City on Fire: The Influential Action Classic Comes to 4K (4K/Blu-ray)

The Film:

Shout! Studios continues their incredible Hong Kong Cinema Classics series with Ringo Lam's action-crime classic "City on Fire," an incredibly influential film of the genre and one that helped establish Chow Yun-fat as an action star. As the film nears its 40th anniversary, Shout! is celebrating by giving the film a marvelous 4K upgrade and loading it with several in-depth special features, making it the perfect time to delve into this prominent work (which heavily inspired future directors like Quentin Tarantino) to see how it holds up several decades later.

As the film opens, Chan Kum-wah (Elvis Tsui), an undercover cop investigating a group of jewelry thieves, is murdered by several attackers. This prompts Inspector Lau (Sun Yueh) to assign another undercover cop, Ko Chow (Chow Yun-fat), to pick up where the previous informant left off. Chow clearly doesn't want to after having to betray a close friend on a previous mission, but is eventually persuaded to infiltrate the gang. However, before he can, the thieves carry out a heist that leaves a cop dead, which leads to the formation of a task force by Inspector John Chan (Roy Cheung), creating a rivalry between him and Lau. Chow begins his infiltration by selling guns to the thieves, which is complicated by Chan's team following him, but eventually he finds himself on the inside, where he becomes part of a dangerous plan that has him taking part in the next robbery. Will he be able to stop the criminals before it's too late?

Ringo Lam's "City on Fire" is a mostly-riveting blend of action, crime, and drama, one that may start off a little slow as it introduces us to its main chracter and has us get to know what kind of man he is, but eventually finds quite a solid footing once the plot truly begins. From Lau convincing Ko Chow to undertake the dangerous assignment to his difficulty in becoming part of the gang to his attempts to get details on the next heist & stop it, the film becomes quite a compelling journey, one that is punctuated throughout with some rather impressive action scenes in the form of exciting chases and a pair of thrilling heists.

As far as the film's weak points, the only thing that slows it down just a little is the somewhat awkward inclusion of Chow's personal relationship with a woman, Hung (Carrie Ng), that he plans to marry, but can't until his assignment is done, nor can he tell her about it, which creates conflict between them. It's understandable that they would want to try and give Chow a more personal reason to survive & get out of his undercover work entirely, but the sub-plot ends up feeling a little out of place and merely becomes something of a distraction from the main narrative. It's not all that troublesome, but, as mentioned, it is a little awkward as the film shifts back and forth between its crime aspects and his relationship, making for a somewhat odd combination of tones.

That said, the film is still remarkably successful when it's fully-focused on its criminal & dramatic elements, which is indeed what the film is most well-known for, and why it became so influential. Even if one didn't know beforehand that it had heavily influenced Quentin Tarantino, you'd certainly know by the end given how much he "borrowed" from it for his first feature, "Reservoir Dogs." With its deft mixture of genres, it's hardly a wonder as to why it's held in such esteem by many filmmakers & fans, and why it's commonly cited as an action classic. It's the kind of film that has you hanging on right through to the end of its intense conclusion, only letting go once the tension is finally released, and for that, it easily becomes a must-see for anyone looking for a rather gripping thrill ride.

Video/Audio:

Shout! Studios' new release of "City on Fire" comes with the film on both 4K (2160p, UHD) and Blu-ray (1080p, HD) in 1.85:1 transfers of excellent quality. The film may be close to turning 40, but the upgraded transfers make the film look new again with a sharp & clear image throughout its entire 105-minute duration. Likewise, the DTS-HD Master Audio tracks are marvelous, giving you all of the dialogue, sound effects, and music in outstanding quality. Overall, Shout! Studios has done a wonderful job in both areas for this new edition of the film.

Special Features:

Audio Commentary with Frank Djeng and F.J. DeSanto

Burn It Down (18 Minutes)

Hong Kong Confidential (12 Minutes)

Some Like It Hot (33 Minutes)

Burning Rivalries (14 Minutes)

This new 4K/Blu-ray edition comes with a fantastic selection of special features that includes a commentary with experts and four featurettes that feature interviews with screenwriter Tommy Sham & film historians. Any fan of the film will definitely have plenty to dig into with these informative extras.

Conclusion:

Ringo Lam's "City on Fire" is a deft blend of thrills, crime, and drama that makes for a mostly-riveting experience as it follows an undercover cop on a dangerous assignment to infiltrate a gang of thieves. It may get a little distracted with its romantic subplot, but that doesn't stop it from being a highly-entertaining actioner, one that would go on to have great influence in the genre. Shout! Studios' new 4K release of the film is simply fantastic, easily making it worth adding to your personal collection.

Score: 4/5

Available on 4K/Blu-ray starting tomorrow.

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