Written by: Michael Den Boer on May 1st, 2004
Theatrical Release Date: Hong Kong, 1992
Director: Ringo Lam
Writer: Yin Nam
Cast: Chow Yun-Fat, Simon Yam, Anthony Wong Chau-Sang
DVD Released: May 13th, 2003
Approximate Running Time: 99 minutes
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen and 4.3 Pan & Scan
Rating: R
Sound: Dolby Digital Stereo English, Dolby Digital Stereo Cantonese
Subtitles: English, Spanish, French
DVD Release: Columbia/TriStar
Region Coding: Region 1 NTSC
Retail Price: $24.96
Synopsis: Godfrey (Chow Yun-Fat), a nightclub bouncer and a respectable guy who follows a code of honor. In trouble with a loan shark Sam (Anthony Wong), Godfrey comes to the rescue of his friend and bales him out. Because of his friendship with Sam, Godfrey is forced into a partnership with the Judge (Simon Yam), a flamboyant villain with a couple of colorful henchpersons under his wings, the sexual Yin (Bonnie Fu) and her Beefed up boyfriend Madman (Franklin Chin). Godfrey plans an armored car job with the Judge and when the robbery goes bad with the death of Chung and Godfrey is severely wounded. Godfrey rehabs himself back into shape as he plans his revenge on the Judge and his gang for double crossing him.
Chow Yun-Fat teams up with Ringo Lam, who works with similar themes in Full Contact. That Chow had explored with John Woo in films like The Killer and Hard-Boiled. Full Contact is Ringo Lam at his best and since making the transition to Hollywood his work has yet to match his earlier success in Hong Kong. Ringo Lam and Screen writer Yin Nam has taken the action genre and turned it on its head with Full Contact. They have managed to take a masculine genre and infused it with Homo erotic undertones. Most obvious is Simon Yam’s Character the Judge who leers at Godfrey throughout the film and he has a male sidekick who he is affectionate with. Even Chow Yun-Fat’s Godfrey character wears an outfit that would be better suited for someone in the village people. Besides any undertones that may lie beneath the surface in Full Contact. Ringo Lam’s direction is solid and all the three leads Chow Yun-Fat, Anthony Wong, and Simon Yam play compelling yet flawed characters and bring them up a level through their performances.
The DVD:
Presented in a anamorphic widescreen that is in its original aspect ratio of 1:85:1 and the image has been vastly improved from the old Tai Seng tape. The interiors and daylight exteriors are fine as the image is sharp and clean. During a few of the night scenes, specifically during close ups some details are lost.
There are two audio options on this DVD Dolby Digital Stereo English dubbed and Dolby Digital Stereo Cantonese. Both audios have several differences between like the names of the leads and also there are differences in the musical cues on both versions. Both audio tracks the sound is very powerful and with dialog that is free of distortion. The Cantonese track is the way to go as the sound and its details are slightly stronger then the English Dubbed Track. The English Subtitles are easy to read and follow.
There are preview trailers for Lockdown, Once a Thief/Full Contact, and So Close. Also included is the option to choose between widescreen and full-frame rations. This DVD is a barebones and some extras like a commentary track with Chow Yun-Fat and Ringo Lam would have been nice. Infused with Ringo Lam’s bizarre sense of humor and exciting action sequences Full Contact is sure to entertain any fan of Hong Kong action films.