The Young Master (Limited Edition Blu-ray) Unboxing

The Young Master (師弟出馬) is a 1980 live-action theatrical Hong Kong film directed by Jackie Chan, produced by Raymond Chow and Leonard Ho, and written by Jackie Chan, Edward Tang, Lau Tin-chi and Tung Lu. The film stars Jackie Chan, Yuen Biao, Tien Feng, Fung Fung, and Shih Kien. It was theatrically released in February 1980 for Hong Kong and published by Raymond Chow’s Golden Harvest Group and Fortune Star.

Background:

“Lung (Jackie Chan) ventures to bring back a fellow Kung Fu student banished for colluding with a rival gym but finds himself fighting for justice when pursued by the authorities over a misdeed he didn’t commit.

Breaking all-time box office records upon its original Hong Kong release, Jackie Chan stars, directs, and co-writes his first film for Golden Harvest in a decades-long partnership that would spawn a multitude of hits.”

Plot Synopsis via 88 Films, February 2021

Jackie Chan’s filmography has been getting a lot of love in the past couple of years with the re-releases of many of his iconic films, from titles he has directed to roles he took part in. The latest release from 88 Films is towards his 1980 film The Young Master, which is one of his earliest that he had directed. The Young Master has been released before in the UK during the VHS era under distributors like Guild Home Video and Missing in Action followed by DVD via Cine Asia and Hong Kong Legends.

As The Young Master was one of many films that made Jackie Chan an international sensation for the Martial Arts Hong Kong cinema scene, distributor 88 Films decided to upgrade their release from their regular first print editions to a super limited edition box set, especially as it marks 40 years since the original Hong Kong release. 88 Films announced the license at the same time as New Fist of Fury, Shaolin Wooden Men and Spiritual Kung Fu, though it had been delayed a few times due to various factors (like trying to include a unique feature that wasn’t able to be acquired due to high costs).

Currently, The Young Master marks as 88 Film’s 16th Jackie Chan featured release with confirmation of Armour of God, Half a Loaf of Kung Fu and Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow coming up next so there’s more to come for his catalogue!

Limited Edition Contents:

As previously mentioned, 88 Films decided to offer The Young Master a limited edition release rather than the usual treatment so we have a different packaged look this time.

The film is presented in a sturdy rigid box with the info specs and logos on a card that wraps from front to back vertically. Inside the box is an Amaray Blu-ray case housing two discs, with a reversible cover featuring the original theatrical poster design and 6 art cards, a fold-out poster which is double-sided, and a detailed 80-page booklet with information about the film’s history, essays, promotional artwork and more.

The SRP is £24.99 with a 3000 unit print run. Once the print run is out of stock, they’ll re-release the film without the limited edition items.

Physical Contents:

• Limited Edition Rigid Box featuring unique artwork by R.P. “Kung Fu Bob” O’Brien
• Vertical Info Sheet with Specs, BBFC and more
• 80-page Booklet featuring “Jackie Chan – The Early Years: From Stuntman to Superstar” by William Blaik (Fighting Spirit Film Festival), “The History of Martial Arts on Video” by Tim Murray & “Fan-Tastic! Jackie Chan Begins Again” by James Oliver
• Folded Poster with artwork by R.P. “Kung Fu Bob” O’Brien
• 6 Replica Lobby Cards

On-Disc Contents:

Distributor: 88 Films
Released: 22nd February 2021

Similar to Dragons Forever, 88 Films has presented The Young Master on two Blu-ray discs with each disc focusing on a specific version of the film. Like many of Jackie Chan’s other featured films, there are multiple versions depending on its theatrical distribution or from being added for home video.

On the first disc, we have the 2K restoration of the Hong Kong Theatrical Cut restored from the original 35mm camera negative in 2:35:1 aspect ratio, running at 106 minutes length. This disc also contains the vast amount of bonus features including trailers, featurettes and more. The theatrical cut is available to watch in its original Cantonese audio (theatrical and home video mono mixes available) with English subtitles and the English dub.

On the second disc, we have the International Export Cut, running at 90 minutes length, as well as the Extended Export Cut from the Japanese release, running at 99 minutes length, which is shorter than the Hong Kong version but adds an extended and uncut footage of the final fight scene. Both cuts feature the alternative soundtrack that includes the song “Kung Fu Fighting Man” performed in English by Jackie Chan and English subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.

For Audio Commentaries, the Hong Kong Theatrical Cut includes HK Cinema Expert Brandon ‘OldPangYau’ Bentley and the International Export Cut includes HK cinema aficionados & game producers Audi Sorlie & Chris Ling.

The white subtitles are unlockable during playback, and the regions are locked to B for Blu-ray.

Blu-ray Specs:

Languages	Cantonese, English
Audio	Hong Kong Theatrical Cut Cantonese (Original Theatrical) Linear PCM Mono Cantonese (Home Video) Linear PCM Mono Cantonese (with Alternative Export OST) Linear PCM Mono English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 International Export Cut English Linear PCM Mono Extended Export Cut English Linear PCM Mono
Video	1080p High Definition Native format 2:35:1 aspect ratio
Region	B
Subtitles	Hong Kong Theatrical Cut English International Export Cut English Hard of Hearing Extended Export Cut English Hard of Hearing
Locked Subtitles	No
Discs	2 BD-50s

Blu-ray On-Disc Extra Features:

Disc 1:

• Audio Commentary with HK Cinema Expert Brandon ‘OldPangYau’ Bentley (Dolby Digital 2.0 audio)
• Rick Baker on The Young Master
• The Art of the Cut: Editing of The Young Master (20 minutes)
• Extended Fight Scenes: Reconstructed and previously unavailable fight scenes before they were cut down (6 minutes)
• “The Cut Master”: A collection of rare deleted, extended, and alternate footage (13 minutes)
• Jackie Chan Interview (Archived, 8 minutes)
• The Master: An Interview with Grandmaster Hwang In-Shik (Archived, 28 minutes)
• ‘NG’ (no good) shots (10 minutes)
• Alternative English Dub Audio cues
• Trailer Gallery:
  • Hong Kong trailer
  • Extended Hong Kong trailer
  • Japanese trailer
  • English trailer
  • US Home Video trailer
• Further Attractions (88 Asia Collection trailers)
  • Dragon Lord
  • New Fist of Fury
  • The Fearless Hyena
  • Shaolin Wooden Men
  • Spiritual Kung Fu
  • The Master

Disc 2:

• Audio Commentary for International Export Cut with HK cinema aficionados & game producers Audi Sorlie & Chris Ling (Dolby Digital 2.0 audio)

Unboxing Photos:

And here is my current 88 Asia Jackie Chan collection thus far. I own 12 of 16 releases (the ones missing were the first four that were released before Crime Story – Dragon Fist, To Kill with Intrigue, Battle Creek Brawl and Snake and Crane Arts of Shaolin).

Final Notes:

The Young Master is available to order through multiple retailers across the United Kingdom. The limited edition will sell out pretty fast like 88 Films’ other Jackie Chan titles. Both Amazon UK and the official 88 Films website will be the best option to secure a copy. Once sold out, a regular standard edition will be available.

(Disclaimer: Amazon links are also included when available. They are affiliated so if you decide to order them, I’ll earn a small percentage if they ship which will help me with any hauls or small bills.)