Robotrix (女机械人) is a 1991 live-action theatrical Hong Kong film directed by Jamie Luk Kin-ming, produced by Henry Chan, and written by Jamie Luk Kin-ming & So Man-Sing. The film stars David Wu, Chikako Aoyama, Amy Yip, Chung Lin and Hui Hsiao-dan, with music composed by Jim Yeung & Siu Hung Yeung. It was theatrically released in May 1991 for Hong Kong and distributed by Fortune Star and Golden Harvest.
Note: As I’ve purchased the film a while back, this is more akin to a ‘delayed unboxing’ post but most of the photos were sorted at the time of its arrival. This post also contains images from the box art and booklet that are not suitable for work.
Background:
“From the heady days of early 90s Hong Kong exploitation cinema comes Robotrix, a hi-octane, fast and furious science fiction romp, packed with glorious action sequences and bonkers plotlines. When evil inventor Ryuichi Sakamato (Chung Lin) transfers his mind into that of a powerful cyborg, he becomes a murderer and rapist. But when one of his victims, Police officer Selena Lin (Chikako Aoyama) becomes super robot Eve-27, she teams up with android sidekick Ann (Amy Yip) and together they seek to bring the criminally insane scientist to justice. Like a crazy mix of The Terminator (1981), The Power Rangers and of course, Robocop (1987) Robotrix, combines the mad doctor movie with extreme martial arts to deliver a sexy, seductive, bionic tale of lust and violence given a uniquely Asian futuristic spin.”
Plot Synopsis via 88 Films, September 2021.
During my venture into the Hong Kong cinema I have been entertained by the modern day cop genre thanks to Jackie Chan’s Police Story. So when I heard about Robotrix I was expecting it to be a James Bond type of adventure which would be a different change of pace, but in reality its also your traditional Hong Kong film combined with the sci-fi elements of Terminator and Robocop. This combination turned out to be pretty effective, because Robotrix was surprising fun and entertaining. The characters were likeable, the story is rather unique and I also enjoyed the humour throughout especially with the cops during the hostel scenes. Also the music was great too.
But at the end of the day, this is a Category III film which also means that there’s even a few sex scenes here and there. One of the scenes I actually noticed an error that pretty much gives away the fact that it’s dry-humping, but I suppose that’s what gives these scenes some form of charm to it. I also didn’t expect to see some violence like a person being ran over in detail, but for the most part this film is rather light-hearted overall.
Robotrix also holds a pretty big importance in Hong Kong cinema. Not only did it provide full frontal nudity of the girls like other Category III films have done, but it was also apparently the first film to briefly display full frontal male nudity which is interesting to know about, but I suppose there’s strict rules in relation to it (like how all full-frontal parts in Japanese cinema are censored by Japanese law).
Robotrix was released before in the UK, but had been previously cut by the BBFC due to scenes of sexual violence. With 88 Films licensing the film for a re-release, it got re-submitted and is now uncut and uncensored for the first time, to which the director provided a mini response to thank its fans and look forward to this release (with the hope that more of his films also see a UK release).
About 88 Films:
88 Films, is an independent UK distributor for Asian Cinema, Italian Cinema, Horror, Cult Classics and Action. Their line-up of films in the Asian Cinema scene includes the works of Jackie Chan (Armour of God, Miracles), Sammo Hung (Dragons Forever, Heart of Dragon), Nam Nai Choi (Erotic Ghost Story, Robotrix), Lau Kar-leung (The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter, Martial Club), Chen Chi-Hwa (Half a Loaf of Kung Fu, Snake and Crane Arts of Shaolin), Wong Jing (Casino Tycoon, God of Gamblers) and also many individual films from John Woo, Tsui Hark, Vincent Kok, Yuen Woo-ping and more. The distributor recently expanded to the US with ten Shaw Bros films such as The Chinese Boxer and Human Lanterns but also other works including US exclusive releases of In the Line of Duty I-IV series and Police Story 3: Supercop.
Their 2023+ line-up for Asian Cinema will include the Fight Back to School trilogy, The Last Blood (Hard Boiled II), Magic Cop, Twin Dragons, The Untold Story, and a re-release of Battle Creek Brawl.
Deluxe Collector’s Edition Contents:
For its return to the UK, 88 Films provided the same packaging style they provided with Erotic Ghost Story and The Young Master for Robotrix.
The rigid box features artwork illustrated by R.P. “KUNG FU BOB” O’Brien with an Amaray case that houses the Blu-ray disc plus the option to switch the sleeve between the new artwork and the classic Hong Kong poster artwork. Also included is an 80-page perfect bound book, a double-sided poster and 6 replica lobby cards. The book includes an interview with the film director Jamie Luk, the essay “‘Robotrix versus censorship” written by Matthew Edwards, and another essay “VHS Cat III Cinema boom of the 90s” written by Tim Murray.
The SRP is £34.99 and has an unspecified print run which for their previous Category III release was 2000 units. This release did sell out not long after launch and thus is no longer available. A standard edition Blu-ray with a first print slipcase was released not long after with the same artwork and disc, but without the other physical items.
Physical Contents:
- Rigid Box with new artwork by R.P. “KUNG FU BOB” O’Brien and Amaray packaging
- 80-page perfect bound book featuring an interview with director Jamie Luk, and essays written by Matthew Edwards and Tim Murray
- Double-sided Fold-out Poster
On-Disc Contents:
Distributor: 88 Films
Released: 20th September 2021
88 Films’ Blu-ray release for Robotrix presents the film in its original uncut and uncensored glory in high definition. The audio options available feature the main Cantonese language with newly translated English subtitles, as well as the classic English dub. An English SDH option is also available as there’s a few scenes with English dialogue early on. The Blu-ray disc is Region B locked and the subtitles are unlockable during playback.
In addition, 88 Films have also included a few on-disc features such as alternate shots from different theatrical releases of the film in Asia, and audio commentaries.
Blu-ray Specs:
| Languages | Cantonese, English |
| Audio | Cantonese Linear PCM 2.0 Mono English Linear PCM 2.0 Mono |
| Video | 1080p High Definition Native format 1.85:1 aspect ratio |
| Region | B |
| Subtitles | English, English SDH |
| Locked Subtitles | No |
| Discs | 1 BD-50 |
Blu-ray On-Disc Extra Features:
- Introduction by Director Jamie Luk
- Audio Commentary with Asian cinema experts Mike Leeder and Arne Venema
- Scenes from the Alternative Version
- English Language Titles
- Hong Kong Trailer
- English Trailer
Unboxing Photos:
Final Notes:
Robotrix is available to own on Blu-ray from 88 Films for the United Kingdom & Ireland. The deluxe collector’s edition release has since discontinued, but the standard edition can be purchased through 88 Films’ official website, and Amazon UK.
(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.)
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