Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

The Executioner Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 2, 2023

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of Arrow Video's The Executioner Collection.

In one of the supplements Arrow Video has aggregated for its Sonny Chiba double feature of Executioner films, commentators Chris Poggiali and Marc Walkow mention that the first time ninjas appeared in a Western feature film was in the 1967 James Bond opus You Only Live Twice, but the popularity of that film may have been at least partially responsible for the glut of ninjas characters who would soon start populating global cinema. Some of those films may have contributed to star Sonny Chiba's own popularity, though that said, it would probably be hard to try to stuff either Executioner film neatly into a "ninja pigeonhole", though Chiba's character of Ryūichi Koga does supposedly have that kind of training. Poggiali, Walkow and some other talking heads in various supplements also get into the mad dash to find the "next Bruce Lee" after Lee so unexpectedly and tragically died at such a young age, and that while there were any number of "pretenders", including another kinda sorta mini-glut, this time of performers with supposedly similar names, according to some of these analysts Sonny Chiba might arguably be considered as the true heir to the Lee legacy. Kind of interestingly in that regard, and at least in terms of mass recognition by audiences, Chiba's first successes were in television, at least a bit like Lee for American audiences in particular vis a vis the short-lived television adaptation of The Green Hornet. Chiba had the same kind of clean cut good looks that Lee also offered, but he had a somewhat more feral, menacing presence at times that allowed him to play anti-heroes as often as stalwart straight and narrow types. Both of the Executioner films exploit not just Chiba's remarkable athleticism in any number of martial arts related scenes, but they also rely on the tried and true trope of a band of quasi-mercenaries, some with questionable pasts, working together, in a plot device that may remind those on this side of the pond of everything from The Dirty Dozen to The Expendables .

The Executioner was rather understandably a huge hit for Toei, as it rather artfully combines expert action sequences with a nicely comedic ambience that plays to some perhaps unexpectedly goofy strengths on the part of Chiba. In what might be termed a bit of a riff on how the old television episodes of Mission: Impossible used to start (and which have since been aped in any number of properties), file folders featuring "candidates" for a special ops force are assembled, and Ryūichi is joined by Takeshi Hayabusa (Makoto Sato) and Ichiro Sakura (Eiji Go) in an attempt to bring a ruthless drug smuggler to justice, with a promised huge reward making the job more than attractive. There is one female in the group, Emi, (Yutaka Nakajima), who kind of humorously acts as a supervisor and moderating force.

The Executioner probably doesn't have any outsized ambitions, but that may be exactly what makes it so enjoyable. This is the Japanese equivalent of "popcorn munching" fare, and it provides a breezy assortment of often slapstick laden violence with enjoyable banter and an ultimately light touch, even if things flirt with getting supposedly serious a time or two.

The Executioner Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Executioner is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Arrow's insert booklet lumps the two films together in its verbiage about the transfers:

The Executioner and The Executioner II: Karate Inferno are presented in their original 2.35:1 aspect ratio with mono sound. The high definition masters were produced and supplied by Toei from the best available archival materials, with additional grading and picture restoration by Arrow Films at R3Store Studios.

The English dubbed monoaural soundtrack for The Executioner, originally produced by Minotaur Productions Inc. for the film's US theatrical release in 1978, has been conformed to the uncut Japanese version for this release by Matt Jarman at Bad Princess Productions using two archive masters, courtesy of Televentures Corporation.

The Executioner has some variabilities in its presentation, and as can perhaps be gleaned from some of the screenshots I've uploaded to accompany this review, at least parts of the element look a bit faded, giving flesh tones a noticeably brown look. This tends to be even more noticeable in some of the opticals, which are fairly frequent. That said, especially later in the film and during the bulk of the outdoor material, the palette looks a good deal more natural and considerably warmer, and the brown undertone can materially recede. Detail levels are generally strong. Grain resolves without any issues. There is some age related wear and tear visible, though nothing of any major import.

The Executioner Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Executioner features either Japanese or English options presented via LPCM Mono. Arrow has authored the disc so that toggling between the tracks isn't possible (you have to exit back out to the Main Menu and select the appropriate audio, and then start over), so I wasn't able to do the immediate "side by side" comparisons that I try to. That said, I really didn't notice any huge differences in either overall mix or amplitude. Both tracks deliver dialogue, score and effects without any issues. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Executioner Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Arrow has packaged both of the Executioner films on one disc with the following supplements:

• Audio commentary on The Executioner with Chris Poggiali and Marc Walkow


• The Karate King (HD; 29:51) is an enjoyable overview of Sonny Chiba's life and career.


• Teruo Ishii Filmography (HD) offers a series of text pages with film data points.


• Trailers

  The Executioner (Japanese Version) (HD; 2:40)

  
  

  The Executioner (English Version) (HD; 1:53)

  
  

  The Executioner II: Karate Inferno (HD; 2:25)

• Image Galleries

  The Executioner Image Gallery (HD)

  
  

  Karate Inferno Image Gallery (HD)

Additionally, Arrow provides its typically nicely appointed insert booklet, this one including an essay by Mark Shilling in addition to technical information and production credits. The keepcase sleeve is reversible. Though I don't see it listed on the back cover, the keepcase also includes a folded double sided mini poster with the first film's key art on one side and a larger reproduction of this release's cover on the other. Packaging features a slipcover.

The Executioner Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Executioner set up its plot and its characters handily and then just goes about its merry way, offering liberal doses of humor along with some nicely staged action scenes. Technical merits are generally fine, though video does have some passing color issues in particular. The supplements are very enjoyable. Recommended.