Mad Detective (UK)

[pro-bassoonist]

Courtesy of The Times:

Eureka Entertainment have announced the UK Blu-ray Disc release of Johnnie To & Wai Ka Fai’s Mad Detective as part of their Masters of Cinema Series on 20th October 2008 priced at £19.99. Last year’s largest grossing film at the Hong Kong box office turns the traditional Hong Kong police film on its head: the twist being our hero – Detective Bun (Lau Ching Wan) – has the ability to ‘see’ people’s inner personalities or “hidden ghosts”.

Detective Bun (Lau Ching Wan) was recognised as a talented criminal profiler until he sliced off his right ear to offer as a gift at his chief’s farewell party. Branded as ‘mad’ and discharged from the force, he has lived in seclusion with his beloved wife May (Kelly Lin) ever sine. Strangely, Bun has the ability to ‘see’ a person’s inner personality, their subconscious desires, emotions, and mental state. When a missing police gun is linked to several heists and murders, hotshot Inspector Ho (Andy On) calls on the valuable skills of his former mentor Bun to help unlock the killer’s identity. However, Bun’s unorthodox methods point to a fellow detective and take a schizophrenic turn for the worse…

Arriving day-and-date, the first Masters of Cinema Series Blu-ray Disc release boasts NTSC extras that are playable on all machines, and though region coding is TBC, a claim like this on the press release would suggest an all-region disc. Here are the specs:

* 1080P 2.35:1 Widescreen (AVC)
* DD2.0, DD5.1, DTS-HD Master Audio and Dolby TrueHD soundtracks
* Carefully created new English subtitles
* Q&A with Johnnie To at the Cinémathèque Française Johnnie To retrospective (Paris, France, March 2008) – 35 minutes
* Exclusive cast interviews shot during the Far East Film Festival featuring Lau Ching Wan and Lam Suet (Udine, Italy, April 2008) – 14 minutes
* Interview with Johnnie To for the French theatrical release of Mad Detective (France, 4th March 2008) – 21 minutes
* Original UK Theatrical Trailer
* 16-page booklet containing specially commissioned essay by David Bordwell (Jacques Ledoux Professor of Film Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison)


The following materials will be released for viewing at www.maddetective.com on the day of the Blu-ray’s release:

* Panel discussion at the Far East Film Festival during the “Milkyway Image, Beyond Imagination” seminar with Johnnie To, Wai Ka Fai, Lam Suet, Kelly Lin and Lau Ching Wan (Udine, Italy, April 2008) – 13 minutes
* Following the cast and crew on their tour of the Far East Film Festival (Udine, Italy, April 2008) – 14 minutes
* Footage from the Mad Detective French premiere and Johnnie To Retrospective presentation at the Cinémathèque Française (Paris, France, March 2008) – 6 minutes

Pro-B