Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		0.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

Cure 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 8, 2025

Kiyoshi Kurosawa's "Cure" (1997) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the release include new program with filmmaker Bong Joon-ho; new program by critic Tom Mes; two archival programs with Kiyoshi Kurosawa; vintage trailers; and more. In Japanese, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Cure is a legitimately different film. You can tell by the way Cure pulls you into its reality and begins playing with your head and senses. It is a very intimate experience, but not of the kind that an erotic film would have been proud to craft. Cure is a seriously spooky film that wants to connect with you, do things to you, and before it lets you go leave a scar that will not easily fade away.

How can a film do things to you and leave a lasting scar?

The same way a historic TV broadcast can. Folks that saw Neil Armstrong stepping on the Moon never forgot the exact moment when it happened and the feeling that came with it. It was a grand event, but it was also a very intimate experience. The exact moment in which the South Tower of the World Trade Center collapsed was part of a very painful intimate experience as well. If you saw it live on TV, you were scarred forever, and you still remember it.

In an archival program that is included on this release, Kiyoshi Kurosawa confirms that this is exactly how the idea for Cure came to him – while he was glued to his TV. Kurosawa then clarifies that it was the crime reports that he was viewing, which were practically identical to the ones Americans were viewing on their TVs, that began shaping the idea. What does Kurosawa mean exactly? It is easy to tell because these crime reports have not changed at all. While short, they do not just state facts, they are done in a very particular manner to connect with your mind. They are so disturbing you know that you would have been better off if you did not see them, but you cannot change the channel or turn off your TV until they are over. You want to hear all the details, even if they are very gruesome. There is a feeling that comes with the desire that is oddly addictive. Sometime during the 1990s, Kurosawa also realized how strong the pull factor was and began working on Cure.

Nearly half of Cure looks like a carefully assembled and edited collection of news reports about puzzling murder cases popping up across Tokyo. Detective Kenichi Takabe (Koji Yakusho) quickly establishes that there is a serial killer on the loose, but struggles to produce a credible profile of him that can put his actions in a meaningful context. Eventually, the authorities apprehend Kunio Mamiya (Masato Hagiwara), a young social outcast with a peculiar interest in the ancient art of hypnotism who could be the serial killer, and Detective Takabe begins interrogating him. However, as evidence emerges that the detained man is connected to the murder cases, Detective Takabe realizes that his mind is becoming addicted to his depositions and they are having a significant impact on his private life.

Cure is a seriously spooky film not because it produces some astonishingly scary or graphic visuals, but because it establishes a direct line to the mind of Detective Takabe, which is being manipulated by the serial killer. As a result, viewing Cure evolves into something of a light interactive experience that has quite an impact on the head and senses.

But what was Kurosawa trying to accomplish with it?

If you believe what Kurosawa has said about the roots of Cure, then the interactive experience that materializes through it is crystal clear evidence that the crime reports you consume via your TV do some very bad things to your mind. They can alter your perception of reality and even your personality and identity. In the second half of Cure, this is precisely what Detective Takabe discovers after the serial killer plugs into his mind and begins unloading details about his deeds.

Kurosawa worked with cinematographer Tokuhso Kikimura, who collaborated with him on many of his early direct-to-video and made-for-TV gangster films. Their understanding and management of ambience are masterful.

Cure 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Eureka Entertainment's 4K Blu-ray release of Cure has only a 4K Blu-ray disc. It does not have a Blu-ray disc with a 1080p presentation of the film.

Please note that all screencaptures included with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc, including the actual color values of this content.

This release presents the recent 4K restoration of Cure, supervised by its cinematographer Tokuhso Kikimura. In America, Criterion introduced the 4K restoration on Blu-ray in 2022.

In native 4K, the film can be viewed with Dolby Vision and HDR grades. I chose to view it with HDR. I also did some quick comparisons with the 1080p presentation on Criterion's Blu-ray release.

It is easy to describe the overall quality of the visuals as very good. This did not surprise me because the 4K master that was prepared in Japan is excellent. I think, but I am not one hundred percent convinced that I am right. Why? Because I am not entirely sure if it reproduces the film's original appearance. I do not have a theatrical experience with it, but previous home video releases have it looking quite different? How different? In some sections, the color temperature of the visuals simply isn't the same as the one on the 4K master. To be honest, I am not bothered by the change, but I would say that at least the beach sequence is graded in the same way current films are. Is this how the film looked in 1997? I doubt it. The current warm look looks quite, well, current to me. Delineation, clarity, and depth are range from very good to excellent. There are a few areas with small fluctuations, but they are introduced by the unique management of light and shadow. Image stability is excellent.

I compared several areas to see how they look in native 4K and 1080p. The difference is not striking. When there is more light, select visuals from the 4K presentation look slightly lusher. Darker areas look good. However, on the native 4K presentation, I did not see the macroblocking patterns that are present on the Blu-ray.

Cure 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this release: Japanese LPCM 2.0. Optional English subtitles are provided for the main feature.

I do not have any new comments to add about the lossless audio, which sounded pretty incredible on Criterion's Blu-ray release. The film has a very interesting sound design that blends contrasting music to create a special atmosphere, so when viewing it, if possible, turn up the volume quite a bit. I guarantee you will have a memorable experience with it. The English translation is excellent.

Cure 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Curating Cure - in this new video essay, critic Tom Mes takes a closer look at the style and genre identity of Cure and the career of its director. In English, not subtitles. (13 min).

• Memories of Cure - in this new program, Bong Joon-ho (Memories of Murder) discusses his friendship with Kiyoshi Kurosawa, his first and consequent experiences with Cure and its style (with some quite interesting comments about the film's sound design), and the influences of other filmmakers and their work that he recognizes in it. Joon-ho also comments on some unique lensing choices throughout the film. The program was produced by Pierce Conran. In Korean, with English subtitles. (29 min).

• Kim Newman on Cure - in this archival program, critic Kim Newman shares his thoughts on Cure and its qualities that make it a unique film. Newman also comments on the evolution of Kiyoshi Kurosawa's career. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).

• Archival Interviews with Kiyoshi Kurosawa - presented here are two archival programs with the Japanese director in which he discusses his background and career and th conception and production of Cure. In Japanese, with English subtitles.
  
  1. Interview One (2018). (17 min).
  2. Interview Two (2003). (20 min).

• Japanese Trailer - presented here is a Japanese trailer for Cure. In Japanese, with English subtitles. (2 min).

• U.S. Trailer - presented here is a U.S. trailer for Cure. In Japanese, with English subtitles. (2 min).

• TV Spot - presented here is an original Japanese TV spot for Cure. In Japanese, with English subtitles. (1 min).

• Booklet - a collector's booklet featuring essays on Cure by Tom Mes and technical credits.

Cure 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Cure presents contemporary evidence that Friedrich Nietzsche's famous statement about gazing into the abyss is entirely legitimate. It does it brilliantly, too, which is why it is such a genuinely spooky film. If you consider that Kurosawa's inspiration for it came from his TV viewing habits during the 1990s, you can even permanently scare yourself because your identity is a work in progress and is constantly being tweaked without your approval. This upcoming 4K Blu-ray release introduces the recent 4K restoration of the film that was supervised by cinematographer Tokusho Kikimura. I think that it produces great visuals. However, you need to keep in mind that on previous home video release, including Eureka Entertainment's Blu-ray release, the film looks quite different. RECOMMENDED.