7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
The story of a single mother who suffers from double vision; caring for her baby is a nerve-wrecking task that eventually leads her to a nervous breakdown...
Starring: Cocco, Shinya TsukamotoForeign | 100% |
Horror | 45% |
Drama | 44% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Japanese: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 3.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
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.
Kotoko is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. While the back cover of this release talks about Tsukamoto "embracing digital filmmaking" with this outing and Killing, it unfortunately doesn't get into any actual technical detail, something echoed by the IMDb. I did find a couple of sites (in foreign languages) which seem to suggest an Arri Alexa may have been used, with things finished at a 2K DI, but I'm frankly not sure that what I found could be accepted as "authoritative". All of that said, this is a really nicely vivid, sharp and well detailed looking presentation almost all of the time. The film's prevalence of outdoor material helps to support nice fine detail levels, and the palette is considerably more natural looking than in some of Tsukamoto's other "blue period" films (that's a joke, in case it isn't clear). There's still some passing murk in some dimly lit interior scenes, and occasionally contrast can look a little anemic, leading to a slightly hazy appearance. There are just a couple of very brief flirtations with banding, typically against brighter backgrounds where lighting conditions abruptly change.
Kotoko features a really expressive DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. Tsukamoto's visual aesthetic is so overwhelming at times that even his very inventive sound design can sometimes fade into the background, figuratively speaking, even when it's completely hyperbolic, but Kotoko finds a nice balance where the audio side of things can be just as important as the visual. That's evident from the get go in the opening scene which takes place at a beach and which begins with calming ethnic music (it sounds like a shakuhachi to me) and the roar of ocean waves which just suddenly erupts into loud anguished screaming by a woman. Over and over again, the sound design here does the equivalent of a "jump cut" between anachronistic elements and it's often quite bracing. The surround channels are regularly engaged, and dialogue as well as Cocco's musical contributions are presented with excellent fidelity and depth.
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.
- Kotoko UK Trailer (1080p; 2:01)
- Killing Original Japanese Trailer (1080p; 1:45)
- Kotoko (1080p; 4:10)
- Killing (1080p; 1:30)
As I mentioned in the Tetsuo II: Body Hammer Blu-ray review is how this set makes very clear the kinds of growth Tsukamoto has shown over the course of his career, and one of those evolutionary steps has been how Tsukamoto has been able to document more of an "interior" horrorscape that is still as frightening as some of the "external" depictions in his early films. This is an often sad and bittersweet tale, but it's told with a visceral style and impact. Technical merits are solid, and the supplemental package appealing. Recommended.
(Still not reliable for this title)
2004
2018
2005
1987
2002
バレット・バレエ
1998
東京フィスト / Tokyo Fuisuto / Tokyo Ken
1995
鉄男 / Tetsuo
1989
1992
Ansiktet
1958
Vargtimmen
1968
Special Edition
1981
Нелюбовь / Nelyubov
2017
2017
2017
Alpeis
2011
Jusqu'à la garde
2017
仄暗い水の底から / Honogurai mizu no soko kara
2002
La región salvaje
2016
En passion
1969