The child's first laugh is so startling, so cold, so frightening and so unexpected. The film is at times a romance, a thriller, a chiller and even comes close to the supernatural as the eerie chords of Xia Ru-jin's musical score reverberate through the rafters of the wooden structure where this tragic tale unfolds. The many startling images will stay with you long after the film's fiery finish. Ju Dou is delivered in a reasonable DVD state. White English subtitles are not removable.
Titles are slightly jittery .
There is some slight color pulsing and in some scenes, fine detail is less than stable. Overall sharpness is more than adequate. The expression of the actors is always clearly revealed. Happily, color saturation is vital and stable. Reds against yellow bolts of fabric are rich with no bleeding.