John Woo Films Among 156-Film Golden Princess Library Acquired by Shout
January 13, 2025 1:38 PM - Subscribe
Kind of far down the physical media rabbithole for the front page, but Variety has big newsL
In a major move set to electrify action film aficionados, Shout! Studios has nabbed worldwide rights (excluding select Asian territories) to the coveted Golden Princess movie library, a treasure trove of 156 Hong Kong cinema classics that’s been MIA from Western markets for decades.
The acquisition’s crown jewels include Woo’s action masterpieces “Hard Boiled,” “The Killer,” the complete “Better Tomorrow” trilogy, “Bullet in the Head” and “Once a Thief.” The library also boasts Ringo Lam’s “City on Fire,” “Prison on Fire” and its sequel; Eric Tsang’s “Aces Go Places”; Tsui’s “Peking Opera Blues”; Tony Ching’s “Chinese Ghost Story” trilogy; and additional hits like Wai Ka-fai’s “Peace Hotel,” Andrew Kam and Johnnie To’s “The Big Heat” and Alex Law’s “Now You See It, Now You Don’t.”
Ah good - it'll be nice to see these in circulation and not just the crappy prints that have been circulating for years. I've been putting off rewatching some of these until they got 4k remasters.
posted by Ashwagandha at 10:34 PM on January 13 [1 favorite]
posted by Ashwagandha at 10:34 PM on January 13 [1 favorite]
Shout has kind of quietly become the Criterion for the masses. Picking up on significant properties and films that have otherwise been ignored by the major distributors.
posted by Atreides at 6:58 AM on January 14 [2 favorites]
posted by Atreides at 6:58 AM on January 14 [2 favorites]
I'm up and down on Shout. They do indeed release some nice editions of films people care about. And, as shown here, they really do pony up for the big genre stuff people want.
But they're also among the worst offenders for BS special editions: gaudy steel books; silly "multiple slipcover" editions; "limited edition" posters; and just generally piling stacks of paper products onto releases to try and fire up the FOMO.
Their pricing is also predatory and they don't have real sales.
I keep telling myself I will swear off them.
Then they'll put out like Night of the Creeps in 4K and... well, it turns out I am weak.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:36 AM on January 14 [3 favorites]
But they're also among the worst offenders for BS special editions: gaudy steel books; silly "multiple slipcover" editions; "limited edition" posters; and just generally piling stacks of paper products onto releases to try and fire up the FOMO.
Their pricing is also predatory and they don't have real sales.
I keep telling myself I will swear off them.
Then they'll put out like Night of the Creeps in 4K and... well, it turns out I am weak.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:36 AM on January 14 [3 favorites]
I've found that if you wait long enough, you'll eventually get a deal on a Shout release. Well, or at least, a reasonable price. I would like to see them come down on their 4k prices and offer digital copies for when I'm not by the one tv in the house with a 4k player.
I recently grabbed Quigley Down Under on 4k with them, but I did have to wait until I got credit on Amazon to do so ($28?). At the same time, their Transformers box set on DVD is priced fair I think ($30s) given how old the series is and it's a pretty good DVD scan for the most part, too.
posted by Atreides at 8:13 AM on January 14
I recently grabbed Quigley Down Under on 4k with them, but I did have to wait until I got credit on Amazon to do so ($28?). At the same time, their Transformers box set on DVD is priced fair I think ($30s) given how old the series is and it's a pretty good DVD scan for the most part, too.
posted by Atreides at 8:13 AM on January 14
I have even bought multiple Shout steelbooks. But not because I share that fetish. they just happened to be the best editions of films I wanted to own. I'd have been happier to buy them for say $7 less in a normal case.
If they had an annual sale like the Criterion or Arrow sales, that would buy them a ton of goodwill.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:24 AM on January 14 [2 favorites]
If they had an annual sale like the Criterion or Arrow sales, that would buy them a ton of goodwill.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:24 AM on January 14 [2 favorites]
But they're also among the worst offenders for BS special editions
For better of worse, they understand that the market for genre film releases has primarily become about packaging (and they are partially to blame for it tho the real offenders are Vinegar Syndrome IMO). How do you sell a movie or show that was largely ignored the half dozen times it was available before or a crappy movie that is justifiably forgotten? You package it in a steelbook, put in a lame A4 size poster, put it in a slipcase and number it like it was some kind of Fabergé egg. Shout doesn't overhype as much as Vinegar Syndrome does, which is to their credit. Severin tho are the real heroes - their sets are great.
posted by Ashwagandha at 12:23 PM on January 14 [3 favorites]
For better of worse, they understand that the market for genre film releases has primarily become about packaging (and they are partially to blame for it tho the real offenders are Vinegar Syndrome IMO). How do you sell a movie or show that was largely ignored the half dozen times it was available before or a crappy movie that is justifiably forgotten? You package it in a steelbook, put in a lame A4 size poster, put it in a slipcase and number it like it was some kind of Fabergé egg. Shout doesn't overhype as much as Vinegar Syndrome does, which is to their credit. Severin tho are the real heroes - their sets are great.
posted by Ashwagandha at 12:23 PM on January 14 [3 favorites]
Severin's stuff is the best. I want to be Kier-La Janisse when I grow up.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:14 PM on January 14 [1 favorite]
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:14 PM on January 14 [1 favorite]
Deaf Crocodile is also fantastic. Excellent packaging, but nothing extraneous. Their effort primarily goes into making the disc contents and booklet as outstanding as possible.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:19 PM on January 14
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:19 PM on January 14
Deaf Crocodile (as well as Altered innocence) was with Vinegar initially but left them. I'm curious if there was drama there. I've only watched a few of the releases of Deaf Crocodile: Time of Roses, Unknown Man of Shandigor, Visitors From the Arkana Galaxy. Prints were beautiful and had excellent contextual information.
For me, I appreciate sets that educate the viewer and/or the curation is well chosen. Kier-La Janisse has done a good job with the sets she's worked on and I'd agree she's like a gold standard of that realm.
If I was Shout, I'd probably release the Golden Princess Library as coherent sets with related films grouped together with a few standalones (notably Johnnie To’s The Big Heat). I don't mind their recent Golden Harvest & Shaw Brothers sets though it is easy for stand out titles to be overlooked in them as they just seem to be thrown together.
posted by Ashwagandha at 7:47 AM on January 15 [1 favorite]
For me, I appreciate sets that educate the viewer and/or the curation is well chosen. Kier-La Janisse has done a good job with the sets she's worked on and I'd agree she's like a gold standard of that realm.
If I was Shout, I'd probably release the Golden Princess Library as coherent sets with related films grouped together with a few standalones (notably Johnnie To’s The Big Heat). I don't mind their recent Golden Harvest & Shaw Brothers sets though it is easy for stand out titles to be overlooked in them as they just seem to be thrown together.
posted by Ashwagandha at 7:47 AM on January 15 [1 favorite]
Oh hey it's the boutique label discussion! I am grateful to all of them -- VS has flaws but also did a great edition of Six-String Samurai, so how can I not forgive?
My personal fave is Radiance Films, who introduced me to a couple of super special movies this year and whose obsession with Italian and Japanese crime movies combined with the occasional obscure arthouse gem matches my tastes pretty well.
Anyhow, this Golden Princess news is massive, not just in the physical media sense -- these movies represent a tremendously significant chunk of film history and now there's going to be a legal way to screen them on the big screen, stream them, and so on. And since everything is political, I'm quite gratified that there's more representation of a vibrant, free Hong Kong out there now.
My less well known recommendation from the library: Peking Opera Blues, a Tsui Hark period masterpiece.
posted by Bryant at 1:34 AM on January 17 [2 favorites]
My personal fave is Radiance Films, who introduced me to a couple of super special movies this year and whose obsession with Italian and Japanese crime movies combined with the occasional obscure arthouse gem matches my tastes pretty well.
Anyhow, this Golden Princess news is massive, not just in the physical media sense -- these movies represent a tremendously significant chunk of film history and now there's going to be a legal way to screen them on the big screen, stream them, and so on. And since everything is political, I'm quite gratified that there's more representation of a vibrant, free Hong Kong out there now.
My less well known recommendation from the library: Peking Opera Blues, a Tsui Hark period masterpiece.
posted by Bryant at 1:34 AM on January 17 [2 favorites]
As a now-retired veteran of the disc industry and a fella who worked with the VS guys at their day jobs, I gotta say that Shout has been consistently an outstanding distributor when compared to the others, with an actual long-term plan that can survive the day the oil companies turn off the polycarbonate spigot. I remember the days when Biue Underground would just remove the Anchor Bay logos from an already-completed disc and resell as a new edition. Shout does not do that these days.
RIP Red Jam LLC dba Twilight Time
posted by infinitewindow at 9:22 AM on January 17 [3 favorites]
RIP Red Jam LLC dba Twilight Time
posted by infinitewindow at 9:22 AM on January 17 [3 favorites]
Since this has spread out into a boutique discussion, how about some love for the Seconds?
Second Sight releases the most lovely, deluxe editions of recent indie/genre crossover stuff (dig their new editions of Scanners and Blair Witch).
Second Run curates an amazing collection of excellent, overlooked international films, especially Czech and other Eastern European stuff.
If they had a subscription, I'd pay it and let them send me one of each, blind. Great, great stuff.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 10:10 AM on January 17
Second Sight releases the most lovely, deluxe editions of recent indie/genre crossover stuff (dig their new editions of Scanners and Blair Witch).
Second Run curates an amazing collection of excellent, overlooked international films, especially Czech and other Eastern European stuff.
If they had a subscription, I'd pay it and let them send me one of each, blind. Great, great stuff.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 10:10 AM on January 17
Radiance is such a great label. Their Planet of the Vampires Limited Edition was a thing of beauty (and only the third time I bought that film... Curse you Bava). Or that Messiah of Evil box (which I didn't score when I had a chance). They are on Letterboxd and they made this list (failed licenses they attempted to get) which I found fascinating to read. I highly recommend their release of Slap the Monster on Page One. I also appreciate a lot of the releases are region free.
My other favourite label from the UK that I adore is Powerhouse Indicator - they make beautiful and thoughtfully put together sets. I've gone through the great Tod Slaughter set, their Mexican horror sets, Budd Boettcher Raymond Scott Westerns set, and I have the Ormond Family and the Michael J Murphy sets lined up for this year and I am looking forward to those.
posted by Ashwagandha at 11:55 AM on January 17 [2 favorites]
My other favourite label from the UK that I adore is Powerhouse Indicator - they make beautiful and thoughtfully put together sets. I've gone through the great Tod Slaughter set, their Mexican horror sets, Budd Boettcher Raymond Scott Westerns set, and I have the Ormond Family and the Michael J Murphy sets lined up for this year and I am looking forward to those.
posted by Ashwagandha at 11:55 AM on January 17 [2 favorites]
Indicator rocks. I like how they always have quality transfers and layer on the extras, but still have easily obtained standard editions with controlled costs.
I want that John Ford comedies box set.
Synapse does gorgeous work, but only like three people work there (kidding, but maybe not far off) so they don't have many releases.
Umbrella's hyped releases are a little pricey and I have some of the same complaints for them I do for Shout. But they Aussie-specific stuff they put out is gold and I recommend grabbing some when they do sales.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:06 PM on January 17
I want that John Ford comedies box set.
Synapse does gorgeous work, but only like three people work there (kidding, but maybe not far off) so they don't have many releases.
Umbrella's hyped releases are a little pricey and I have some of the same complaints for them I do for Shout. But they Aussie-specific stuff they put out is gold and I recommend grabbing some when they do sales.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:06 PM on January 17
Synapse has Trick or Treat coming out soon which I will revisit and a very handsome looking Blue Sunshine web exclusive. I watched their print of the Convent recently and it was great. But yeah they have fewer titles on their release schedule.
For International genre films Mondo Macabro have been unsung heroes. I am incoherently excited to see a release of one of my favourite Indonesian horror films featuring Suzzanna, Hungry Snake Woman.
posted by Ashwagandha at 12:17 PM on January 17 [1 favorite]
For International genre films Mondo Macabro have been unsung heroes. I am incoherently excited to see a release of one of my favourite Indonesian horror films featuring Suzzanna, Hungry Snake Woman.
posted by Ashwagandha at 12:17 PM on January 17 [1 favorite]
I just got my first Mondo Macabro: Who Can kill a Child?
On Synapse... I'm waiting for the standard edition on Trick or Treat. It looks fun, but I opted to leave the $66.66 special editions to the true believers. I sincerely believe their 4K edition of Suspiria might be the finest looking transfer I have ever seen.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:54 PM on January 17 [1 favorite]
On Synapse... I'm waiting for the standard edition on Trick or Treat. It looks fun, but I opted to leave the $66.66 special editions to the true believers. I sincerely believe their 4K edition of Suspiria might be the finest looking transfer I have ever seen.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:54 PM on January 17 [1 favorite]
Yes, that Suspiria was easily the nicest one I saw as well.
posted by Ashwagandha at 1:10 PM on January 17
posted by Ashwagandha at 1:10 PM on January 17
I mean the nicest transfer I have seen... of anything.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:15 PM on January 17 [2 favorites]
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:15 PM on January 17 [2 favorites]
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posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:56 PM on January 13