Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Ghost Warrior Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 1, 2023

Larry Carroll's "Ghost Warrior" (1984) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include exclusive new program with special effects artist Robert Short; exclusive new audio commentary recorded by action film historians Brandon Bentley and Mike Leeder; and vintage trailer. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

It is unfortunate that Larry Carroll did not feel the urge to direct a few more films after Ghost Warrior. Clearly, writing was Carroll’s passion, but I dare say that with persistence he would have become a very interesting director. I have seen a couple of the films Carroll scripted -- Tourist Trap and The Day Time Ended -- and they are decent at best. While a small project, Ghost Warrior is a very nice film that comfortably blends elements from contrasting genres and produces some genuine surprises. Needless to say, as a directorial debut, it looks rather impressive.

In Japan, near the top of a massive mountain covered with snow, a samurai (Hiroshi Fujioka) frees a beautiful girl from a group of heavily armed soldiers just before she is to be executed. Shortly after, a second group of soldiers intercepts the fugitives and closes the only road to freedom. The samurai fights the leader of the soldiers and quickly overpowers him but chooses to spare his life, assuming that he and the girl would be allowed to leave. As the samurai walks away, his opponent throws a knife that instantly kills the girl. An archer then unleashes an arrow that pierces the body of the samurai and forces him to fall from a cliff into a freezing lake.

More than four hundred years later a couple of amateur alpinists accidentally discover the frozen body of the samurai in a cave. In Los Angeles, curious reporter Chris Welles (Janet Julian) meets Dr. Alan Richards (John Calvin) at the Institute of Cryosurgical Research, and during a very risky experiment, the latter resuscitates the samurai. As the samurai gradually begins to recover from a four-hundred-year-long hibernation, Welles confirms that he is Yoshimitsu, a legend amongst legends.

To gain the trust of the samurai, Welles gives him back his swords, both possibly worth millions of dollars, and when a shady male nurse attempts to secretly steal them, he kills him. The samurai then escapes from the Institute of Cryosurgical Research and enters some of the roughest areas of Los Angeles. Unable to make perfect sense of human progress and speaking only ancient Japanese, the samurai very quickly attracts a lot of bad characters, but his outstanding survival instincts help him adapt and even befriend an old-timer with a soft spot for Americanized Japanese food. However, Dr. Richards decides to bring back his greatest professional accomplishment back to his lab at the Institute of Cryosurgical Research for additional tests.

The most attractive quality of Ghost Warrior is its total acceptance of its purpose, which is to entertain as a typical ‘80s contemporary fairy tale for adults. What does this mean exactly? Ghost Story tells an unquestionably silly but loose and genuine enough story that grabs your attention and makes you care about its characters. A lot of genre films that emerged during the ‘80s are considered special now precisely because of this total acceptance of their purpose -- they entertained their audience as best as they could without fearing how the critics would judge them.

However, it is Fujioka’s performance that legitimizes Ghost Warrior. This criminally underrated and perhaps similarly underused actor looks like a legit Japanese superstar that has spent his entire life playing classic samurai characters and is simply incredible before Carroll’s camera. (As odd as it may sound, the Toshiro Mifune reference in the Japanese restaurant is entirely deserved). Indeed, Fujioka’s performance adds a new dimension to the story that initially does not even seem possible but later resets the drama in a way that makes Ghost Warrior a completely different film. While there are a few very effective surprises, this is the biggest one -- as the final credits appear on the screen, it is virtually impossible to conclude that Ghost Story has told a silly story.

The humor is kept under control, or at least for an ‘80s film that is allergic to filters. In arguably the funniest scene, Fujioka becomes visibly irritated by Blackie Lawless singing Tormentor and looking genuinely unhinged.

Ghost Warrior Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Ghost Warrior arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release is sourced from an older master that was supplied by MGM. (In case you are wondering, this is the same master that some years ago Scream Factory used to produce this release). While the master is somewhat rough -- some nicks and scratches routinely pop up and there is even a bit surface dirt -- I actually like it quite a lot. Most of the visuals have a very pleasing organic appearance and color balance is convincing. Yes, grain exposure could be better and the visuals should be cleaner, but the film has a filmic appearance, and if you choose to upscale to 4K, you will be quite surprised how good it can look on your system. Image stability is very good, too. So, if cosmetic imperfections bother you and you expect your films to look very fresh and healthy, my score for you is 3.50/5.00. If you are not bothered by cosmetic imperfections you are more flexible with slightly dated but nice organic visuals, my score for you is 3.75/5.00. Ghost Warrior can look better in high-definition, but this release offers a good presentation of it. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Ghost Warrior Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The audio is clear and stable. The upper register, where some older films reveal weaknesses, is solid, too. However, there are a few areas of the film where it feels like the audio could and should be a tad fuller. I could be wrong, but I feel that if the audio is fully remastered this would be the most likely improvement that is introduced. There are no encoding anomalies to report.

Ghost Warrior Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - a remastered trailer for Ghost Warrior, promoted as Swordkill. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• Die By the Sword - in this exclusive new program, special effects artist Robert Short recalls his initial impressions of the screenplay for Ghost Warrior and what it was like to work on the film. There are some particularly good comments about the period footage and the graphic material. In English, not subtitled. (6 min).

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by action film historians Brandon Bentley and Mike Leeder.

• Cover - reversible cover with vintage poster art for Ghost Warrior.

Ghost Warrior Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

A rather remarkable performance by Hiroshi Fujioka transforms Ghost Warrior into a very different film, not the silly and perhaps instantly forgettable one its synopsis promises. As strange as it may sound, there is something very real in Ghost Warrior that emerges with a genuine appreciation and understanding of the good and bad that make us human. I had a terrific time with the film and am glad that it is finally available on a proper individual release. Kino Lorber's release is sourced from an older and slightly rough but still quite nice organic master that was supplied by MGM. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.