88 Films UK Blu-ray Synopsis: Not to be confused with the various retellings of Poe's famous tale, Black Cat is a high-octane Hong Kong action thriller that provides a hugely entertaining precursor to the likes of Tarantino's Kill Bill Vol. 1 (2003) and south Korean cult classic, The Villainess (2017). When Catherine (Jade Leung), a mentally disturbed young woman, is detained by the police after accidentally killing a truck driver, she finds herself part of a covert training system. Programmed as an assassin, having learned a host of new deadly skills, she becomes a lethal government weapon, codenamed Black Cat. Director Stephen Shin (Brotherhood, Easy Money, Black Cat 2), had initially intended to make a straight-up remake of Luc Besson's La Femme Nikita (1990) but when Disney bought out the rights he was forced to rethink. His solution was Black Cat, a slick, action-packed gun-toting thrill ride. (96 Mins)

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Vinegar Syndrome US Blu-ray Synopsis: After brutally killing an abusive trucker at a rest stop, tough as nails drifter Catherine soon finds herself facing life in prison due to her violent outbursts. But, when a daring escape from the courthouse leaves her all but dead, Catherine awakens to she's been given another lease on life, the only catch: she must train to become an assassin for the CIA under the codename Black Cat. With the tutelage of fellow agent, Brian (Simon Yam, Ip Man), Catherine must learn to give up any chance of a normal life if she wishes to remain alive. Known to many as the 'Hong Kong version of La Femme Nikita', BLACK CAT manages to separate itself from its predecessor thanks in part to the intense martial arts sequences captured by director Stephen Shin (Easy Money), as well as a stellar performance from the lovely but deadly Jade Leung (Satin Steel, Enemy Shadow). (96 Mins)

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Cargo Movies German Mediabook Blu-ray Synopsis: Catherine is violent and emotionally unstable young woman who has already killed someone. During a violent outburst, she is kidnapped by a CIA unit. The agency gives her a choice of imprisonment or service as a government assassin. Catherine soon chooses freedom and undergoes rigorous training. She is drilled into the ultimate killing machine, and in the end, Catherine becomes BLACK CAT. She ruthlessly eliminates all her assigned targets. Everything is going perfectly, but when she discovers her feelings for a man, it plunges her into utter despair. Because this very man is on her death list... (96 Mins)

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Made In Hong Kong UK VHS Synopsis: After blowing away her sleazy attacker and an American cop during a vicious pit-stop rape, wild Chinese street kid Catherine (the exquisite Jade Leung) is offered an ultimatum by the suave and sinister Simon Yam (Bullet In The Head; Full Contact) – a new identity as a C.I.A. Killer, or the electric chair. Months of agonizing training later, reborn as Black Cat, she is unleashed on Hong Kong for her first mission of death. Assassination follows successful assassination, but the web of secrecy and deceit which surrounds her clandestine operations begins to threaten her own life and the lives of those around her as she is drawn towards inevitable bloody tragedy. Intense, explosive and sumptuously shot, Hong Kong mogul Dickson Poon's sexy and violent remake of Luc Besson's international hit 'Nikita' blasted Oriental femme fatale Jade Leung onto the big screen and spawned an immediate, equally successful sequel. (93 Mins)

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Views: While it may have been influenced by the international success of Luc Besson's hit film La Femme Nikita from the year before, I have to say that I enjoyed Stephen Shin's Black Cat that little bit more. Of course, as a fan of Hong Kong cinema for almost 40 years, some people would say that I was just being bias – but I don't care. Jade Leung's explosive introduction as a Hong Kong action-starlet is just fantastic. From the gritty and violent opening that sees her get attacked and abused by a would-be rapist trucker, to the beatings she takes in jail from the officers on duty, Jade Leung proves her worth from the get-go and hardly lets-up until the films closing credits. Leung plays Catherine, young down-on-her-luck Chinese girl living in America who is abused and beaten by those around her, before being left for dead after a shot from a mysterious gunman. While hooked-up to her life support, the doctors implant a small micro-chip in her brain known as the Black Cat. Once she awakens, Catherine is visited by a CIA agent who explains the situation. Stealing his gun, she tries to escape from the facility but quickly finds that there is nowhere else to run. From there, the distraught and wounded girl is put through some painful and intense training in order to make her one of the CIA's deadliest assassins. Once ready, Catherine – now known as Black Cat – is sent on a number of missions to kill, but soon finds herself trying to keep a healthy work/life balance when she finds a new lover by her side as well as many secrets that burden her future!

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I love Black Cat! It's fun,it's stylish, and it's violent, with some gorgeously framed cinematography and wicked stunt work. It has shades of John Woo's The Killer, Clarence Fok's Naked Killer, and Doug Liman's Bourne Identity (long before that was around), and although it may not be perfect, the film still provides an incredible rush of entertainment that bagged Leung the award for Best Newcomer at the 11th Hong Kong Film Awards. While it dips its toes into the realm of Category 3 sex and violence, Black Cat only just manages to escape the infamous film rating due to some clever direction and editing – but there is still certainly enough nudity, brutality, and gritty action to keep fans of the genre hooked. The first half of the film is set in the United States, although has been quite obviously filmed in Canada for the most part which is made obvious by the stunning scenery in the majority of the shots. While she gets to work on one explosive assignment there, the Black Cat is then sent to Hong Kong (with the new name of Erica) where she is given a number of missions to take down weapons dealers, dodgy businessmen, and killers. It's here that she also meets Allen, a handsome tour-guide who she caught taking her picture right after a kill, and although he didn't actually witness her do it, Catherine still sets out to that evening to kill him at his home. But as she hides under his bed waiting for the right moment to strike, the assassin soon finds that he shares her love for the harmonica and catches sight of his sweet cheeks when he pops into the shower. Enamoured, Catherine has a change of heart and makes a point of meeting up with him the next day. Allen is played by Thomas Lam, a good looking actor that is probably more recognised for his television work as well as roles in films like the fun '92 Legendary La Rose Noire, Banana Club, and Midnight Caller, and although he does a decent enough job, I think it's fair to say that Lam doesn't exactly ooze the same screen presence as the likes of Andy Lau, Tony Leung Chi Wai, or even Simon Yam who also co-stars with him here. This, in turn, may provide one of the more lacking qualities of the film for some people, with many saying that his performance is quite bland in comparison to the energy portrayed by Leung. Of course, the great Simon Yam really needs no introduction and although he plays one of the few strong characters of the film, was really appearing in an extended bit-part as Leung's CIA handler and controller. This was only 1 of 13 films Yam would be starring in that year, so it's easy to forgive him for not being in every other scene – especially when half of the film was shot in Canada. Back in Hong Kong, Simon would be kept busy with films such as Queens High with Cynthia Khan, The Queen Of Gamble, Gigolo & Whore, Mission Of Condor, Bullet For Hire, In The Line Of Duty 7: Sea Wolves, and more. And finally popular western actor Louis Roth, the writer of Ringo Lam's Undeclared War, and assistant director of Moon Lee's fun Little Heroes Lost In China (of which was also his last starring role before his death) appears as one of Simon Yam's CIA superiors and man behind the Black Cat program...

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For her 'first' leading role, Jade Leung was certainly given a challenge when bringing Catherine to life. As she had previously mentioned in an interview, the actress had only watched the original film once but refused to watch it again so that she could bring her own flavour to the character. In doing so, Jade managed to impress the jury enough at the Hong Kong Film Awards (winning Best Newcomer as mentioned) and carved a healthy enough career in the Hong Kong film industry from then on. After living with her parents in Switzerland for a number of years, the former model returned to Hong Kong in 1990 to participate in the Miss Asia beauty pageant. She was soon then discovered by Dickson Poon and Stephen Shin to star in Black Cat, where she would sign-up for a six picture deal for D&B Films after the films great success. But after Black Cat 2: The Assassination Of President Yeltsin failed to deliver the same results, Jade's contract was revoked and the company (unfortunately) came to a close. It's such a shame considering how many great Hong Kong films D&B were behind, with titles such as The Return Of Pom Pom, Owl Vs Bumbo, Yes Madam, Where's Officer Tuba?, Royal Warriors, Legacy Of Rage, the Tiger Cage and In The Line Of Duty series – and so much more. Of course, Dickson Poon would be just as renowned as the tycoon owner of London's Harvey Nicholl's store, as well as owning a host of successful jewellery stores and being the former husband of the beautiful Michelle Yeoh – of whom he had also helped bring to the industry. From 1986 through to 1992, director and producer Stephen Shin worked exclusively for D&B Films starting with Brotherhood starring Danny Lee, and ending with Black Cat 2 respectively. But when the company shut down, Shin would continue to produce for more independent companies with films such as Zen Of Sword, Taxi Hunter, White Lotus Cult, and Sam The Iron Bridge – eventually directing his final piece of the 20th century with the wonderfully titled historical drama, The Great Conqueror's Concubine for Zhang Yimou in 1994. It would be almost a decade later that Shin would return to the directors chair with The Source of Love, and over a decade after that before returning once again with the U.S. co-produced feature, On Wings Of Eagles, starring Joseph Fiennes and Shawn Dou.

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Apart from Jade Leung, there are two other things that really stand out for me in Black Cat. The first is the incredibly well-shot cinematography – captured by no less than 3 cameramen, and perhaps one for each location with the film having been shot in Canada, Hong Kong, and Japan. The first is Lee Kin Keung, a cinematographer who has captured many of Shin's works and titles including Tiger Cage 1 & 2, All's Well End's Well, Once Upon A time A Hero In China, Daughter Of Darkness 1 & 2, and Forbidden City Cop. He is joined by Cheng Siu Keung – the DOP of many great Hong Kong titles, including a host of Johnnie To films like The Mission, Running Out Of Time, Fulltime Killer, and Running On Karma, as well as being the director of the Shin produced White Lotus Cult and D&B Films very own In The Line Of Duty 6: Forbidden Arsenal and In The Line Of Duty 7: Sea Wolves with Cynthia Khan. Cheng would also serve on Black Cat as Shin's executive director. Then there is Wong Po Man, a DOP and cinematographer who has been behind such titles such as Happy Ghost 5, King Of Robbery, Drunken Monkey, Shanghai Shanghai, Operation Scorpio, First Shot, and many more. Between the the three of them, they have managed to deliver and incredible beautiful, artistic, and stunningly shot piece of Hong Kong cinema that has only been heightened even more by this stunning 2K restored Blu-ray release from 88 Films. The second would be the incredible action on offer from the film's action-directors Benz Kong and Poon Kin Kwan, both of whom make Jade Leung look like she's done this kind of thing for years as they deliver a host of powerful shoot-outs, stunts, and explosive action that highly impresses. Both names have been involved in the industry for some time, from acting to action-choreography in many great titles, with Kong going on to direct the fun Twins Mission for producer Tsui Siu Ming in 2007 – doubling up as the action-choreographer for it's stars Charlene Choi, Gillian Chung, Wu Jing, Sammo Hung, Yuen Wah, and many others. And I mustn't forget to mention that awesome soundtrack either!

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Overall: Beautifully shot, action-packed, and debuting Jade Leung in an award winning role, Black Cat is a classic Hong Kong action movie of the early 90's well worth watching!

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88 Films Blu-ray Extras: 2K Restoration, Audio Commentary with Mike Leeder & Arne Venema, Audio Commentary with Frank Djeng, Interview with Jade Leung, Trailers

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Vinegar Syndrome Blu-ray Extras: 2K Restoration, Audio Commentary by Samm Deighan, Interviews with Jade Leung & Benz Kong, Trailer, Image Gallery

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Cargo Movies Mediabook Blu-ray Extras: Trailers, Image gallery

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Watch my unboxing video for the 88 Films release HERE

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Watch my unboxing video for the Vinegar Syndrome release HERE

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Watch my unboxing video for the Cargo Movies release HERE