The relationship between John Carpenter and Kurt Russell goes way back to 1979 when Russell became a household name after starring in the TV movie Elvis, which was directed by Carpenter. Carpenter then formed a long-lasting and successful relationship with Russell as they went on to collaborate on films such as Escape From New York, The Thing, Escape From LA, and the film I am here to review, Big Trouble in Little China. Here Carpenter creates a very campy tale in the vein of “Sna…e Plissken meets Indiana Jones”, with some very off beat dialogue and characters. Russell, attempting to morph into somewhat of an action star, took liberty with this character by creating a somewhat clumsy and dumbed-down mixture of Clint Eastwood and John Wayne – with the addition of some cynical, self-depreciating humor.

Big Trouble in Little China introduces us to Jack Burton (Kurt Russell) – a quick-witted, fast talking truck driver who is on his way home from a long haul. He hooks up with his buddy Wang Chi (Dennis Dun) for some beers and a game a MahJohng. During their time together, Wang Chi asks for a favor. His lovely, green-eyed fiancé is coming into San Francisco from mainland China and he asks that Jack go with him to pick her up. Jack agrees, and while at the airport, he and his buddy run into a bit of trouble. Miao Yin (Suzee Pai), Wang Chi’s fiancé, is kidnapped by odd-looking members of an 80’s Chinese gang run by kingpin David Lo Pan (James Hong). Jack and Wang are not ones to sit idly by, and before they know it, they are dragged into a gang war deep in the heart of Chinatown. Lo Pan and his crew live underneath Chinatown in a very complex, subterranean network of temples, dungeons, and throne rooms. He also has a large posse of protectors - three of whom, called “Storms”, have ethereal, magical powers.

Legend has it that Lo Pan is really an ancient sorcerer living under a curse and he must marry a green-eyed Chinese girl in order to please the gods and become flesh and blood again. While he can obtain a “holographic” form and look young, if he decides to walk among the living as true flesh and blood, he suddenly becomes wheelchair bound, very frail, and absolutely ancient looking. He doesn’t like this arrangement and goes about any and all means available to reverse this little problem.

Burton agrees to help out his friend and they are pressed on by Gracie Law (Kim Cattrall), a local reporter who covers the Chinatown beat. She has a bad feeling that strange things are going on and wants to get to the bottom of it. She recruits Burton and Wang Chi to help her uncover these problems, and along the way, Jack falls for her as well. Unfortunately for Law, she was born with green eyes and her involvement in this case gets her captured right alongside Miao Yin.

The film then begins to recycle itself from chase scene to chase scene and from one evil-looking chamber to another. We are treated to a dazzling array of martial arts fighting (many scenes take on a very old school Matrix-y feel), nice special effects, and are introduced to the many odd creatures who guard Lo Pan’s fortress. Burton, along with Wang Chi and Egg Shen (Victor Wong), a local sorcerer and tour bus driver, take on the baddies full force. The group splits among three distinct lines - the fighting is left to Wang Chi, the magic is handled by Egg Shen, and Jack Burton is left awkwardly joining in every fight at the wrong time and then after it’s over, summing it up in a way only he can. The last half of the film is essentially a rescue mission that has us all rooting for the good guys as they battle the evil and mysterious Lo Pan.

I feel Big Trouble in Little China has been misunderstood and very under-appreciated. During the film’s release, I don’t think it had the backing of smart marketing at the time and was never really a blockbuster by anyone’s standards. Oddly enough, the film is not really an action film, it’s not really a “true” martial arts film, and it’s not a balls-out comedy – it’s a slight mixture of all three and many folks are not really prepared for that. However, as many films do, Big Trouble in Little China has gained somewhat of a cult following of fans who are absolutely rabid about the film. The film is full of great moments and it never takes itself real seriously. The characters are interesting, the special effects are nice, the dialogue is witty, and the story never hits a slow spot – you will feel tired after watching this film. In my humble opinion, it’s one of John Carpenter’s better films and one that you shouldn’t miss out on.

Audio

Fox presents Big Trouble in Little China in 3 audio formats – Dolby Digital 2.0, Dolby Digital 4.1 and DTS 4.1 – the package states 5.1 which is incorrect. The Dolby Digital 4.1 track is very nicely done with the DTS track simply blowing it out of the proverbial water. In this case, the DTS track is not only warmer, it is simply much, much more aggressive – especially on LFE usage. The bass booms from your LFE from start to finish as Big Trouble in Little China makes use of the low-end like not many DVDs do. Sadly, many newer DVD transfers could take a cue from Fox here, as the LFE on the DTS track rocks from beginning to end. As I stated earlier, there is nothing wrong with the Dolby Digital 4.1 track as it is very well done and totally acceptable, but, the DTS track makes the film jump off the screen. Big Trouble in Little China literally springs to life (and packs a strong punch) when going the DTS route.

Surrounds here are used to add ambience to the overall soundfield and are, overall, much more aggressive than expected. The surrounds do a good job of immersion and are very dynamic as a whole. Being that the film is about 15 years old, the stage sounds surprisingly nice. The frequency response of the track is very natural with good separation and decent screen-to-speaker placement. The cheesy 80’s music is well placed with a balanced mix and a very aggressive sound.

Dialogue is pretty much front and center and is very clear throughout the film. It is always prominent and never drowned out – even with all the heavy effects of lightning, guns, and explosions going on. As I stated before, the LFE low ends are used very nicely as they add punch to the effects and to the overall ambience of the film. The bass is very strong and never over-bearing with the high ends being crystal clear.

The only real “issue” with the track was that the gunfights definitely sounded dated. They are a bit muffled and don’t really give you the feel of immersion like you get through so many other parts of the film. It’s not so bad that it becomes distracting, but it is noticeable when compared to all other effects on the track. However, the rest of the film sounds so good that you won’t mind these miniscule issues one bit.

A very nice job from Fox here on the audio transfer of Big Trouble in Little China. While the track can sound a bit dated and re-mastered at times (gunshots especially), it still sounds better than it ever has. Fox has really done a great job on restoring the mix and is to be highly, highly commended.

Video

Fox consistently puts out some of the best DVDs on the market and Big Trouble in Little China is no exception. This newly done 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer looks absolutely stunning. If you have ever watched this film on satellite or own it on VHS, do yourself a favor and check out this new transfer from Fox – you won’t believe your eyes!

The film itself was shot by cinematographer Dean Cundey, whom Carpenter worked with many, many times. In Big Trouble in Little China, he introduced a very radiant and vibrant palette that was never before seen in any Carpenter film. Bright neon, vibrant greens, and lush reds were wonderfully used to create a really nice environment that has translated beautifully to Fox’s DVD release.

The new transfer from Fox for Big Trouble in Little China is very well done and is as close to perfect as this film may be for quite some time. The print is totally clean and free of any major flaws that would normally distract from your viewing of the film. The color palette is very bright, bold, vibrant and effective as the DVD conveys every aspect of Carpenter’s mystical adventure in glorious and painstaking detail. From the green in Suzee Pai’s eyes to the neon that populates the back alleys and underground chambers, the color is perfectly reproduced. Colors are well-saturated and clean with no bleeding or oversaturated noticed. Flesh tones were accurately rendered and consistent, with black levels being very deep and very solid. Being that a lot of this film takes place in dark areas, alleyways, and tunnels, black levels are an important issue to resolve, and Fox knocks one out of the park on Big Trouble in Little China with absolutely no pixelation or artifacting noticed on any of the darker scenes. This also gives the image great dimensionality and excellent shadow detail. Compression flaws aren’t anywhere to be found, as this restored transfer from Fox looks absolutely marvelous.

There are only a few insignificant problems with this transfer in the form of slight edge-enhancement and a bit of softness in a couple of areas. There were also a few instances of quick flakes and flecks that popped up from time to time. Other than that, the transfer is first-rate and definitely much better than we’ve ever seen. If not for the flaking problems, the transfer would have been nearly perfect. However, there were just too many instances for me to simply ignore.

Once again, Fox lives up to the hype and gives us a wonderfully done DVD video transfer. Big Trouble in Little China has never looked better and probably won’t for years to come. Fox puts out one of their better transfers to date and fans of Big Trouble in Little China should rejoice!

Special Features

One of the first things that jumps out at you in this impressive package from Fox is the cleverly designed menu system. The very tight digital animation takes you through the catacombs of Lo Pan’s underground lair and is very, very cool. Excellent job by Fox from the get-go.

- Disc One-

The sparse extra on disc one is limited to the commentary from John Carpenter and Kurt Russell. The feature-length commentary is very lively from the start as Russell and Carpenter are long-time friends and have been down this commentary road before (The Thing). These pros are totally laid-back and relaxed as they give you tons of insightful and interesting commentary that fans of the film can enjoy over and over again. Much of the information is technical, some of it is reminiscent from the original shoot, and the rest is just two good friends having a good time with each other and joking around. This is a totally entertaining track and one that makes the cost of the DVD well worth it.

- Disc Two-

Disc two starts out with the same cool menu system as we get selections for More, TV Spots, and Trailers. Let’s start with More …

First up is Deleted Scenes. There are 8 scenes in this collection (“Airport / Chinatown”, “The Dragon of the Black Pool”, “The White Tiger”, “Gracie’s Office”, “Thunder’s Tour”, “Beneath Chinatown”, “Lava Sequence”, and “Six Demon Bag”) and they are all pretty much “extended” versions of their movie counterpart. As explained in the static text intro, some scenes are very gritty and dirty, while other scenes made it much farther in the editing process. In the end, most were rightfully cut from the final product.

Extended Ending is next. We get another static intro as we get a chance to look at a never-before-seen alternate ending. The alternate ending was pretty cool and really could’ve worked in the final version of the film. However, it was cut and the movie doesn’t really suffer one way or the other because of it. For fans, it’s just great that this footage is still around and you will have a really good time going through this portion of the extras.

Production Notes is a 25-page static extra that re-creates the actual Press Kit from the original 1986 release of the film. Nice to check out, but being that I’m not a huge fan of static pages, it was a bit of a chore to get through. Nice information though, and that in and of itself makes this a great feature to read through.

Under Music Videos, we get the pleasure of seeing “The Coup DeVilles” – John Carpenter, Tommy Lee Wallace, and Nick Castle, performing the music video for Big Trouble in Little China. A hilarious piece of 80’s music at its “best” – totally entertaining and embarrassing all at the same time.

Next up is a 10-minute Featurette on the making of Big Trouble in Little China. It’s not unlike recent “making of” featurettes and kinda shows its age in the process. The extra was originally released in 1986 and shows snippets from on-set interviews, behind-the-scenes footage, and clips from the film. It goes into a good bit of miscellaneous info and it’s interesting to see that there haven’t been huge jumps in the making of “making of” featurettes.

Cast and Crew gives you filmographies on the actors as well as John Carpenter. Not very interesting, but the menu is kinda nice.

Under Magazine Articles we get another really neat feature. Two 1986 articles are reprinted from the magazines “American Cinematographer” and “CineFex”. While a magazine article reprint doesn’t sound real great, Fox has taken liberty to spice these articles up quite a bit. Fox has added still shots and illustrations, along with full-motion video, to the regular boring text and make the article much more interactive. Once again, Fox takes the lead in DVD production by adding quite a nice addition to what was normally reserved for a large gathering of text only.

The Richard Edlund Interview presents you with a choice of watching the interview with still shots shown in a small window on the side of the screen while Edlund’s interview is shown in the majority of the screen, or you can see the shots in full-frame with Edlund’s interview dialogue still playing over the shot. The 15-minute plus featurette deals with many of the special effects used throughout the film. Much information is covered using montages, clips, and storyboards in the small window, while Edlund discusses each in nice detail. Using your –ANGLE- button, you can switch between a boxed window or the full-frame image / clip. Very cool extra indeed.

Still Gallery contains nice stills, promotional material, and actual production photos. Broken down categorically, we get dozens upon dozens of pictures of “The Cast”, “John Carpenter”, “Props, Weapons, and Vehicles”, “Make-Up & Creature Effects”, “Set Design”, and more.

Last up is DVD Production Credits. This extra includes 3 pages of static text introducing us to the fine folks who produced this DVD. And if you keep clicking, you will see some screenshots of the “Big Trouble in Little China” game that appeared on the Commodore 64. (Remember those? I had one along with a TI99-4A. Any other old schoolers out there?!?)

I’ll cover the last 2 choices as one - Trailers and TV Spots contains three theatrical trailers (one in Spanish) along with six 30-second television spots that ran during the theatrical run of Big Trouble in Little China. All the spots are pretty similar in nature (duh!), although it is interesting to see how the film was being marketed to movie consumers.

Fox has done a great job on extras with the DVD presentation of Big Trouble in Little China. Fans of the film can absolutely rejoice with the treatment Fox gas given this film as there is not really a bad extra in the bunch. However, many of the kudos go to the DVD production team as they have done an excellent job in taking old extras and adding a new, more interactive twists.

Parting Thoughts

Big Trouble in Little China is one of those under-appreciated films that like a fine wine, grows more appreciated with age. Think of it as an early Jackie Chan film – really cool action mixed in with some very nicely done comedic moments. Carpenter seems to really understand the essence of Hong Kong cinema, and this is his gift to the genre – probably one of his best works ever. The film is offbeat, quirky, and fun for anyone willing to make the time investment and suspend their belief for a while. The film boasts a clever and funny performance from Kurt Russell, who was aided by writers Gary Goldman, David Weinstein, and W.D. Richter. The self-depreciating humor contained in the film only enhances its charm.

Other points of interest are the fact that the effects in this film are old school – CGI was not a player during this time and the end result is very nice as Carpenter, along with Visual Effects man Richard Edlund, deserve much praise – even more so now when you look at all the advancements that they didn’t have the benefit of. Carpenter also added the score here and while effective, it is very, very dated. I’m sure some of you older readers out there will feel the corners of your lips turning up as you listen and think back to how bad some 80’s music really was – just don’t say that I didn’t warn you!

For collectors and fans, Fox has done an excellent job on this DVD. Great audio and video transfers along with some really fun extras make this a DVD that you must own. If you’re a fan of the film, you already know what to do and my review will probably only wet your appetite. However, if you’ve never seen this film, all I can say is that you are doing yourself a disservice by waiting any longer. This is one of the more uniquely quirky and funny films to ever come out and Fox has made it easy to own by putting together a great package at a very affordable price. I personally guarantee you that you will enjoy this film sight unseen – and for the price, it’s well worth the investment. Now get on your own “Pork Chop Express” and go get this DVD – as soon as possible. Really. What are you waiting for?!?!?

Special Features List

• Commentary
• Deleted Scenes
• Extended Ending
• Production Notes
• Music Video
• Featurette
• Cast and Crew
• Magazine Articles
• Still Gallery
• Richard Edlund Interview
• Production Credits
• Trailers and TV Spots