Hong Kong DVD release
Joy Sales/Fortune Star have recently released this film on DVD in Hong Kong (NTSC format/region 3 coded).
Good news: It's a strong widescreen transfer - not quite the original 2.35:1 Panavision ratio but close enough. The original English language track is included, along with a couple of remixes. There's also the original theatrical trailer plus a new trailer.
Not so good news: This is the edited US version of the film, which drops two scenes (around 3 minutes total running time). While the deleted scenes are included as an extra, it's a shame they couldn't have been reincorporated into the film, as the cuts do affect the pacing. I don't know why they couldn't use the transfer made for the Australian DVD release, which was fully letterboxed but cropped for the DVD on wholesalers' advice. The excellent director's commentary and short promotional films found on the Australian DVD have not been included on the Hong Kong release. One other small snag: the scenes with Cantonese dialogue are not automatically subtitled in English. You have to manually switch on the English subtitles. Also, Sammo Hung's memorable Cantonese insult to Roger Ward after the opening fight is mistranslated as profanity-free dialogue.
For all these minor drawbacks, this is still an essential purchase for fans of the film. The Australian DVD seems to be OOP - though pirate copies are in circulation - and I'd be surprised if any US or UK distributors bother to pick it up.