Red Peony Gambler Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Red Peony Gambler Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov August 8, 2024

Kosaku Yamashita's "Red Peony Gambler" (1968) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the release include exclusive new audio commentary by critic Chris Poggiali and restored original trailer. In Japanese, with optional English subtiltes for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Red Peony Gambler is the first of a series of films that were part of a trend in Japanese cinema promoting various female characters behaving as macho male characters. The most popular actress, or at least in North America, who played some of these characters was Meiko Kaji, whose Stray Cat Rock and Wandering Ginza Butterfly films are considered cult classics now.

All of the early films promoting female characters behaving as macho male characters were made with the same blueprint, requiring that the lead actress was either paired to act as an equal or placed in the orbit of a big male star. Meiko Kaji, for instance, was paired with the likes of Sonny Chiba and Tatsuya Fuji. Once the lead actress acquired a solid reputation, directors started ignoring the blueprint, and some even made films with two lead actresses. (Arguably the most famous such film is Sex and Fury, which paired Reiko Ike with Swedish import Christina Lindberg).

Red Peony Gambler is set during the Meiji era and its lead actress is Sumiko Fuji, who plays a wandering gambler named Ryoko searching for the elusive killer of her father. After she exposes a cheater at a popular gambling parlor, Ryoko is ambushed and saved by Katagiri (Ken Katakura), also a wandering loner, who has a troubled past. As they learn about each other, an unexpected development reveals that Katagiri knows the elusive killer’s identity but is unwilling to reveal it, which forces Ryoko to immediately reconsider their relationship. Soon after, in a big city, a tense rivalry between the leaders of two clans reunites Ryoko and Katagiri, and the elusive killer emerges as a reformed man.

Directed by Kosaku Yamashita in 1968, Red Peony Gambler can best be described as a safe film from the trend that is described above. There are three key reasons for this. The first and most important one is that Sumiko Fuji plays a character who is not required to constantly convey great macho strength. In different areas, she repeatedly conveys vulnerability that is very typical for the conventional female character of the era. Even though he is billed as a guest star, Ken Katakura has a dominant presence, too. In fact, this dominant presence is essential for the identity of Red Peony Gambler, which is very similar to the ones given to the conventional period revenge films of the era. Noribumi Suzuki’s screenplay is unoriginal. Considering the type of wild material that was introduced just a few years later in the Female Prisoner Scorpion films, for instance, it almost feels like Red Peony Gambler was conceived to impress a completely different audience. (It was not. It was made to appeal to the same audience that went to see The Stray Cat Rock, Wandering Ginza Butterfly, and Female Prisoner Scorpion films).

But if one ignores the ongoing trend that will eventually bring in the hyper-violent pink eiga films, Red Peony Gambler suddenly becomes a decent film. Its leads look good before the camera, their characters are authentic, and the many twists and turns fueling its (melo)drama make perfect sense. In other words, it is not a mismanaged film, it is just not one of the big, original, and wildly entertaining films of the ongoing trend.

Cinematographer Osamu Furuya lensed several different Red Peony Gambler films. His camera produces nice, at times even elegant visuals, but it must be acknowledged that these films were done with very modest budgets, quite possibly with someone in the back always keeping an eye on the clock and making sure that their directors were fully aware of the time they had left to finish them.

Red Peony Gambler is one of three films gathered in this two-disc box set produced by Eureka Entertainment. All three films are recently restored from original elements supplied by the Toei studio.

Red Peony Gambler Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.39:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Red Peony Gambler arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.

The entire film has a solid, attractive organic appearance. If I had to guess, I would say that the recent master that was used to produce this release was struck from an interpositive because in a few spots some visuals appear a bit softer than they should, but there are no traces of problematic digital corrections. Grain exposure is still pretty good, and density levels are either very good or excellent. Color balance is good. Perhaps saturation levels can be even better, especially in some darker areas with more subtle darker nuances, but it is hard to know what the exact intended period appearance should be. Image stability is very good. I did not see any distracting large cuts, debris, warped or torn frames to report. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Red Peony Gambler Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: Japanese LPCM 2.0. Optional English subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The lossless track is excellent. However, I must immediately mention that Red Peony Gambler does not have an active soundtrack producing plenty of memorable dynamic contrasts. It does have a decent music score, but all of the excitement comes from natural sounds and noises, including during the action material. The English translation and the size of the English subtitles are excellent.

Red Peony Gambler Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - presented here is a restored original trailer for Red Peony Gambler. In Japanese, with English subtitles. (4 min).

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic Chris Poggiali.

• Booklet - a collector's booklet featuring new writing by Jennifer Coates (Making Icons: Repetition and the Female Image in Japanese Cinema, 1945–1964) and Joe Hickinbottom, as well as technical credits.

Red Peony Gambler Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Some of the best Japanese crime films that I have seen over the years are with Ken Takakura. They are edgy, oozing machismo urban action films of the kind that are no longer possible to make. Beat Takeshi was the last true Japanese superstar that knew how to do these types of genre films right. Red Peony Gambler was part of a big trend in Japanese cinema, but it is a small entry in Ken Takakura's body of work. While a decent film, the main attraction in it is supposed to be Sumiko Fuji, and she definitely does not have the charisma and expressive body language of Meiko Kaji. Recently restored, Red Peony Gambler is one of three films gathered in this two-disc, Region-B "locked", box set. RECOMMENDED.