Ju Dou (1991)

A dark sensual and visually sumptuous drama Ju Dou centers on the title character Ju Dou (Gong Li) the wife of a wealthy silk dryer in 1920's China. Forced into marriage Ju Dou is repeatedly mistreated and tortured by her husband for failing to bear him an heir even though he is infertile. Her suffering attracts the sympathy of her husband's younger kinder nephew and the two begin a secret affair that could lead to tragic consequences.System Requirements:Running Time: 94 MinutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: FOREIGN/LATIN UPC: 690445022424 Manufacturer No: MP0224 Product Description

Superb Film--Rotten DVD

As the Chinese government wants to supress Yimou's work for it's less than idyllic portrayal of China, they couldn't have a better partner in crime than MagicPlay Entertainment. This is just an awful DVD made from a worn out print by a bunch of slackers on a bad day. Another reviewer has said they have performed a similar hatchet job on "Raise the Red Lantern."
I was lucky enough to see that on cable a few years ago and the photography was incredibly fine--even the credits were beautiful and the color saturation & resolution were amazing. March 20, 2008

Great Film Marred By Horrible Presentation

The films of Zhang Yimou are some of the most innovative motion picture experiences today. Yimou uses light and color like few directors of his generation. From my understanding one of the highlights of Ju Dou was the dramatic colors used both literally and symbolically. Unfortunately this does not come through in the Razor release. In this edition the colors are faded and washed out. The transfer is poor. It looks like a copy of an inferior PAL tranfer from VHS.

The film moves with the spirit of Greek tragedy. The downfall of the Yang family is told through the story of an illicit affair between the wife of silk dyer Jin Shan Yang, played beautifully by Gong Li and Tianquing (Baotian Li), the dyer's nephew. The affair brings about tragic consequences leading to thedownfall of the Yang business,

I wish I could say more but my copy of the DVD froze and would not play in the last two minutes of the film. This is quite possibly one of the worst transfers I have ever experienced. I have seen bootlegs that have been done more professionally. I addition to the poor quality the film is presented in the wrong aspect ratio, the subtitling is laughable, and the actual print looks like it was dragged along a concrete road leading to numerous scratches.

I would love to see this film as it should be shown. Unfortunately the film is not available to me in another edition.

Avoid this Razor edition as it is a true waste of money and a source of great frustration. January 11, 2008

DVD quality

Very poor quality non-anamorphic version. Don't waste your money and wait for a remastered edition. August 27, 2007

For the film, zero for the transfer

I have to echo previous comments. A dark, disturbing and intense film, full of repressed rage and suppressed emotion. Although difficult to tell from this mucky transfer, the original cinemaphotography was clearly outstanding. Very claustrophobic in scope and character, the images still manage to glow at times. There are also some truly bleak characters- most notably the mute, implacable sociopathis son. Scary and memorable.

This film clearly deserves better than this pathetic, murky, gritty, 4:3 transfer it receives here. A real shame- when are Zhang's films going to get the treatment they deserve? The only kind thing I can find to say is that is was somewhat better than the truly putrescent transfer given to 'Raise the Red Lantern' - a landmark in low-end video quality. Oh dear. July 26, 2007

Don't waste your money

I have over 300 dvds and this is by far the worst transfer to a disc I have ever seen. The colors are horrible as it bleeds all over the place. At times the film actually bounces and stutters like an old, crusty, 16mm tape that's coming apart. You know the kind, those old home movies from the 1950s. It's impossible to enjoy this fine movie (or any movie for that matter)when your senses are assaulted with this disaster of a transfer. Avoid it like the proverbial plague!! July 8, 2007

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