Shogun's Shadow Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		4.0

Shogun's Shadow Blu-ray Movie Review

Shogun’s Shadow is a martial arts classic featuring the great Sonny Chiba. Distributed by the Toei Company, Shogun’s Shadow was released in Japan theatrically on January 14^th, 1989. Produced by Shigeru Okada (Shaso, Carmen 1945), Shogun’s Shadow is an impressive epic for fans of the martial arts genre. Co-starring Ken Ogata, Seizô Fukumoto, Satoshi Kurihara, Norihito Arai, Toshihiro Asari, Jianqiang Hu, Miyuki Kanô, and Masaki Kyômoto, Shogun’s Shadow is a must-see under-rated gem.

Igo Gyobu (Ken Ogata) is on a new mission. A young and ambitious man travels on a journey to the land of Edo. The journey is one meant to mark a special occasion – the transition for boyhood to manhood. Traveling to Edo, the young man is accompanied by a group of master swordsman samurai warriors. Determined to get him to Edo safe and sound, the samurai swordsmen are put through a perilous, dangerous, and trying test of fate. The samurai must fight and face the wrath of the shogunate. Everything is at stake. The fate of all the samurai.

Ogata delivers an impressive performance. The actor played a significant role in the feature-film and added a great deal to the production. Chiba is, of course, the main draw for fans of the beloved actor. The performance is a must-see and there are some great layers of depth to the fine performance. Chiba similarly provides stunt coordination for the feature-film and fans of impressive martial arts work will find this to be an especially enticing aspect of Shogun’s Shadow.

The production has some outstanding artistic merits. The art direction by Norimichi Igawa (Yagyu Clan Conspiracy, Samurai Reincarnation) is first-rate. There is something superb on display in the design in every frame. The design element adds a great deal to the viewing experience. The artistry of these designs makes the experience more rewarding.

The choreography by Jianqiang Hu (Drunken Master III, Shaolin Temple) is an essential piece of the puzzle, too. The choreography helps to highlight the artistry of the martial arts. The work was an impressive part of the equation. Well-done.

Edited by Eifu Tamaki (Kura, Night Train), Shogun’s Shadow is a well-paced feature-film. The filmmaking has a good sense of ambition. The sense of scale is enormous. The cut is good and as a result this film manages to flow better from beginning to end.

The score composed by Masaru Satô (Yojimbo, The Hidden Fortress) is one of the highlights of Shogun’s Shadow. Satô is a legendary Japanese composer and an artist with an outstanding mastery of scoring. The music adds so much to the film. The score by Satô is an essential part of the film and why it is so engaging as an experience. There is a lot to cherish about the score.

Written by Hirô Matsuda (Zero Woman: Red Handcuffs, Yagyu Clan Conspiracy) and Sadao Nakajima (A Savage Beast Goes Mad, The Seburi Story), Shogun’s Shadow is an ambitious script. The film has some entertaining ideas and the screenwriters have fun exploring the landscape of the production. A script featuring good dialogue and solid storytelling.

Directed by Yasuo Furuhata (Railroad Man, Station), Shogun’s Shadow is a must-see for Chiba fans. The sense of scale to the film is enormously ambitious. The film has a fun visual language and there is a lot worth appreciating here – much of which is due to the solid visual eye of Furuhata. Don’t miss it.

Shogun's Shadow Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by Shout Factory, Shogun's Shadow is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 widescreen. The high-definition video presentation looks excellent on the release. The high-definition encode capably preserves the film: providing superb detail and clarity on the release. The transfer looks naturally filmic and the encode preserves fine detail in the grain. The transfer is clean and free from egregious print damage and other print deficiencies.

Shogun's Shadow Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release is presented in Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (with English subtitles). The lossless audio encoding on the release is enormously satisfying. The lossless audio encoding sounds crisp, engaging, and noteworthy. The lossless mix has good fidelity. The audio elements are in excellent condition and the audio presentation is free from egregious issues with dirt, pops, clicks, and other audio related sound deficiencies.

Shogun's Shadow Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Theatrical Trailer (HD, 3:14)

Shogun's Shadow Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Shogun's Shadow is an entertaining martial arts film and the scale to the production is quite engaging. The production scale is superb and there are a lot of impressive elements at play in the filmmaking. The strong performance by Sonny Chiba adds a lot to the film.

A fun martial arts gem – one that is well-worth seeing. The Blu-ray release provides a strong video and audio presentation. Recommended.