Shinobi Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Shinobi Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 26, 2024

Years ago FUNimation, a label almost exclusively associated with anime, kind of unexpectedly released a live action film (albeit one steeped in an intentionally cartoonish ambience) and I began my Goemon Blu-ray review of that release by kind of joking about the many different cinematic versions of Robin Hood (kind of hilariously, that link points to a version that came out after my Goemon review). I guess I could start this review of Radiance's release of the first three so-called Shinobi films by kind of joking about the many different cinematic versions of Goemon there are, since these three films do indeed center on that legendary Japanese character, who, maybe just a bit like Robin Hood, seems to have been culled from both historical and fictional elements. There's still considerable scholarly debate about how "real" Robin Hood may or may not have been, but there's little question that there was indeed a 16th century ninja named Ishikawa Goemon (Raizô Ichikawa), who really rather quite like the behaviors often attributed to Robin Hood and his Merry Men, "stole from the rich and gave to the poor". Rather interestingly, at least within the confines of my review queue, I'm also currently getting through the new Eureka! release of Prison Walls: Abashiri Prison I-III, another trilogy of Japanese films where several of the supplements discuss the incredibly rapid production pace for those particular films, all coming out within a year of each other. Something very similar was at play with regard to these first three Shinobi outings (there were several more to follow, which one assumes Radiance may be bringing out at some point), with all three debuting between December 1962 and December 1963.

For reviews of the films in this set, please click on the following links:

Band of Assassins Blu-ray review

Revenge Blu-ray review

Resurrection Blu-ray review

Shinobi Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Video quality is assessed in the above linked reviews.

Shinobi Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Audio quality is assessed in the above linked reviews.

Shinobi Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Radiance has packaged these films with Band of Assassins and Revenge sharing a disc, and Resurrection on its own separate disc, with the following supplements:

Disc One (Band of Assassins / Revenge)

• Shozo Ichiyama (HD; 14:05) is a really interesting piece which features the Program Director of the Tokyo International Film Festival discussing the life and work of director Satsuo Yamamoto, including an emphasis on the Shinobi series. Ichiyami mentions Yamamoto's relatively few period films, but his overall interest in highlighting travails of the so-called "common man". There's some interesting sidebar information about what was going on at various Japanese film studios during the general timeframe of the production of these films. Subtitled in English.

Disc Two (Resurrection)

• A Brief History of Japanese Ninja Films (HD; 18:11) is an indispensable aid by Mance Thompson which helps to explain the context of these films within the history of the Japanese movie industry in general.


• Toshiaki Sato (HD; 14:18) discusses the life and career of Raizo Ichikawa, which is yet another fascinating "tragic life of a movie star" story. Subtitled in English.


• Trailers

  Shinobi: Band of Assassins (HD; 2:19)

  
  

  Shinobi 2: Revenge (HD; 2:19)

  
  

  Shinobi 3: Resurrection (HD; 2:31)

Additionally, Radiance has packaged this release nicely, with a handsome yellow slipbox enclosing two keepcases. One keepcase encloses a very nicely appointed insert booklet with new and archival writing, while the other keepcase encloses six postcards. Radiance includes its Obi strip on the slipbox.

Shinobi Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you're mostly aware of ninjas from "ninja movies" from a decade or two after these three were produced, you will find some really interesting content in the supplements on the discs in this set, not to mention how ninjas are portrayed in the three films themselves. Technical merits are generally solid, with a few caveats pointed out in individual reviews. Radiance has assembled some appealing supplements and has packaged this release very handsomely. Recommended.