The Prodigal Son (1981) coming from Arrow

[Akijama]

In 1978, actor/director Sammo Hung gave Hong Kong audiences the Wing Chun crash course of Warriors Two, while his next directorial effort, 1979’s Knockabout, gave Yuen Biao the chance to shine as its lead star. But it would be in 1981 that he would combine Biao’s newfound screen presence and the legacy of Warriors Two’s Leung Tsan into what is still considered one of his best directorial efforts: The Prodigal Son.

Leung Tsan (Biao) is a wealthy young man living the dream, thinking he’s the "Kung Fu King" of the town of Foshan. However, his dream is about to become a nightmare when he is easily beaten in a fight by the star of a traveling opera troupe, Leung Yee-Tai (Lam Ching-Ying). It is at this low point that the truth is revealed to Tsan - all of his “victories” have been nothing but paid-for set-ups by his family out of a misguided act of protection. With this revelation, Tsan pleads with Yee-Tai to train him in the form of combat that led to his defeat: Wing Chun. Yee-Tai, with the help of fellow Wing Chun master Wong Wah-Bo (Hung), will train Tsan to not only be as skilled as he once thought he was, but even better. Though a mysterious challenger (Frankie Chan) and his ruthless Manchu bodyguards may end the journey before it can even begin…

Winning the award for Best Action Choreography at the inaugural Hong Kong Film Awards in 1982, The Prodigal Son is considered by many to be not only one of the best films to showcase the style of Wing Chun, but also one of the best martial arts films of all time, with some of the most tightly choreographed and fast paced fight scenes that remain just as jaw-dropping over four decades later!

LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS

● 2K restorations from the original elements by Fortune Star of both the original HK “Theatrical Release Presentation” and the “Home Release Presentation”
● High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation
● Original lossless Cantonese, Mandarin, and English mono options
● Optional English subtitles
● Commentary by martial arts cinema expert Frank Djeng & actor Bobby Samuels
● Commentary by action cinema experts Mike Leeder & Arne Venema
● Wing Chun 101, an interview with Wing Chun sifu Alex Richter
● Life Imitating Art, archival featurette featuring interviews with Wing Chun instructor and producer Guy Lai talking about the art, illustrated via demonstrations by Sifu Austin Goh and Jude Poyer
● The Heroic Trio, archival featurette featuring interviews with director Sammo Hung and stars Yuen Biao and Frankie Chan looking back on the making of the film
● Original theatrical trailers
● Double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Joe Kim
● Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Joe Kim
● Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Peter Glagowski

[darkness2918]

Nice, I’ll be picking this one up.

[FoulMouff]

Cover isn't as bad as Warriors Two artwork was. I respect tge effort, but Joe Kim artwork just doesn't draw me in. I'll still pick this up though.

[Markgway]

Is that supposed to be Yuen Biao on the front?

[Brown Jenkin]

Love this film. Haven't watched since my last VHS player went kaput and I didn't bother to repair with the advent of DVD. Lam Ching-Ying has some spectacular scenes.

[russweiss1]

Originally Posted by FoulMouff

Cover isn't as bad as Warriors Two artwork was. I respect tge effort, but Joe Kim artwork just doesn't draw me in. I'll still pick this up though.

Originally Posted by Markgway

Is that supposed to be Yuen Biao on the front?

To be fair, the original HK poster doesn't have realistic artwork and it appears they were trying to duplicate the style.

Prodigal Son Chinese.JPG

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by russweiss1

To be fair, the original HK poster doesn't have realistic artwork and it appears they were trying to duplicate the style.

Attachment 291714

This will be the reverse art for the set. There will probably be an Arrow store exclusive as well.

[DaveyJoe]

Originally Posted by russweiss1

To be fair, the original HK poster doesn't have realistic artwork and it appears they were trying to duplicate the style.

I'd rather they didn't.

[DukeTogo84]

Just pre-ordered this. I've been eating up these HK films and this is another one to check off. Sammo Hung has been a real treat to watch.

[fred25_Ca]

It's funny because most of these releases from Arrow have had wonderful new artwork but both this and Warriors two are terrible. Not sure why they went for these, even the layouts and the color choices are bad.
Not that it matters, this will definitely be mine, such a great movie and my favorite Biao movie!

[DooK]

Greatly anticipating this! Eureka's release was great overall but I found the subtitles annoying.

[Markgway]

Originally Posted by DooK

Greatly anticipating this! Eureka's release was great overall but I found the subtitles annoying.

[trentdiesel]

Great film, this and Knockabout were two of my most wanted, very happy and excited for it.

[Danespina]

Another incredible HK Martial Arts release. What a dream this has been.

Not crazy about the cover art however.

[MifuneFan]

Reverse cover art

[DaveyJoe]

Can't win 'em all.

[Cosmic Comet]

The English dub for this is hysterical: Sammo's voice lurches between Northern and Cockney, with a dash of Ringo Starr. Meanwhile the dubbers don't realise that Lam Ching-ying is meant to sound like a sensual woman when in Peking Opera drag, so the resultant squwaking sounds more like Margaret Dumont with a testosterone injection.

[DukeTogo84]

Watched this last night and thought it was pretty good. There is a lot of humor which would become pretty atypical of Sammo Hung films, but still has strong serious emotional beats. It's a solid film. Sammo also kinda guest stars in the film, but is pretty memorable as the martial artists farmer? He was really funny in this.

I'm very happy that Arrow released so many of his films, and hopefully their HK film releases continue.

[gnik_drazil]

Really fun kung fu flick. I wish the bribery plot went on longer. Didn't realize Lam Ching-ying was the main dude from Magic Cop with completely opposite ends of eyebrows. The movie got more serious at the half way point but goes back to a comedy. Can't wait for more Sammo Hung films.

[Shopping Zombie]

Does anyone know the difference between the original HK “Theatrical Release Presentation” and the “Home Release Presentation”?