Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Samurai Reincarnation Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov June 26, 2023

Kenji Fukasaku's "Samurai Reincarnation" (1981) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the release include new program with Kenta Fukasaku; new audio commentary by critic Tom Mes; and newly remastered trailer. In Japanese or English, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

After the revolt

The Christian revolt of 1637. After his men are massacred in a massive battle, the great warrior Shiro Amakusa (Kenji Sawada) renounces God and becomes a demon. Filled with anger, Shiro then vows to decimate the cruel bakufu system that the winners are protecting.

To accomplish his goal, Shiro Amakusa uses his newly acquired supernatural powers to bring back several dead characters that have had their lives ruined by the merciless Shogun Ietsuna (Noboru Matsuhashi) -- the swordsman Musashi Miyamoto (Ken Ogata), the spear fighter Inshun Hozoin (Hideo Murota), the young farmer Kirumaru Iga (Hiroyuki Sanada), and the heartbroken wife Hosokawa Gracia (Akiko Kana). Led by Shiro, the group then goes on the warpath and begins exterminating their former foes and everyone that has a meaningful part in their lives.

While the male demons wreak havoc, Shogun Ietsuna quickly falls under the spell of his newest mistress, completely unaware that her striking beauty is poisonous. Far away from the palace, the demons then corrupt the soul of the aging and terminally ill Lord Tajima (Tomisaburo Wakayama), one of Shogun Ietsuna’s most loyal warriors.

When the one-eyed swordsman Jubei Yagyu (Sonny Chiba) learns about the transformation of his father, Lord Tajima, he vows to destroy the demons. But Jubei can do so only with a very special sword that must be prepared by the aging master Muramasa (Tetsuro Tanba).

It is impossible not to be impressed by the cast of Samurai Reincarnation because it unites some truly formidable actors. While this is not the main reason to see Samurai Reincarnation, having such a grand cast in a period production helmed by an equally great director like Kenji Fukasaku is a very powerful magnet.

The narrative is broken into multiple uneven episodes that place key developments in a proper historical context. Despite the narration and clear descriptions, however, several loose ends are not easy to follow. Also, given the epic nature of the clash that is at the center of the narrative, a few of the character arcs feel slightly mismanaged. For example, it is an indisputable fact that Inshun’s time before the camera is oddly limited and his death very premature. As a result, the viewer is left with the false impression that Inshun is an insignificant character.

It is important to clarify that Samurai Reincarnation was not conceived to be a conventional period drama either. It is a conventional visual spectacle first and then everything else. If evaluated as such, which admittedly is not difficult at all given the type of films Fukasaku was directing during the 1970s and 1980s, it is very easy to declare that it performs exactly as it should. Indeed, it is a crowd-pleaser that prioritizes flashy action and while taking full advantage of the star power of its leads presents it as best as possible.

While opinions will surely vary, this writer thinks that Chiba and Ogata are clearly more impressive than the rest of the leads. It is not because their characters are more interesting and the material they work with is more attractive. These legendary actors have a superior presence before Fukasaku’s camera that becomes very easy to appreciate and repeatedly overshadows what everyone else does.

Samurai Reincarnation produces a lot of great looking visuals but it is not a lavish production. The strength of its visuals comes from the fine locations and wonderful period attire and set designs. Several sequences feature terrific lighting as well.

Samurai Reincarnation Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Samurai Reincarnation arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.

The press materials I received state that the release is sourced from a new 2K master that was struck from original film elements. The master is good. However, it has some quite obvious limitations of the kind that you would expect to see when restorers work with an interpositive that is not in perfect condition. For example, there are several areas where noticeable density fluctuations, which are exacerbated by uneven gamma levels. These areas can produce flatter visuals that do not look as convincing as they should. You can see examples in screencaptures #13, 14, and 18. Delineation and depth are still pleasing but the dynamic range of the visuals should be superior. The same can be said about the color balance. It is stable and the primaries and supporting nuances are fine. However, it is not at all difficult to conclude that saturation levels should be much better. I think that some of the inconsistencies in the gamma levels affect color balance but ideally the entire film should look lusher. There are no traces of problematic degraining corrections, though grain is not as nicely exposed as it could be. Image stability is good. There are no distracting large cuts, debris, damage marks, warped or torn frames to report. My score is 3.75/5.00. (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).

Samurai Reincarnation Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: Japanese LPCM 2.0 and English LPCM 2.0. Optional English subtitles are provided for the former.

I viewed the entire film with the Japanese track and did not test the English track. I thought that the former was excellent. All exchanges were very clear, sharp, and easy to follow. There is a lot of action footage throughout the film that sounds terrific, too. The upper register is very healthy and I did not detect even minor age-related anomalies to report in our review. The English translation is great.

Samurai Reincarnation Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - presented here is a newly remastered trailer for Samurai Reincarnation. In Japanese, with English subtitles. (3 min).

• Samurai Fictions - in this new program, Kenta Fukasaku, son of director Kenji Fukasaku, discusses the exact period in which Samurai Reincarnation was conceived and shot, its stylistic appearance, the very particular casting choices that were made to shape the film's stylistic appearance, and the great work Sonny Chiba did to popularize action films with the Japan Action Club. Also, Mr. Fukasaku presents and comments on his father's original sketches of the main characters in Samurai Reincarnation as well as his "spontaneous directing style". In Japanese, with English subtitles. (28 min).

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic Tom Mes.

• Booklet - a collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film as well as technical credits.

Samurai Reincarnation Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

A lot of the raw energy that permeates Kinji Fukasaku's classic gangster films and gives them their identity is retained in Samurai Reincarnation. In a way, this makes Samurai Reincarnation a predictable period piece. However, this is not a bad thing. It is a good thing because in it Fukasaku does what he did best -- great action with memorable characters. Despite some minor flaws affecting the quality of the character arcs, I think that Samurai Reincarnation is a very solid and tremendously entertaining film that easily could have been an hour or so longer. (In its current form, it is over two hours long). Eureka Entertainment's release is sourced from a slightly uneven but good new 2K master and features a very interesting new program with Kenta Fukasaku. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.