REVIEW: ‘The Magic Blade’ (DVD – IVL)

Hong Kong’s Intercontinental Video Limited was the first distributor to release Celestial Pictures’ re-mastered print of THE MAGIC BLADE. It shares the strengths and weaknesses of their early SB releases. Aside from its bonus content, it no longer has any value.

For video and audio presentation, this disc has been made obsolete by Image Entertainment’s 2008 release. IVL’s version is non-anamorphic and comes only with a poorly mixed 5.1 Mandarin track.

Audio commentary with Bey Logan - Hong Kong movie expert Bey Logan discusses the film in detail. Bey provided commentaries for only a handful of the initial SB releases put out by Celestial.

Trailers - Six SB trailers are included. All were produced by Celestial Pictures except for one original MAGIC BLADE trailer.

Interviews (77 minutes) - Interviews are conducted with director Chu Yuan and actors Ching Li and Yuan Wah. Jade Leung, a younger actress who had nothing to do with the production is interviewed and gives her perspective of the film. Bey Logan is also interviewed.

Movie Information - This section contains standard IVL extras for SB releases. This consists of small stills and poster art, a brief summary, and profiles of the leading actors and the director.

Format: Region 3 NTSC DVD
Aspect Ratio: 4:3 Widescreen (2.35:1)
Audio: Mandarin (DD 5.1)
Subtitles: Chinese, English, Malay, Indonesian
Length: 97 minutes
Release Date: 2002.12.19