Young and beautiful Bu (Shu Qi, The Transporter) finds a romantic message in a bottle near her family restaurant in Taiwan. On a whim, she flies to Hong Kong to meet her potential soul mate, who turns out to be Albert (Tony Leung, Infernal Affairs), a gay beautician pining for his ex. Taking pity on the girl, he brings her to his workplace, where she falls for the wealthy and lonely C.N. Chan (Jackie Chan, Rush Hour, Supercop). But when Chan’s lifelong enemy, Lo, discovers Chan has a new love, he decides to ruin their happiness.

For thoughts on Gorgeous, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/tm8jJkHA-k0?t=381]

Video Quality

Gorgeous comes to Blu-Ray via 88 Films with a new 1080p master in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio derived from a 2K transfer of the original film elements. This new release offers a striking and consistent presentation that brings out the best of the material. The transfer harnesses the sumptuous color palette on display and presents it with deep saturation and vibrant hues that radiate off the screen. The bright locations are filled with distinct bits of production design and costumes that make for a visual feast. Fine detail is sure to impress as you notice intricate facets that could not be distinguished on previous home entertainment releases.

You will not find much in the way of filtering or DNR which serves up a pleasantly organic appearance. The natural film grain resolves quite well for the most part, but there are fleeting moments when the grain field spikes and the image quality dips for a few seconds. This transfer showcases virtually nothing in the way of wear and tear, and the picture does not exhibit any notable instances of compression artifacts. There are a handful of shots that present as a bit soft which likely links back to the quality of the source elements. 88 Films has provided this film with a solid presentation.

Audio Quality

This Blu-Ray presents the film with a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track in the original Cantonese for the Hong Kong version along with a Cantonese track and an English dub for the shorter International version. For artistic purity, we recommend sticking with the original language track. Dialogue is clear and not overwhelmed by any competing elements during the film. The story packs a punch during the handful of action sequences, but this is not the main focus of the narrative. Even when things are not as hard-hitting, there are environmental sounds such as ocean waves or urban ambiance which makes this one feel alive. The bright and lovely score maintains a stable fidelity with no real instances of age related wear and tear. This release does have optional English subtitles provided. 88 Films has delivered a great audio presentation.

Special Features

The first-pressing of the 88 Films Blu-Ray of Gorgeous includes a booklet featuring the essay “The Accidental Spy: Istanbul Set Visit” by author Matthew Edwards. This provides a great context to the production of the film, its history and more. The package also contains a double-sided folded poster. The on-disc special features are as follows:

Hong Kong Cut (1:59:40)

- Audio Commentary #1: Asian Film Experts Frank Djeng and FJ DeSanto provide a commentary track for the Hong Kong cut in which they discuss various aspects of the history and production including the diversification of the ensemble, the different version of the film, how this fits into the career of Jackie Chan, the backgrounds of the performers and how it impacted their careers, how it was marketed to a family audience, the legacy of this film and more that is well worth a listen.

- Audio Commentary #2: Asian Film Experts Mike Leeder and Arne Venema provide a very lively commentary track for the Hong Kong cut of the film which is super informative including information about the ensemble of this time, where Jackie Chan was at this point in his career, the tone of the film, personal connections to certain talent and more. There is some overlap with the previous commentary track, but there are plenty of unique insights provided.

International/English Cut (1:39:20)

- Audio Commentary: Jackie Chan provides an archival commentary track in which he discusses his reasons for making this film after success with English-language films, his collaborations with the creative team, how his involvement made the story involve, memories from the production and more. There is not the same volume of information as the other tracks, but the personal nature makes up for this.

Shy Guy – Andy Cheng On Brad Allan: A new 17-minute interview with Cheng in which he discusses how Brad Allen got involved with Jackie Chan’s stunt team, his expanded role in Gorgeous, their work on Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, additional collaborations and more.

Boxing Day – Vincent Kok Tak Chiu on Gorgeous: A 24-minute interview with the director in which he discusses how he got involved with the Hong Kong movie industry, his writing style, collaborating with various artists, how he got involved with Gorgeous, the different feelings about the tone of the film, working with Jackie Chan and more.

The Making Of Gorgeous: A 30-minute archival featurette which gives a very glossy overview of the production of this film including the basic narrative, the characters, the music and more.

Music Videos: There is a Music Video (4:07) and Music Video 2 (4:07) provided.

Trailers: This disc provides the Hong Kong Trailer (2:04) and the English Trailer (1:32).

Final Thoughts

Gorgeous is a bit of a rocky effort from the great Jackie Chan. It is commendable how the superstar is able to weave in and out of different genres, but the narrative of this particular one leaves a bit to be desired. The lead female character is written to be very naive and poorly developed, and the romance that is forced between her and Chan is not believable in the slightest, not only due to the rather large age difference. The humor often misses the mark or is even problematic in some respects, especially with the character portrayed by Tony Leung. While there are certain moments that work better, this does not really work as either a romantic comedy or an action film. 88 Films has released a Blu-Ray featuring a great A/V presentation and some worthy special features. If you are a Jackie Chan fan, this is a good release for the film.

Gorgeous is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: 88 Films has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.