Once Upon A Time In China 2 - Region 2 DVD

The martial arts battles, in particular one against co-star Donnie Yen as the government's strongman, are everything connoisseurs could wish for. Jet Li is not only acrobatic; he has a powerful screen presence that makes him a convincing hero. Production values, including sets and costumes, are excellent. The only flaw, at least to Western eyes, is the comedy, which has corny jokes about eating dog meat and so forth.

On the DVD: the DVD is in widescreen format, with high-quality picture and sound and well-produced subtitles. The extras are well worth having, and include a lengthy scroll-down text biography of Jet Li, interviews with the star and with Donnie Yen, and a very informative audio commentary by Hong Kong cinema expert Bey Logan. --Ed Buscombe