The Valiant Ones 忠烈圖 1975 Restored Treasures with Booklet (BLU-RAY) with English Sub (Region Free)

Cast : Roy Chiao Hung, Pai Ying. Hsu Feng, Sammo Hung
Director : King Hu
Language : Mandarin
Subtitles : English, Traditional Chinese
System : NTSC
Disc Format : Blu-Ray
Screen Format : 1080 Full HD Widescreen
Sound System : Dolby True HD 5.10
Duration : 110 mins
Release Year : 2024-02-08
Publisher : Panorama HK

he 4K digitally restored version Blu-ray discs of "The Valiant Ones" (1975), which is a collection item of the Hong Kong Film Archive (HKFA) of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, are now on sale.

"The Valiant Ones" was filmed by King Hu as the director, screenwriter and producer, and featured actors Hsu Feng, Bai Ying and Roy Chiao. Set in the Ming dynasty when there was constant pillage by pirates, the film tells a story of the heroic fight of the renowned general Yu Dayou against the pirates with a band of lionhearted warriors. Hu was the Chinese director with the highest international status in the 1970s and has been venerated by the film industry for his filming techniques of martial arts films and outstanding achievements.

The film is the first 4K digitally restored cinematic work by the HKFA. The restoration team worked their utmost to restore the film to its original look when it was first released. While colour grading was one of the focal points of the project, the team also repaired each flaw on the image track, such as scratches and spots to strive to achieve high quality of image and sound in the restored version.

The disc also features interviews of actors Bai Ying, Lau Kong, Ng Ming-choi and staff from the acquisition and conservation units, and is accompanied by a 96-page booklet with a collection of articles of in-depth analyses of the film by film academic Lo Wai-luk, film critic Sek Kei, film costume designer Edith Cheung, music researcher Yu Siu-wah and film researcher Po Fung to enhance the audiences' understanding about the film art of director Hu.