Righting Wrongs (1986)
Director - Corey Yuen
DVD Released by : Universe
Player reviewed with : Malata DVD-N996
Receiver reviewed with : Sony 925
 
Features:
Chinese and Mandarin Soundtracks
English, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Korean, Vietnamese, and Bahasa Subtitles
Not enhanced for 16 x 9 TVs
Trailer
Trailers for HEROIC TRIO, THE EXECUTIONERS, and YOUNG MASTER
Running Time : 94 mins. Cantonese

Running Time : 96 mins. Mandarin
RIGHTING WRONGS (AKA ABOVE THE LAW) starts off with a bang as Yuen Baio chases and kills those responsible for an assassination he tries unsuccessfully to stop. Baio is a prosecutor who will do whatever it takes to enforce the law. When two criminals get off because they have the witness and his family of eight killed, Baio has had enough. Biao brings his own brand of justice to one of the criminals and thwarts an attempt at his own life. Since the police frown on vigilante justice, Cynthia Rothrock is enlisted to find out who is killing the bad guys. Biao is tracked down through a parking ticket but there is not enough at the time he is confronted by Rothrock. Baio attempts to kill the remaining criminal but finds that somebody has beat him to it. Unfortunately for Baio, Rothrock finds him at the scene. The two duke it out resulting in Baio escaping and finding out who the killer really is. Rothrock also finds out who and confronts the killer only to be defeated. It's up to Baio to bring the killer to justice.

If you like movies in the vein of POLICE STORY and IN THE LINE OF DUTY, then you will love this move. RIGHTING WRONGS is similar to many of the 80's style movies but takes itself a little more seriously. This is a must see for fans of Yuen Baio. The stunt work is fantastic. The finale finds Baio chasing down a plane that is taking off, ON FOOT! This is also one of Cynthia Rothrock's best performances. During some of Cynthia's fights it looks like Baio may have done some doubling for her. You will notice her hair turns black for a few seconds here and there. The funny thing is that the editing is great during these scenes and other than the hair changing colors, it's seamless.

This DVD contains a Cantonese version and Mandarin version of the movie. There is a bit of a difference between the two. The Mandarin version has a few extra scenes like one where the witness describes why he is going to court to testify. There is also one were Rothrock explains why she is looking for parking tickets. This version also differs because the Cantonese version shows Baio speaking with the Judge out of court and getting approval to kill the bad guys. The judge says he will back Baio up. The Mandarin version has Baio quitting his job as prosecutor altogether. To not give out any spoilers, let's just say the ending is different, too.

The picture quality is about the same as many import DVD's. The actual film print used is in pretty good shape. There aren't any specks and the colors look fine. The transfer is not bad although some night scenes show some minor artifacts. On a small screen these imperfections won't be as noticeable. The movie is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1. Both versions of the movie look the same.

The Cantonese and Mandarin tracks are both in 5.1 Dolby digital. The surrounds are active in this mix. Sound effects and ambient sounds come from the back speakers even though they sometimes seem out of place. This is the problem with most 5.1 remixes. Separating the channels doesn't make a soundtrack better. Remixes also call attention to sounds that are better left in the background. Re-mix aside, the soundtrack is clean and free of any kind of pops and hisses. The audio while free of distortion, is very reminiscent of the early import DVD's.

The Subtitles are easy to read and contain a minimum of spelling errors. They are timed well with what is being said and they stay on the screen long enough to read. The subtitles do appear half on the image and half on the black bar so if you have a widescreen TV you are better of using the zoom on your DVD player if it's an option.

Extras consist of a trailer as well as trailers for HEROIC TRIO, THE EXECUTIONERS, and YOUNG MASTER.

RIGHTING WRONGS is an above average movie on an average DVD. This is at least worth a rental even if you're not a big fan of the 80's style action films. I liked the film so much it was no problem watching both versions in the same night. The differences of the two versions are a lot more than just cutting or deleting scenes so each one is worth watching. This movie is definitely recommended.

Reviewed - 7/4/02