Lupin III: The Italian Game Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.0
Overall		4.0

Lupin III: The Italian Game Blu-ray Movie Review

Lupin the Third: Italian Game is an engaging action-adventure gem in the popular anime franchise. Created by Monkey Punch, Lupin the Third: Italian Game features animation production by Telecom Animation Film (Blue Thermal, Ramen Fighter Miki). Lupin the Third: Italian Game features theme music performed by You & The Explosion Band (opening) and Shiori Sasaki (ending). Produced by Eri Sano, Hiroyuki Inage, Masaki Shiode, Shinya Suzuki, Shunsuke Nara, and Yu Kiyozono, Lupin the Third: Italian Game is the 25^th Lupin television special in the franchise history. Lupin the Third: Italian Game is a must-see for Lupin fans.

Lupin is on a new adventure in Italy. The trip to Italy is one that inspires a newfound sense of excitement in Lupin. Lupin finds himself with a major surprise and callback to one of his earliest, most daring, and most memorable adventures when he receives a letter written by a Masked Count – penned to him directly. The letter refers back to the legend of Cagliostro.

Now on a new Italian Game, Lupin is simultaneously on memory lane. Lupin finds himself trying to protect his would-be fiancé, Rebecca. Meanwhile, Lupin is also attempting to gain possession of the rare Crown of Libertas. Can Lupin find the crown while dodging an MI6 agent? Can Lupin solve the mystery of Cagliostro and long-lost treasure?

Lupin the Third: Italian Game is another nice showcase for the ensemble cast of characters. The Lupin franchise is one of the best in terms of having a fun cast. The characters are so important to the story and filmmaking. Lupin is a great lead protagonist and audiences will love his swager and sense of confidence.

The character designs by Hisao Yokobori (Lupin III: Part IV, Lupin the 3rd Part 6) are well-done throughout Lupin the Third: Italian Game. The character designs are beautifully animated in the production and play a vital role in the film. An outstanding effort by the character designer. Lupin the Third: Italian Game is a testament to good character artwork.

The animation is breathtaking in Lupin the Third: Italian Game. There is so much to appreciate about the animation featured in Lupin the Third: Italian Game. The feature showcases the gorgeous art direction by Yasuhiro Yamako (Lupin III: Part IV, Lupin the 3rd: Blood Seal of the Eternal Mermaid). The animators brought wonderful effort to the production. There is a sense of wonder to the entire effort and it makes the entire film all the more entertaining. The crisp line art and background animation help to showcase the vibrancy of the feature. The action scenes are beautifully animated, too. The action scenes are vivid and the animation style remarkable.

The cinematography by Jiro Tazawa (Lupin III: Goodbye Partner, Lupin the IIIrd: Goemon's Blood Spray) is something special to behold. The cinematography adds so much to the production. The visuals superb with impressive colors and details. The lush visuals an integral part of the production.

Featuring a score composed by Yuji Ohno (Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro, Lupin the 3rd: The Mystery of Mamo), Lupin the Third: Italian Game is another fantastic score by Ohno. The music is wonderful. There is so much magic in the music. The score breathes a sense of life and energy into the film. A testament to the efforts of Ohno, the score to Lupin the Third: Italian Game is top-notch fun. The engaging action-adventure elements are all the more exhilarating with the score accompanying the production. The jazzy elements are a lot of fun, too.

Written by Yūya Takahashi (Kubo Won't Let Me Be Invisible, Lupin III: Part IV), Lupin the Third: Italian Game is a fun script. There is a lot to appreciate about the feature-film and the storytelling merits. Takahashi wrote a good script with lots of great elements to the storyline. There are plenty of fun moments for the characters to shine. Takahashi wrote good dialogue and made something special.

Directed by Yūichirō Yano (Blue Box, Lupin III: Part IV), with additional chief direction by Kazuhide Tomonaga (Lupin III: Part IV, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood), Lupin the Third: Italian Game is outstanding. Lupin the Third: Italian Game is a must-see action-adventure for franchise devotees. Director Yano made a special gem in the franchise. Lupin the Third: Italian Game delivers spectacle in spades and Lupin fans are sure to have a good time.

Lupin III: The Italian Game Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by Discotek Media, Lupin the Third: Italian Game is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.85:1 widescreen. The high-definition video is excellent throughout. There is wonderful sense of clarity to the video quality. The animation looks stunning. The release provides crisp line art, background animation, and overall production detail.

One of the strengths of the physical media format is the encoding quality. Physical media can provide some advantages over streaming services. Streaming services tend to offer a more compressed video presentation. The physical format offers higher bit-rates and more consistent encoding quality. These aspects can sometimes make a difference for fans.

Streaming video can also be impacted by variances such as data plans, data speeds, streaming service plan tiers, weather issues, location issues, and a myriad of other aspects that don't impact physical media – which continues to provide a consistently impressive presentation quality for fans to enjoy. These aspects might not always be something one considers – but it still differentiates streaming from physical media and is worth consideration. (Internet outage? You can grab a physical copy to watch.)

Lupin III: The Italian Game Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release is presented in Japanese uncompressed PCM 2.0 (with English subtitles). The release capably preserves the sound direction by Yōji Shimizu (Lupin the Third: Part 5, Lupin III: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine). The lossless audio encoding is crisp and clear on the release. Dialogue is well reproduced. The audio soundstage is terrific. The Blu-ray release provides wonderful clarity throughout and the score, sound effects, and sound design are well reproduced.

Blu-ray disc offers a distinct advantage over streaming video services. The Blu-ray format provides lossless audio. For home theater enthusiasts and audiophiles alike, the audio clarity gains offer improvements. Streaming, by comparison, provides a lossy (non-lossless) audio encoding. A lossless presentation can provide theater quality sound (the same type of sound quality delivered in a premium format movie theater). Streaming (especially on older catalog titles) is often limited to MP3 quality audio.

Lupin III: The Italian Game Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The first print run of the release includes a nicely designed o-card slipcover. The slipcover design is fantastic. The slipcover looks beautiful in hand. The slipcover will also look wonderful on the shelf. Collectors will appreciate the design effort and the extra collectability it will provide to enthusiasts.

On disc supplements include:

Creditless Opening (HD, 3:11)

Liner Notes includes 10 click-through slides of notes.

Unfortunately, the Blu-ray release lacks a more impressive supplemental package. The release could have benefited from audio commentaries, making-of featurettes, behind-the-scenes documentaries, production roundtables, cast/crew interviews, art galleries, photo galleries, and more. Alas, in the streaming era, for some anime fans the lack of a robust or extensive supplemental package can mean the difference between a one-time stream or purchasing a release for the physical media collection. This is something that impacts a certain segment of the anime market.

Lupin III: The Italian Game Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Lupin the Third: Italian Game is an entertaining action-adventure gem. The anime classic is a wonderful addition to the franchise. The release features top-notch animation and the filmmaking is engaging throughout.

Despite being a Lupin television special, Lupin the Third: Italian Game feels every bit as invigorating as a theatrical feature. Lupin the Third: Italian Game features a lot of engaging action scenes and the rhythm of the filmmaking is top-notch. The Blu-ray release provides a solid high-definition presentation, lossless audio encoding, and a wonderful o-card slipcover (for the first print run). Highly recommended.