Blu-ray & 4K UHD release: 'The Blade'

The Criterion Collection is bringing the 1995 Hong Kong martial arts action drama ‘The Blade’ (刀) to US Blu-ray and 4K UHD on March 31, 2026.

Co-written and directed by Tsui Hark, the film follows a broken swordsman driven by vengeance in a world where martial heroism has lost its meaning. The cast includes Vincent Zhao, Moses Chan, Xiong Xin-Xin, Song Lei, and Austin Wai.

Synopsis: A young man, maimed by violence and hardened by loss, drifts into a ruthless martial underworld where survival depends on instinct rather than honour. As rivalries erupt and loyalties fracture, combat becomes chaotic and intimate, stripping swordplay of elegance and exposing a world governed by fear, obsession, and raw physical endurance. What begins as a pursuit of vengeance gradually turns into a confrontation with the emptiness left behind when heroism, community, and moral certainty have eroded.

Features:
• New 4K digital restoration
• Uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• New English subtitle translation
• One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR
• One Blu-ray with the film and special features
• New audio commentary featuring Frank Djeng
• Action et vérité (2006), a documentary featuring Tsui Hark, Koan Hui, and Xiong Xin-Xin
• New video essay by Taylor Ramos and Tony Zhou
• New York Asian Film Festival Q&A with Tsui from 2011
• Alternate English-dubbed track
• English-version opening and end credits
• Trailer
• An essay by author Lisa Morton
• New cover by Oliver Barrett

‘The Blade’ is available for pre-order now from Amazon.com.