The Sparrow / Man jeuk (Johnnie To, 2008)

[Antoine Doinel]

Saw this tonight, and being a labour of love for To who shot it on and off, between projects, for three years, it certainly shows. It's hard to accurately describe the film, but it's a wonderful blend of a heist film, an homage to classic American filmmaking and a love letter to Hong Kong. The plot itself revolves around a quartet of con artist brothers who are roped into a job they didn't expect. But To here takes unravels the film a wonderfully (though at times excessively) languid pace. The film balances it's goofy comedy and dramatic arc effectively and builds into a final setpiece that involves little more than a downpour and a clever use of umbrellas. But the big standout for me was the soundtrack/score by Fred Avril and Xavier Jamaux. Big brassy, and sounding like Mancini by way of Asia, it perfectly captures the throwback feel of the film.

[A]

I also enjoyed the film very much when i saw it at the cinema. Initially I was expecting something else, a more serious film in the vein of his gangster dramas. But when you accept the film for what it is, it's very beautiful. Especially the last scene with the male heroes riding the bicycle stayed with me. This scene - and often the whole movie - has the feel of a relaxed Saturday afternoon, when you know you've accomplished something and can lean back a bit with a sense of self-respect. 8-)

But I don't recall the music in particular anymore. Did it have some allusions to the title's Sparrow btw., or am I recalling it wrong?

[planetjake]

I haven't even seen Mad Detective yet. Being that Exiled and Triad Election are among my favorite crime films ever, I really need to start living where you guys do.

[A]

It's not so much living in the right place, as it is spending your last bucks for travels to film festivals.
Otherwise I'm not sure I'd be able to catch this delightful film anywhere in this country (Germany) in regular distribution.

Btw: I haven't seen any of the To films you mention yet, so I should be the one who's jealous.

[Michael Kerpan]

The HK DVD is supposed to be released (with English subs) towards the end of August.

[JHunter]

The HK DVD is supposed to be released (with English subs) towards the end of August.

August 23rd, according to Twitch.com. Also, Johnnie To's "Exiled" has been given a Blu-ray release, so there's a chance that "Sparrow" might receive one soon as well (several high profile titles have received Blu-ray releases a month or two after their DVDs came out).

[Cde.]

Saw this today (in a cinema), and it's a complete blast.
While it drags in points (a result of the on-off-on three year shoot?), when it hits its stride it is wonderful. The film is essentially a string of set-pieces, but when they work they are beautiful, possessing an incredible grace to their constant motion and a deep understanding of cinema.

The climax (essentially extreme pick-pocketing, with rain, neon and umbrellas) is absolutely breathtaking.

[kaujot]

Any news on this coming over to the States? Dying to see it.

[foggy eyes]

Does anyone know if the R1 Tai Seng disc is essentially the same as the Hong Kong release? I can't seem to find any reviews online.

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

It's a straight port of Universe's HK release, which is standard practice for Tai Seng. The Tai Seng Blu-ray is a bit different, since it apparently adds the English subtitles missing from the special features of the HK BD (this isn't an issue with the HK DVD, which has subs for everything). I've seen the DVD and it's a serviceable release, but the transfer is interlaced, which is really inexcusable in this day and age. A lot of Universe's recent DVDs (including the PTU sequels) have the same problem.

Anybody waiting to see this may as well just pull the trigger and pick up the DVD or Blu-ray. If Tai Seng's released it, the odds of a U.S. theatrical release (outside the festival circuit) are close to zero.

[foggy eyes]

Great, thanks for the info. The R1 is a little cheaper than the HK, so I'll go with that. No UK release is on the cards (as far as I can tell).

[masterofoneinchpunch]

Review I did on this film and picture insert .

There are many facets to the brilliantly diverse career of director Johnnie To, but within these aspects there are many similarities that adhere to auteur sensibilities. He does not direct the same film over and over again but he has many thematic overtures and plot devices that will consistently turn up -- not always in the same film though. Sparrow is no different in that respect though it feels unique in To's oeuvre. Like PTU it was a personal project that took over three years to make. He would film a scene whenever he had the money and/or whenever he could get the principal actors to work when they were not busy with other projects. Its closest equivalent would be Yesterday Once More which deals with thieves and has a few similar characters and situations. While Yesterday Once More was influenced by the American crime caper especially the original The Thomas Crown Affair, this film was created to invoke a feeling of French New Wave cinema (in interviews To states specifically Umbrellas of Cherbourg as an influence). It is one of To's most lighthearted movies (not counting some of the silly romantic comedies he has co-directed or his earliest efforts like The Eighth Happiness) and one of his better directed efforts.

In Cantonese-slang the term Sparrow means a pickpocket. It is also a bird that one day decides to show up in Kei's (Simon Yam: The Mission, PTU) apartment while he was sewing. The pickpocket is Kei who is in charge of three other semi-competent thieves (this is the most common aspect of To's movies – the team and its dynamics). As soon as the sparrow enters his life and he debates the meaning of this with his partners a women enters their life. Chung Chun Lei (Kelly Lin: Fulltime Killer, Mad Detective) a mainland expatriate (whom is similar to Mona in Throw Down) bewitches all four separately and indirectly gets them beat up by associates of her old rich patron who controls her life and has every moment of her monitored. Mr. Fu Kim Tong (Lo Hoi-pan: PTU, Throw Down) is a cigar-smoking leader of a nefarious business and was once a great pickpocket himself. He has Chung's passport and even though he offers his fortune after he dies she does not want to be caged and wants her freedom.

It is eventually their pity on Chung and not her initial coquettishness that wins three of the four to help her get her freedom. Kei is the odd man out until a specific encounter with Mr. Fu threatens his manhood, livelihood and sense-of-honor.

While this film may be a bit laconic for some I found Sparrow to be one of my favorite films of 2008. It is beautifully shot, has an interesting characterization for Simon Yam and there are several sagacious scenes. One of these moments is where all four men ride the same bike (you have to see this, it is filmed quite beautifully) which symbolizes not only the team effort for this film (one of the most common themes in all of Johnnie To's oeuvre) but the actors themselves who destroyed several bikes while making this scene and spent so much time learning to balance while riding. Pickpocketing works better as a team effort (and you can certainly rake in more money), but you have to be in sync as well as completely trust your companions. Another great scene shows them put there skills together much like a similar scene in Robert Bresson's Pickpocket. One would expect there would be much more in common between these two films because of the subject matter but the underlying themes (with the exception of redemption) are quite different.

The funniest scene involves all four pickpockets trying to corner Chun Lei so they can get a better explanation on why they got beat-up because of her. They get stuck in an elevator (well three of them do; how they lose one of them is part of the hilarity) with two movers who are carrying a large glass case. The two movers make the mistake of interfering with the three much more dangerous characters.

The most sublime scene in the movie is the edifying climax involving a pickpocket duel amongst the rain and umbrellas. It is filmed (the filming alone on this scene took over two weeks) with such beautiful editing and splendorous slow-motion grandeur that you realize this Hong Kong and French hybrid works astoundingly well. There are several subtle moments to it so it helps to view it a few times.

While the film is not perfect and portrays several of the characters as more ornamental then full-bodied humans, I found Sparrow to be a fun and rich experience. It is full of jaunty incidents with superficial references to various French film auteurs from Jean-Pierre Melville (of course the birdcages in this film also make you think of John Woo who is also a Melville fan) to Francis Truffaut. But To does this with a mixture of themes and situations that are important to him from team spirit, rooftop encounters*, wayward souls and Lam Suet. Johnnie To uses the splendid older Hong Kong locations to great effect (one of the main reasons he made this film was to document older buildings of Hong Kong that may not be around much longer because of the constant creative destruction and renovation) – this helps with the feeling of timelessness in the movie. This is especially evident when much of the stills through the credits show the buildings. Plus the music which is another hybrid of Eastern and Western influences by Xavier Jamaux and Fred Avril (whom To worked with in Mad Detective) which evokes a feeling of quirky nostalgia for a time and place that has never existed but in the mind of Johnnie To. That is one of the many reasons I love this film.

The US DVD for this is an R1 Tai Seng/Universe release (that should be exactly the same as the R3 Universe release) that has no commentary but several worthwhile interviews with Simon Yam, Lam Ka Tung, Johnnie To and Kelly Lin, a press conference at the Berlin Film Festival, a making of and a Gala Premiere.

* The rooftop is an important allegory in Hong Kong film. Many times the only way to escape the busy populace is to go up and obtain a measure of humanity by being a godlike place where you view the ants below. It is also an escape where you can either find another building to hop to (common in American urban action films) or find the ultimate escape by death (Infernal Affairs, Royal Warriors).

One reason to watch this film:

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

No UK release is on the cards (as far as I can tell).

Better late than never?

[Finch]

The Universe Blu-Ray has English subs for both the feature and featurettes, and the A/V is excellent.

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

You sure about that? The Blu-ray.com review (by pro-bassoonist) says outright it doesn't have subs on the extras (here's another writer who reached the same conclusion). I understand the Tai Seng BD does, but this seems to be OOP now -- YesAsia is the only retailer stocking it and they want over $50!

[Finch]

My bad, folks! I got the titles mixed up. The Mega Star Blu-Ray of Exiled (2006) has english subs for the making of (unlike the DVD) whereas the Universe Blu of Sparrow does NOT - sincere apologies if I got anyone's hopes up.

[broadwayrock]

The other titles that Terracotta have released have been DVD only, so its doubtful they'll release Sparrow on Blu-ray.

[The Elegant Dandy Fop]

Just a little thing that's nice to share, but I picked up the Hong Kong Blu-Ray after seeing my first To, Mad Detective, about two years ago and feel in love with the film. That aside, it has a trailer that's picks up perfectly the style of old Hollywood trailers that's too good not to share. Very rarely do trailers stick with me after watching the film, but this is one of the rare exceptions where the trailer is just a joy to watch in itself and serves more than just a curiosity, in my opinion.

[zombeaner]

The other titles that Terracotta have released have been DVD only, so its doubtful they'll release Sparrow on Blu-ray.

No blu-ray, but they are releasing a 3 disc set with soundtrack CD and Johnnie To documentary.

[cowboydan]

Does anyone know where I might find a blu-ray copy of this? Hong Kong or Canada/US version is fine. Is it OOP?

[feihong]

A quick look at most of the places I shop suggest that it's out of print. DDDHouse also says on their site it's out of print.

[cowboydan]

Yeah, it looks out of print. Even on jsdvd it shows "in-stock" but I emailed them and they said they have none in-stock. So, I scoured the Chinese language side of the web and found copies in a couple places. I think I'm going to buy it on Taiwan Yahoo Auctions and use a package forwarding service. I hope it works!

[feihong]

I hope Masters of Cinema has their eyes on this movie after Throwdown. This is one that could really use a higher–quality presentation.

[cowboydan]

Dang. I bought Sparrow on Taiwan Yahoo Auctions and I'm pretty sure it's a bootleg. The back cover and spine don't match whats online. The case has spots for 2 discs, but there's only one disc. It's a BD-R. It only has 2 of the 4 audio tracks listed. It immediately goes to the disc menu with no trailers, logos, or warnings/disclaimers. All that being said, its decent for a bootleg as far as I can tell. But I hope Eureka, Well Go USA or another label can give Sparrow a legit release in the west.

[yoloswegmaster]

I hope Masters of Cinema has their eyes on this movie after Throwdown. This is one that could really use a higher–quality presentation.

I'd rather they release 'The Mission' or 'Fat Choi Spirit'. I don't think 'The Mission' has had a proper blu release yet.