Compared are the cut US Version aka Police Force and the uncut Hong Kong Theatrical Version (both available on the UK Blu-ray by Eureka! Entertainment)


- 22 cuts
- Length difference: 750.8 sec (= 12:31 min)

A few minor jump cuts with a length of less than 0.5 sec have not been listed in the following comparison.

The Export Version of Jackie Chan's Police Story

Whoever calls himself an action fan or somehow sympathises with Jackie Chan should know Police Story. There's no more obligatory program, so straight to the versions. As is well known, the German cinema/video release lacked whole minutes 16 of action/comedy scenes and there was often talk of an export version. We confirm what we had already noticed in the past with the British, Dutch and American VHS with this cut report: The German version was actually basedon a film version produced for export, but the German distributor only made a longer, additional cut at the court hearing scene for evaluation in Germany.

All further cuts in the export version are therefore to be objected to in the same way as in the first German release. Thus, various things were tightened right at the opening scene in the village and with the anxious colleague even a short shooting is missing. Then some TV interviews for Jackie, more scenes with the burglar simulating colleague Mars, further dialogues during the trial as well as the funny telephone confusion scene with Jackie and more detailed moaning before the kidnapping of the police director. All in all clear streamlining cuts for the western audience which is more interested in action.

It can also be emphasized that the export version has been given a new synthesizer score, which gives the whole thing a bit more kick, e.g. right at the opening scene in the village which most German fans have probably learned to love. Shortly before the trial you will also find a short additional scene where Selina switches on the tape recorder. All in all not such a bad option to watch the movie. Especially because of the different soundtracks and otherwise unavoidable language changes, one can only hope that the export version of the HD master will finally be reconstructed with the new German Blu-ray, promised by Nameless Media of course only in addition to the uncut original version.

The 4K Restoration and the UK Blu-ray

The question of version is also exciting in that, according to a user in contact with the label comments in the Blu-ray.com forum, that no changes to the delivered 4K master were permitted. The reason for the present cut report is the british Blu-ray set by Eureka! available since 20 August 2018. The new 4K restoration released here for the first time (see Review) caused controversial forum discussions, as the editing of L'Immagine Ritrovata - as already before in admittedly more extreme form at amongst other things Once upon a time in America or Two glorious scoundrels - had a slightly yellowish tint. Black level and contrast do not seem to be quite correct either. In any case only the original version was restored, which was also shown in Hong Kong at the theatre and is included on the last German DVDs/Blu-rays with original soundtrack for the scenes missing in the export version.

Nevertheless, the film looks far better than all previous home cinema releases (see image comparison with the German Blu-ray from LJSilver), as only one SD upscale was released on Blu-ray before. The only exception was the Japanese HD-Masters, which also contains the local long version - with small restrictions compared to the laserdisc, more about that later. Fortunately, this HD master can also be found on board the British Blu-ray, with English subtitles for the first time. Japanese subtitles are also firmly burned into the picture on the side, but you get used to them quite quickly.

And also the US version is a third, again only in SD available master. Possibly only in this form, as one was not allowed to reconstruct this shorter film version with the new 4K source.

In October 2018, the 4K restoration of Police Story will also appear in Scandinavia, and in November in Japan. It remains to be seen to what extent other film versions will be included or whether the quality of the 4K source will be improved. And as already said, a German release has already been promised, but there is no release date yet.



Time index refers to
US Version (UK Blu-ray) / Original Version (UK Blu-ray)


Please note:

Of Police Story 2 the longer Japanese version is also available as a new 4K restoration in the British Blu-ray set. The Hong Kong theatrical version and the shorter export version are stored in SD as a bonus. The export version was reviewed here individually and turned out to be 1:1 identical to old German FSK 16 version.

Fortune Star logo at the very beginning.
Not considered as length difference.

36.4 sec

Subsequent to the identically equal Golden Harvest logo, only the Hong Kong theatrical version contains a Golden Way logo as well.
Not considered as length difference.

16.7 sec

The following opening credits only in English vs. with Chinese characters. The US version is longer here - compensation for the previous alteration if you will.
Not considered as length difference.

US Version 16.3 sec longer

US Version	Hong Kong Theatrical Version

01:25 / 02:01-02:07

At the briefing you can see the bad guy Ko talking on the phone, then his bodyguard is introduced.
The following shot, in which Li continues to point at the gangsters standing in front of the screen, was also robbed of its beginning.

6.2 sec

01:30 / 02:13-02:23

Ko makes a phone call and then gets out of the car after a comment in Selina's direction. Blaster jumps at Max in the first shot.

9.9 sec

Right at the first chaos during the preparation in the village the other score is very conspicuous. Every connoisseur of the German version probably still has the fast-paced melody in his head, but in the original the musical background only becomes more noticeable later in the shootings.


06:54 / 07:47-07:58

At the beginning of the film a policeman named Frank jumps out of his cover and shoots his mirror image including the mirror.

10.8 sec

06:59 / 08:03-08:46

During the battle he meets Kevin, who notices his trembling hand and calms him down. Another cop is hit and Kevin pulls him out of the danger zone.

43.2 sec

07:03 / 08:50-09:31

Kevin's helping the injured man. Frank shoots his whole magazine nervously, whereupon he gets a new weapon from Kevin and the instruction to help his colleague.
The next shot starts a little earlier. The US version starts when Kevin is already standing in front of the poster.

41 sec

07:33 / 10:01-10:19

Inconspicuous incision, between the shot of Kevin running away and the one when he turns to Ko standing in the other direction.
Frank shoots an thug and then pisses his pants in agitation.

17.7 sec

17:22-17:24 / 20:08-20:58

Bill and Li are seen a little longer at the press conference at the end, then a scene is missing in which Kevin is styled for a TV show and is supposed to pose in his motorcycle cop clothes.
However, Kevin doesn't get along with the director's instructions at all and reacts to her constantly new instructions in the end only with an exaggerated grimace. But it doesn't help, he has to arrest a supposed gangster with a tortured expression on his face and pose with a life jacket on a small boat.

The US version only showed the individual shots from the cameras (for the sake of clarity this was summarized here), so that the impression is created that Bill and Li are being photographed.

Hong Kong Theatrical Version 47.9 sec longer

28:25 / 31:59-32:11

After Kevin's colleague Mars took Selina to the ground by jump, you can see her lying on the ground longer exhausted in the Hong Kong theatrical version.
Meanwhile Mars has got up and pulls up the mask again, so that he can see something out of the eye slits again. Then he lies down on the ground again and continues to scare Selina with the knife.

12.3 sec

28:29 / 32:15-32:20

After jumping on a table, he bumps his head against a lamp. Mars turns angrily to Selina again and you can see her in the corner for a moment.

5 sec

29:40 / 33:31-33:37

Kevin "dances" a bit longer with his colleague, who is now unconscious.

6.4 sec

29:59 / 33:57-34:07

Again. Kevin keeps Mars on his feet by biting his way into his mask.

9.8 sec

Additional Scene US Version
42:48-42:50 / 46:56

The curious additional moment of the US version / export version: When Kevin just closed the door again (in the HK theatrical version a few frames longer), you can only see here in close-up how Selina turns on the tape recorder under her jacket.

US Version 2 sec longer

US Version	Hong Kong Theatrical Version