| DVD Released by : Mei Ah |
| Player reviewed with : Malata DVD-N996 |
| Receiver reviewed with : Sony 925 |
| Features: |
| Cantonese and Mandarin Soundtracks |
| English and Chinese Subtitles |
| Not Enhanced for 16 x 9 TVs |
| Running Time : 109 mins. |
YOUNG AND DANGEROUS
IV once again continues with the adventures of the Hung Hing gang. This
time around, a new leader is chosen to lead the gang after the former
boss is killed. Who better to lead than his brother? The first
decision he must make is who will replace a territory leader that has
been killed. The two main contenders are Chicken (Jordan Chan) and the
former leader's next in command, portrayed by Chan Chi Fai. Chicken does
not have an easy time proving himself. His adversary is breaking the rules
and getting help. Even his friend Nam is telling him that the fight may
not be worth it because of the suffering of those who surround you when
you move
up in ranks. Chicken is undeterred and Nam stands by his friend through
it all.
Y&D IV is not the best Y&D movie but it has its moments. There is a lot of build up throughout the movie and the ending doesn't really satisfy as much as it should. If you are a Y&D fan, this is still a must see. If you don't care for the series, this won't win you over and you should just avoid it. Roy Cheung returns in this one to play a different bad guy than the one he was in Y&D 3. While he plays the part well, it gets confusing to see the same person play a different role in the same series of movies.
There are some bright spots in the movie. Sandra NG as Sister 13 is always excellent. She is in this one briefly but she steals every scene she is in. The secondary characters in this series sometimes make up the best moments. Y&D 5 features the same strong performances that have made the series as successful as it is. It always amazes me how somebody like Anthony Wong or Sandra NG could have so little screen time yet make such a lasting impression. While the plot is sometimes lacking, one thing that is conveyed well is how the characters are maturing through the series. Chicken is more sedate and Nam seems to have the weight of the world on his shoulders.
The picture quality is decent. The film print has some occasional damage such as specks and dirt but nothing that is too distracting. The colors are good as is the black level. The transfer while not perfect holds up well on the 47 inch TV. The picture could have a little more detail but it's perfectly watchable. This transfer is about average when compared to most non-anamorphic import DVD's.
The sound quality is very inconsistent. The dialogue is sometimes very low and hard to understand. The other sounds are fine during these moments. This is annoying when it happens but luckily it doesn't happen too often.
The subtitles are burned into the print and on the image. They are white and easy to read. There are rare moments when the left side is slightly cut off but this only happens twice. There are very few grammatical and spelling errors. These are rare and seldom distract. There are at least two times that dialogue is not subtitled but it is only a sentence at most when it happens. For some reason, songs are subtitled in Chinese but not English.
There is no menu and no extras on this DVD.
If you follow
the series, this movie is a must see despite the flaws with the sound.
You don't need to have seen the other installments of the series but it
helps to get to know the characters.
Reviewed 10/04/2002
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