Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Bullet Ballet Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 8, 2020

Note: This version of this film is available as part of Solid Metal Nightmares: The Films of Shinya Tsukamoto.

There are two names which American film fans may need either outright introductions to or at least reminders about when coming to Solid Metal Nightmares: The Films of Shinya Tsukamoto. The first name is that of Shinya Tsukamoto himself, a fascinating cult figure with a rather long and impressive filmography as a producer, director, actor, writer, editor, cinematographer, production designer and art director (one assumes if the IMDb had a tab for craft services contributions, he'd be listed there, too), but who is still kind of curiously unknown by the general public at large on this side of the pond. The other name that may come into play with regard to this handsome new set released for the North American market by Arrow is Third Window Films, a label that releases Blu-rays in the United Kingdom and which has in fact put out previous editions of several of the Tsukamoto films Arrow has included in this set. For that reason, fans or at least those interested in “comparison studies” are encouraged to visit our listings for the Third Window Films’ releases of Tetsuo: The Iron Man / Tetsuo II: Body Hammer, Tokyo Fist, Bullet Ballet, A Snake of June, and Kotoko, not just for Svet Atanasov’s thoughts about each of the films, but also to be able to do side by side looks at screenshots as well as to size up supplemental features on each release. (A sixth film offered in this set from Arrow, The Adventure of Denchu-Kozo, looks like it's included as a supplement on Third Windows' double feature offering the two Tetsuo films.) The Arrow set does at least offer ten films in one nicely aggregated and designed package which includes a rather beautiful hardback book, which may at least recommend the set to those trying to save a little shelf space, if nothing else.

Bullet Ballet revisits what is arguably as much of a "Tsukamoto trope" as metal and flesh conjoining, namely the steady devolution of an "ordinary, everdyay" working man. Once again Shinya Tsukamoto is on hand himself as the same kind of hapless shlub he portrayed in Tokyo Fist, only this time his character of Goda is confronted not with a wife who wants to leave him for a more "manly man", but instead a girlfriend who has inexplicably committed suicide. Even in this ostensibly straightforward setup, though, Tsukamoto deliberately deconstructs a traditional cinematic narrative by having Goda's first interactions with the police repeatedly jump cut or fade to black, with elements of the interchanges left to the viewer's imagination.

Goda’s attempts to get some answers about what happened to his girlfriend gets him mixed up with a seamy underworld element in Tokyo, and there are certain elements in the film that echo plot elements in both Tsukamoto’s own Tokyo Fist as well as maybe even Fight Club. The film has a neo noir ambience, with Goda experiencing a pretty precipitous downward spiral, but the entire story is told within the context of Tsukamoto’s often frenetic stylistic proclivities.

In that regard, Bullet Ballet almost seems to be two films in one. One one level, the story is a relatively "realistic" (within the context of Tsukamoto's films) story of gang life in Japan, but another level, it's another one of Tsukamoto's intentionally disjointed, hallucinogenic offerings where the viewer can never be quite sure as to what exactly is going on. Tsukamoto once again offers an almost relentlessly peripatetic camera, combined with another "in your face" (in your ears?) soundtrack, and the result can be an almost exhausting viewing and listening experience.

Bullet Ballet Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Bullet Ballet is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow's insert book offers only very generic data on all of the transfers in this set, with aspect ratios (at times misstated) and audio data detailed, and with a simple statement that the "high definition masters were provided by Nikkatsu Corporation". Svet's review of this film came out in 2014, and without any other information to the contrary, I'm assuming that this presentation was culled from the same master that Third Window Films utilized. This is a rather striking black and white presentation, one which preserves the gritty grain of the original 16mm format (blown up to 35mm for exhibition), but which offers some surprising detail levels, especially given Tsukamoto's predilection for "shaky cam" and other stylistic conceits. Close-ups offer really excellent fine detail. Tsukamoto likes to toy with contrast, and there are some relatively "hazy" or blown out looking moments here. I noticed no signs of aggressive digital tinkering, and the entire presentation has a very organic appearance.

Bullet Ballet Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Bullet Ballet is the first film in this set to feature a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track along with a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. The surround track significantly opens up the soundstage both in terms of Chu Ishikawa's score, but also with regard to Tsukamoto's often weird, almost psychedelic, use of clanging sound effects. The film does offer some appropriate gunfire (considering its title), and those elements reverberate with some surprising force. Dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly, and I noticed no issues whatsoever on either track with regard to any age related wear and tear.

Bullet Ballet Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

As can be seen in the last screenshot accompanying this review, this disc offers two films. I'm listing all of the supplements on the disc, since while some supplements are ostensibly specific to one feature, there's still a certain amount of spillover.

• Audio Commentary on Tokyo Fist by Tom Mes


• Audio Commentary on Bullet Ballet by Tom Mes


• Archival Interviews with Shinya Tsukamoto can offer interstitial text questions followed by Tsukamoto's answers. In Japanese with English subtitles:

  Tokyo Fist (1080p; 18:11)

  
  

  Bullet Ballet 1 (1080i; 34:35)

  
  

  Bullet Ballet 2 (1080p; 14:39)

  
  

  Tokyo Fist and Bullet Ballet (1080p; 3:25)

  
  

  General Thoughts (1080p; 4:20)

• Tokyo Fist Music Performance (1080p; 4:14)


• Bullet Ballet Music Video (1080p; 3:07)


• Trailers

  Tokyo Fist Original Japanese Trailer (1080p; 00:37)

  
  

  Bullet Ballet Original Japanese Trailer (1080p; 00:57)

  
  

  Tokyo Fist UK Trailer (1080p; 2:32)

  
  

  Bullet Ballet UK Trailer (1080p; 2:25)

• Image Galleries

  Tokyo Fist (1080p; 6:40)

  
  

  Bullet Ballet (1080p; 5:00)

Bullet Ballet Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Bullet Ballet is absolutely fascinating in how it deconstructs a fairly straightforward story of a distraught man spiraling out of control. This is another tour de force stylistically for Tsukamoto, but it's also evident that Tsukamoto is beginning to really pay attention to narrative elements and character development more with this film. While arguably not as completely graphic as other films in this set, this has some of the same disturbing imagery as some of Tsukamoto's other films, so the more squeamish should probably approach this with a certain amount of caution. Technical merits are solid, and the supplementary package very interesting. Recommended.