7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A self-destructive man becomes a powerful member of the Japanese mafia but quickly loses his self control. Based on the true story of Rikio Ishikawa.
Starring: Tetsuya Watari, Tatsuo Umemiya, Yumi Takigawa, Eiji Gô, Noboru AndôForeign | 100% |
Crime | 10% |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Japanese: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Note: This film is available as part of
Graveyards of Honor.
There have been all sorts of remakes through the years, ranging from the slavishly duplicative (as — at least in theory — Psycho and
Psycho) to the other side of the spectrum, where two properties may indeed share the same name and even the same source, but
which
may otherwise differ rather radically. That’s probably the case with regard to Kinji Fukasaku’s Graveyard of Honor from 1975 and
Takashi
Miike’s Graveyard of Honor from 2002. Both films are ostensibly culled from a novel by a real life yakuza named Gorô Fujita, though I
haven’t been
able to authoritatively determine whether he’s the same Gorô Fujita who was evidently a 19th century samurai also known as Saitō Hajime (all of
the
online
biographical data I’ve been able to find about this particular person does not mention any writing having been done by him, and this individual
seems
to have been a policeman rather than a member of the yakuza). One way or the other, the Gorô Fujita who was a writer was
also
responsible for the source material that became Gangster VIP
, and the fact that both that film and the Kinji Fukasaku version of Graveyard of Honor star Tetsuya Watari playing roles that are at
least somewhat similar, may tend to link the two films together for some fans. The Miike film, like so many by this provocative Japanese
auteur,
is decidedly more sui generis despite having ostensible links to both the source material and the prior film.
Graveyard of Honor is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Arrow's insert booklet contains only the following pretty generic verbiage on the transfer:
Graveyard of Honor / Jingi no hakaba (1975) is presented in 2.35:1 aspect ratio with mono sound. The High Definition master was produced and supplied by TOEI, with additional grading by Arrow Films at R3Store Studios, London.This is generally a nicely organic looking transfer which a naturally resolving grain field with a good accounting of the palette in both the color and kind of sepia toned sequences. There is a somewhat random inclusion of those sepia toned moments, but detail levels in them are typically quite high, offering nice views of things like the textures on fabrics (look at the coat and sweater in screenshot 15 for just one example). In that regard, detail levels are a bit more variable in some of the color scenes, as is overall clarity, and some darker scenes can occasionally look relatively rough (see screenshot 13). I'm rating this at 3.5 to indicate that it's not quite as consistent looking as the 2002 version, which I'm rating at 4.0, though I'd give this a 3.75 if I were able to.
Graveyard of Honor features a nice sounding DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track that supports the film dialogue, effects and score without any problems. While inherently narrow, prioritization is very good throughout, and I noticed no problems whatsoever with regard to any damage, distortion or dropouts. Optional English subtitles are available.
Because my frequently addled brain often makes unexpected (and kind of weird) connections, I thought of the title of the old Faye Dunaway film Puzzle of a Downfall Child (kind of hilariously due imminently on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber) as I watched this version of Graveyard of Honor, since the film details the story of a guy who was seemingly fated from birth for a troubled life. This is ostensibly the more "factual" of the two films Arrow has aggregated in this set, but that doesn't mean this film is a "by the numbers" biographical film, and indeed it's the stylistic flourishes that Fukasaku introduces that probably gives this film so much of its distinctive identity. Video encounters a few rough patches, but audio is fine and the supplementary package very enjoyable. Recommended.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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