Packaging

This gets a nice slipcase with new artwork to begin. From there we get a eighty page book with an interview, essay, and bunches of material on the movie. There is also a double sided poster (if I didn’t have all sorts of other things I need to frame, this one might be framed as well). Finally in the keepcase, we get six lobby cards with the blu-ray and 4k disc. It’s a gorgeous package at a reasonable price. If Warner didn’t own the rights to First Strike and Rumble in the Bronx, I would write 88 films immediately about doing those two in the same exact manner as they have here. Maybe the WB will do the right thing and let someone else have the rights for proper blu-ray or 4k distribution. (The little Warner discs don’t cut it)

Final Thoughts

Police Story 3: Supercop was the film greenlighted to the US after the success of Rumble in the Bronx. It did quite well over here in its limited theatrical run and home video distribution. Heck, most people at that time in the US weren’t even familiar with the first two Police Story movies. Jackie Chan really found his matching partner when it came to action movies in Michelle Yeoh. Unfortunately, there was not a true follow up to this except for the Supercop spinoff which had Michelle Yeoh in the lead role with Jackie doing a glorified cameo.

Anyhow, this 4k package from 88 films is fantastic. The audio and video are top notch and there are plenty of extras to work through even if some of them are kinda hit and miss. If you haven’t seen the Hong Kong version of Police Story 3, you are really in for a treat as I think it exceeds the US version that many of us went to go see in the 90’s (yes, I’m showing my age). Greatly recommended, and a complete relevation to watch in this resolution. Enjoy.