Official Synopsis:
When a corrupt judicial system frees the crime bosses who killed an innocent family, a renegade prosecutor (Yuen Biao, Once Upon A Time In China) takes justice into his own hands. Packed with full-contact martial arts action, hi-octane car chases and death-defying stunt sequences, this explosive thriller from action-director Corey Yuen (The Transporter) delivers non-stop excitement from beginning to end.
Our Take:
I really like what Genius Entertainment's Dragon Dynasty imprint is doing with Asian cinema, bringing some of the best and brightest martial arts action films to DVD. However, I wish they would focus a little more on the current stuff, rather than consistently bringing us older films. Granted, I'm happy to see Jackie Chan's Police Story films come to DVD as nice special editions, too, but I would like to see more of the recent films like The Protector get the Dragon Dynasty treatment. Still, I guess variety is everything, so I shouldn't complain too much.
Above the Law (seriously, can we retire that name for action movies?) is a good, but not great, martial arts flick from the mid-80s that stars Yuen Biao and is directed by Corey Yuen, who's made a name in America with The Transporter. The action sequences in this vigilante tale are pretty exciting, and the movie is notable for being one of the earliest screen performances of American martial arts star Cynthia Rothrock. It's entertaining enough, but there's nothing about the film that really sets it apart from so many other action films of its type.
As with most Dragon Dynasty DVD's, this one comes with a handful of extra features, although it’s not a two-disc affair as some of their special editions are. That's pretty fair, though, as I don't think the film warrants that kind of treatment.
* Commentary - By Asian cinema expert Bey Logan.
* The Vigilante (16 minutes) - An interview with Yuen Biao.
* Action Overload (13 minutes) - An interview with Cynthia Rothrock.
* From the Ring to the Silver Screen (19 minutes) - An interview with Peter Cunningham.
* Alternate Endings (23 minutes).
* Trailer Gallery.
Above the Law is a fun ride for those of you who can't get enough Asian action, but it's probably not going to make any genre converts out of non-fans. Still, there are worse ways to kill a Friday night.
Overall Picture:
Movie: B-
DVD: B
- Mike Spring
Editor
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