Duel To The Death (1983) ****1/2

I used to own Duel To The Death (1983) on DVD and I remembered it being awesome, but it’s honestly even more awesome than I recalled. I am thrilled to own the film on Blu-ray (from a 2K restoration from the original film elements), thanks to Eureka Entertainment. Kickass fights, ninjas (and not just ninjas, but ninjas burrowing in sand, ninjas becoming invisible, ninjas flying through the air horizontally, kamikaze ninjas, multiple ninjas joining together to form a giant ninja, and a naked female ninja!), gravity-defying stunts, bold camerawork, a bombastic synth-heavy score—this contemplative, operatic, at times surreal wuxia has it all. Even in its most ridiculous, inexplicable moments, it’s almost never goofy and even when it is, it’s still really fun. DTTD provides a perfect bridge between the Lone Wolf And Cub series and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000), marrying the exploitation and far out qualities of the former and the grace and polish of the latter. A total blast and an impressive directorial debut from Siu-Tung Ching.