Kwaidan is my most desired blu-ray upgrade. I had the Laser Disc and it was stunning at the time. I've read there is a longer version but never anything to back it up. I suspect Criterion will upgrade Ikiru.
If you're interested in Japanese gangster films, Arrow USA has released Massacre Gun with Joe Shishido and Tatsuya Fuji.
It's out of print now, but Masters of Cinema's Blu-ray box of late Mizoguchi films is a towering achievement. Anyone lucky enough to find one now at something resembling a reasonable price should not hesitate, so long as Region B discs aren't a problem.
I watched this one recently and left a little disappointed. I guess I was expecting a searing masterpiece like Branded To Kill and instead got a solid mob film.
I don't have that one yet - I've been holding out for a better price at Amazon UK, but it seems to have shot back up to a bit over GBP45 after being down around GBP29 as recently as last week. Should've probably just bit the bullet then instead of waiting and hoping it would drop a few more pounds. I've also read diametrically opposed reviews of the picture quality, with DVD Beaver claiming it was a significant upgrade over what was previously available, and others saying it looked pretty bad. I'm inclined to trust DVD Beaver over the naysayers.
I suppose some people expect them to have the clarity of a big studio production shot with a digital camera and 4K scan. I don't have those expectations from Japanese films done in the 1930s and I enjoy the films none the less. Here is another viewpoint if you haven't read it already from someone whose reviews I trust. http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Mizoguchi-Collection-Blu-ray/36699/#Review
I'm seeing it @ £25 right now: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mizoguchi-C...UTF8&qid=1429095169&sr=8-1&keywords=mizoguchi
Yes, looks like the price spike was very brief. I had a price alert set up and caught the drop earlier today. Looks like my procrastination wound up saving me four pounds and change after all.
Well, the negative comments I was referring to were from people who seem to have had reasonable expectations given the preservation status of the films (I think preservation status is much more important than age, as a film shot 100 years ago can look spectacular if the source materials were well-preserved and transferred competently). Quoting two of the Amazon reviewers: Since I have the Eclipse DVD set, I'll have to do a quick A-B comparison once the Blu set shows up. I've got the old Criterion laserdisc of Osaka Elegy as well, and neither it nor the Eclipse DVD have ever looked that great, but I'm certainly grateful that these films have survived in any viewable state.
Kaneto Shindo's The Naked Island 'Hadaka no shima' was made, in the words of its director, "as a 'cinematic poem' to try and capture the life of human beings struggling like ants against the forces of nature."
I upgraded to the Criterion blu-ray's for Tokyo Drifter and Sword of Doom when released. If you are referring to Takashi Miike's 13 Assassins, I haven't seen it yet. If that is the one, you might want to check out the 1963 version by Eiichi Kudo along with his Eleven Samurai and The Great Killing.
I'd like to see something not 60 years old with swords or kimonos. Any Japanese recommendations 2000-2015? No swords!
Battle Royale Brother Departures Dolls Eureka Hula Girls Inugami Marebito Nobody Knows Still Walking Tetsuo: The Bullet Man Tokyo Sonata Warm Water Under a Red Bridge
The longer version was released on DVD in both Japan and the UK. 182 or 183 minutes, take your choice. A comparison was made here almost 9 years ago with an image from the longer version included.
