Comparison between the cut British VHS from AVR Home Entertainment and the uncut German Blu-ray from TG Vision / Cargo Records

 

- 12 missing bits
- Difference: 111.2 sec (= 1:51 min) [in PAL].

Of these, one with a duration of 73.5 sec is probably just a tape break on this VHS copy*.

 

Jaka Sembung aka The Warrior was the first of five films in 1981 in which the Indonesian superstar Barry Prima was duly staged with wild jungle action trash. The German version was cut by mainly some plot scenes but in the UK, there was a different version on VHS. Here, the two main violent moments (Jaka gets his eyes gouged out + the crazy operation by a miracle healer) were deliberately toned down and a moment involving animal violence was also omitted.

The German Blu-ray premiere has been available from TG Vision / Cargo Records since April 26, 2024. For the first time in Germany, the main version is the uncut version. A small image error in the HD master, which has already been used in America for VOD, has also been corrected and the old/shorter German version has been reconstructed from the same master as a bonus.

 

Running times are arranged according to the scheme
British VHS in 25fps / German Blu-ray in 23.976fps

 

* Unfortunately, our copy for comparison had some issues in the 56th minute. The defect is probably unintentional, but has been included for the sake of completeness (and because of the brief moment of animal violence, which may actually have been censored).

The film title has been replaced in the credits in the 4th minute, while the remaining credits are identical. As is so often the case, only this opening credits sequence is distorted in height so that the credits are still legible despite the full screen. We also added two screenshots from later scenes in the film to illustrate the brutally zoomed Pan&Scan image and the poor picture quality of the VHS.

British VHS	German Blu-ray

19:02 / 19:02-19:04

A moment is lost when the scene changes from Jaka to inside.

1.3 sec


38:13 / 38:14-38:15

Probably the start of the third reel: Another few irrelevant frames during the scene transition.

0.6 sec


At 43:50 there was brief alternative footage of a scene in the prison in the original HD master in the form of a shot of the woman from the side (= used twice from another scene), whereas you could actually see another shot of the corridor here. On the German Blu-ray, the correct shot has been included again, as in all earlier releases (and especially the German and British VHS) of the film.

Original HD master (USA)	German Blu-ray

46:35 / 46:37-46:38

When Jaka gets his eyes gouged out, the bloody puncture is missing right at the beginning.

0.7 sec

46:36 / 46:39-46:41

The weapon is pulled out again from the same perspective, then another stab from a different angle.

2.2 sec

56:15 / 56:20-56:24

Animal violence: The beginning of the shot is missing, with several men bludgeoning the wild boar.

3.8 sec

Partial tape defect
56:26 / 56:35-57:49

After a shot of bludgeoning from a slightly more distant perspective was included in the meantime, another shot of the people bludgeoning the boar is missing. However, a segment lasting a little over a minute is lost here anyway (obviously unintentionally) on our tape copy, which probably should not be missing. With a clear jump and a tape malfunction, we skip straight to a subsequent scene. Maria actually runs away for a while and in the forest she encounters a bear (?), a crocodile and a tiger. The shot of her in front of the tree begins a little earlier.

73.5 sec (= 1:14 min) .

62:46 / 64:09-64:18

In the same shot, the doctor reaches for another tool and exposes the eye. The subsequent shot of him also begins a little earlier.

9.2 sec

62:47 / 64:19-64:25

With a jump cut, a new shot of the makeshift surgery is lost between two shots of the doc: a flap of skin is folded up.

5.8 sec

In general, the cuts here are bumbling and extremely noticeable, as without all the gory detail shots are constantly followed by jump cuts of shots of the doc from slightly different perspectives.


62:53 / 64:31-64:37

Another close-up and after a cut to the doc, the eye clearly stands out.

6.1 sec

62:56 / 64:40-64:46

The eyes are finally popped out.

6.6 sec

63:42 / 65:32-65:33

Small jump cut during the shot of the leaves.

0.8 sec


70:54 / 72:55-72:56

When the scene changes, the men sit down a little earlier to pray.

0.6 sec