Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

A friend of mine once described reviewing Martial Arts films as like trying to review a NASCAR race - “What are you going to say? They went fast and turned left?” So many martial arts films, while impressive undertakings, all hinge on the epic-scaled fight sequences, but what more can you say to that than “they punch and kick a lot” and "it's exciting"? A good Martial Arts film will bank harder on plot than an athletic fast-kicking spectacle. While director Soi Cheang certainly is adept at delivering exhilerating big-scale combat, Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In smartly is more focused on character and plot than just feeding genre fans another numbing fight sequence.  

A refugee arriving in Hong Kong looking for a better life, Chan Lok-kwan (Raymond Lam) is trying to get identification so he can start living. Making a bad deal with local crimelord Mr. Big (Sammo Hung), Lok-Kwan steals a sack of narcotics and flees into Kowloon. The Walled City is under the protection of a man called Cyclone (Luis Koo) who has helped preserve the peace for generations. But as the British are set to hand over Hong Kong to the Chinese, the Walled City is set for demolition and the fragile peace between Cyclone and Mr. Big is set to spill out into the streets with Lok-Kwan caught in the middle. 

Truthfully, I was a little worried about this film as it got going. I heard great things about it but I sadly missed my shot at seeing it on the big screen when it was at my local theater. So sitting down for it, the worrisome hairs on the back of my neck perked up as the film gradually unspooled and I witnessed the very clunky backstory exposition about Kowloon and the gang wars. That martial arts extravaganza quickly segued to another high-octane stunt fight with Raymond Lam’s Lok-Kwan winning the cash he needs for a fake ID. Then when he’s jilted he flees into the Walled City… for another big spectacle fight sequence. All of these fights are thrilling and a terrific showcase for the talented cast, but was this all the movie had to offer?

Thankfully after that fight between Cyclone and Lok-Kwan is settled, the film wisely takes a moment to breathe so we actually get to know these characters and give a damn. Day, by day, Lok-Kwan integrates himself into the rough life of Kowloon and as he works his ass off, we meet the people that’ll shape his character’s journey. And honestly, it was rather refreshing to see this level of character growth in a modern martial arts epic. By the time the final gang war breaks out, the stakes have been suitably raised so Lok-Kwan has a real reason to fight beyond saving his own skin. There are a few more plot twists and turns in there I’ve omitted to avoid spoilers but it leads to one hell of a final boss battle that borders on exhilaratingly ridiculous. 

Now that I know what I missed out on, I’m truly bummed I missed the chance to see this in theaters. Granted it was only at my local multiplex and likely it would have been punched into the small screening rooms in the back of the theater miles away from the bathrooms or concessions, but still, I’d love to have seen it on a screen larger than my main setup. The action sequences are often breathtaking and well-staged. While not as balletic as a Jackie Chan classic, the scenes are captured in a way where we can appreciate the full athleticism of the cast without it being nothing but nauseating close-up quick-cut nonsense. 

While Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In certainly doesn’t redefine the genre, it’s an impressive modern addition all the same. I got what I wanted while scarfing down my popcorn and I have to believe that genre aficionados will be more than satisfied by this thrilling outing. Even if you’re a casual, it’s well worth the viewing. 

Vital Disc Stats: The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray 
Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In jumps onto a single-disc 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release from Well Go USA. Pressed on a Region Free BD100 disc. The disc is housed in a standard black case with identical slipcover artwork. Also included is a slip featuring other Well Go USA releases.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find very reliable information about the production. I found conflicting notices that it was shot digitally captured at a rather desperate range of resolution (as low as 3.5K or as high as 6K, maybe both?) and was finished either on a 4K digital intermediate or a 2K digital intermediate. Whichever way that all rolled out, kudos to Well Go USA for delivering an excellent disc. The image is overall excellent with crisp razor-sharp details. Facial features, the ratty clothing of our characters, and the impressive dilapidated sets and dressings of Kowloon are on full display. Where there’s a tidbit of image noise is reserved for some of the obvious digital backgrounds and scene extensions. It’s just very obvious when the real-life sets send and the digital backdrops begin. Thankfully though that’s not a serious impairment as most of the film is focused on our characters and the immediate world around them. Fight sequences generally look fantastic. With Dolby Vision HDR, the variety of colors see plenty of pop, and the numerous shadowy dark locations have plenty of lighting nuance to give the image a tangible sense of three-dimensional depth. Fights can move from big open rooms to fight alleyways to small cramped spaces and this disc handles the presentation with ease. Bitrate remains nice and stable without any issues. All in all a great transfer.

On the audio front, Well Go USA gives home cinema fans a couple of choices. You can choose from an excellent Dolby Atmos Cantonese mix with English subtitles or an excellent DTS:X Cantonese mix with English subtitles. Honestly, it’s the dealer’s choice there, because both tracks are fantastic and essentially identical. Trying to run through some of the key fight sequences back-to-back I couldn’t detect much of a notable difference to peg one better than the other. They’re both expansive multi-channel tracks putting you right into the middle of the action. Channel spacing is exciting letting dialog hold strong against all of the clatter and the big epic-scale score. Imaging is great as a lot of these fights will traverse any given location from a variety of angles. 

Now for those who hate reading subtitles, there is an English DTS-HD MA 5.1 dubbed track, that is just all right. It handles the workload well enough but it never reaches the same impact as the two Cantonese offerings and I’m also just not a fan of dubbing unless it's a schlocky Kaiju flick. 

Sadly there are no extra features for this release. 

Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In certainly doesn’t reinvent the Martial Arts genre, but it’s a welcome addition all the same. Solid performances from a great cast with a script that offers a character-driven story elevate this action-packed crime thriller from being a simple spectacle. Well Go USA delivers the film to 4K UHD here in the States with an excellent Dolby Vision transfer and DTS:X and Atmos mixes to match. The lack of bonus features is a bummer but that’s not enough to hold back from calling this disc a Recommended addition for the collection.