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L.A. wrote:Received the Japanese disc of What Made Her Do It? just now and English subs are there. The running time is 78 minutes (so PAL-version would be 74 minutes, correct?).　Nice booklet is included (in Japanese) and extras department offer photo galleries and a 35-minute fragment of a surviving film which I'm unable to identify. Anyone know the name of the title in question?

It is from Suzuki's 1927 yami no tejina (闇の手品), which literally means "magic in darkness".

^ Again, thanks for your help. Really appreciate it.

4K restoration of Kurosawa's Ran trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwP_kXyd-Rw

Notice that the image looks like it has been DNR-ed. Then I found that Ran was restored by Eclair Laboratory which previously ruined Children of Paradise and The Earrings of Madame de...Damn it!

I'm trying to determine which Ozu films have received Japanese Blu-rays that are worth picking up because they're from 4K restorations and/or are superior to their US or UK counterparts. Late Spring seems to be one; is Good Morning another? Any others? Criterion's Tokyo Story is from the 4K resto so I'm not counting that one (i.e. there doesn't seem to be an advantage in picking up the Japanese disc in that case.)

So far there have been six Ozu restorations released in Japan , Tokyo Story which as you say has also been released by Criterion ,
Late Spring which I think was a crowd funded restoration ,
plus four colour films released individually or as a box set " Color 4 Ozu " containing Equinox Flower , Good Morning , Late Autumn and Autumn afternoon.
All six have English subtitles , I'm not qualified to comment on their technical quality but they looked very good to me.

longstone wrote:So far there have been six Ozu restorations released in Japan , Tokyo Story which as you say has also been released by Criterion ,
Late Spring which I think was a crowd funded restoration ,
plus four colour films released individually or as a box set " Color 4 Ozu " containing Equinox Flower , Good Morning , Late Autumn and Autumn afternoon.
All six have English subtitles , I'm not qualified to comment on their technical quality but they looked very good to me.

That is fantastically helpful--thank you!!

Criterion's release of An Autumn Afternoon is from the new restoration also so there's no point in getting that either.

EddieLarkin wrote:Criterion's release of An Autumn Afternoon is from the new restoration also so there's no point in getting that either.

Ah, good to know, thanks!

I know that if help can be found in this matter, it's you who can deliver.

Now, The Tale of Genji is one of my all-time favourite books, and as I'm currently reading the new Dennis Washburn translation (and enjoying, no, savouring every moment of it, by the way), I was wondering if there's something you'd recommend in terms of film adaptations? I'd love to see the Yoshimura version, but I suppose that's unavailable beyond any remedy.

I haven't seen any of the numerous adaptations (which include several TV versions, one of them animated), but the Yoshimura film does have an R2J release—almost certainly without English subs, but it sounds like you're more than familiar with the story, so you should at least be able to follow the narrative with no problems.

The Fanciful Norwegian wrote:I haven't seen any of the numerous adaptations (which include several TV versions, one of them animated), but the Yoshimura film does have an R2J release—almost certainly without English subs, but it sounds like you're more than familiar with the story, so you should at least be able to follow the narrative with no problems.

Wow, thanks for that!

StevenJ0001 wrote: Criterion's Tokyo Story is from the 4K resto so I'm not counting that one (i.e. there doesn't seem to be an advantage in picking up the Japanese disc in that case.)

The color on the Japanese disc is very different than that of the US version. Of course, the film is in b&w, but the image on the J-disc has a near sepia quality. The US is more conventional looking. I don't know why the Shochiku release is the way it is, but I like it. It's nice having both versions for comparisons sake.

Funimation have licensed the 2K restoration of Mitsuyo Seo's Momotaro's Divine Sea Warriors for the US (which they will seemingly release under the title Momotaro Sacred Sailors), with Anime Limited taking it for the UK. It screened in the Cannes Classics section earlier this month and there's more information about the restoration here.

The Blu-ray of the restored Early Summer is now available for pre-order at Amazon JP.

Does anyone know whether the Shochiku Blu-ray of The Rendezvous (Saito Koichi, 1972) has English subtitles?

No, only Japanese subs, I'm afraid.

Occasionally, Japanese releases come with un-advertised English subs. I was hoping this was one of those occasions. Oh well ...

Thanks for the reply!

Out of the blue, Toei is releasing on DVD Tai Kato's "Sasuke and His Comedians," or "Brave Records of the Sanada Clan." The street date is October 5th. No English subtitles listed, as can generally be expected. The details listed on Amazon include the mention of it being 16:9, but also a single-layer DVD. They really went overboard for this release––almost like they had the disc ready some time in the last century and just forgot to release it until now.

Nonetheless, I'm very excited for this one. It's a film that gets a very intriguing review in the TimeOut Film Guide, and I've been waiting to see it for years and years. Hopefully some intrepid fan will subtitle it. Recent releases of Tai Kato films have had their fan subtitles.

artfilmfan wrote:The Blu-ray of the restored Early Summer is now available for pre-order at Amazon JP.

Here are some in-browser comparisons between the BFI blu-ray and the new Shochiku one. The improvement in stability is very, very impressive:
Sample 1, sample 2

But it sounds dreadful.
https://vimeo.com/182635098" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A few more details, if anyone's interested.

feihong wrote:Out of the blue, Toei is releasing on DVD Tai Kato's "Sasuke and His Comedians," or "Brave Records of the Sanada Clan." The street date is October 5th. No English subtitles listed, as can generally be expected. The details listed on Amazon include the mention of it being 16:9, but also a single-layer DVD. They really went overboard for this release––almost like they had the disc ready some time in the last century and just forgot to release it until now.

For those who haven't seen it, Sanada Fuunroku (真田風雲録, 1963) is a delightful jidaigeki musical parody with political overtones (particularly relevant to the student-led U.S.-Japan Security Treaty demonstrations) which had only been available on a long out of print and very expensive VHS. Toei's release of this film is one of several new-to-DVD releases of his work at the studio which coincides with the director's centennial. Also on 10/5, Toei is releasing:

• Eighteen Years Imprisonment (1967, 懲役十八年) a compelling prison drama starring real life yakuza-turned-actor Ando Noboru
  To the Bone (骨までしゃぶる, 1966) a realistic depiction of the the lives of Meiji-era geisha
  A Woman Gambler of the Showa era (昭和おんな博徒, 1972) a Red Peony Gambler-like tale of a woman yakuza played by Enami Kyoko

Shochiku have also announced upcoming DVD and Blu-ray releases of his:

• By a Man's Face Shall You Know Him (1966, 男の顔は履歴書) an excellent underworld drama of postwar race tensions between Japanese and Japanese resident Koreans;
  Opium Flats-Hell Brigade, Attack! (1966, 阿片大地、地獄部隊突撃せよ) the first ever home video release of this rare Pacific War drama;
  Kato's 1973 version of the Miyamoto Musashi saga (宮本武蔵);
  Edogawa Rampo's Inju aka Beast in the Shadows (1977, 江戸川乱歩の陰獣);
  The Ondekoza (ざ・鬼太鼓座) a new restoration of Kato's previously unreleased 1981 documentary of the Ondekoza drumming troupe

Moshrom wrote:

artfilmfan wrote:The Blu-ray of the restored Early Summer is now available for pre-order at Amazon JP.

Here are some in-browser comparisons between the BFI blu-ray and the new Shochiku one. The improvement in stability is very, very impressive:
Sample 1, sample 2

But it sounds dreadful.
https://vimeo.com/182635098" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A few more details, if anyone's interested.

Eng. subs?

Jack Phillips wrote:Eng. subs?

Yes, and they're very good.

Should I pick up Early Summer or wait for a possible Criterion BD? Can anyone comment if Equinox Flower, Good Morning, Late Autumn are vastly improved compared to the BFI releases?

perkizitore wrote:Should I pick up Early Summer or wait for a possible Criterion BD? Can anyone comment if Equinox Flower, Good Morning, Late Autumn are vastly improved compared to the BFI releases?

Video-wise, they're astronomical improvements. Among the best-looking films ever released on the format -- really, no hyperbole.

Moshrom: Thanks for the report on the Shochiku Blu-ray of Early Summer. I ordered a copy and it should be delivered any day now. I'm looking forward to seeing the improvement in the picture quality, but not looking forward to that newly "processed" audio that you pointed out.

Did you check the audio track on the Shochiku Blu-ray of Late Spring to see whether the higher frequencies were cut off in a similar manner as on the Early Summer track? I went back to watch a couple early sequences in the film and now realized how poor it sounded. In previous viewings, I kept the volume low and therefore didn't notice (or didn't pay attention to) the quality of the audio.

Perkizitore: The Shochiku Blu-ray of Equinox Flower looks stunning. Don't hesitate to pick it up. I'll let others comment on the other two color films.