The Game Trilogy Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.5

The Game Trilogy Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 17, 2023

Arrow is offering fans of Yusaka Matsuda a chance to enjoy the cooler and than cool and hipper than hip action star in a kinda sorta trilogy that according to the label is being released outside of Japan for the first time. For probably understandable reasons, the trilogy's mention of The Game and/or the very title of one of the films itself, namely The Most Dangerous Game, may evoke memories of other productions (click on the link if you're stumped), and it is probably undeniable that there are certain derivative elements at play in all three of the films included in this set, if not necessarily to either the David Fincher thriller (which, not to state the obvious, appeared decades after these films) or to the hoary 1932 effort. The back cover of this release states that these three films helped launch Yusaka Matsuda as "the Toei tough guy for a new generation", but it actually may be more meaningful to those with less international tastes unfamiliar with Toei's vaunted history to state that The Game films kind of presage the John Wick franchise in a way by profiling a laconic hitman named Shohei Narumi, who, like John, has a "particular set of skills" which dispatch any number of nemeses. While arguably not quite as florid as the John Wick films, The Game trilogy is also rather stylish in its own way, with evocative cinematography and scoring helping to support sometimes familiar storytelling.

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

The Most Dangerous Game Blu-ray review

The Killing Game Blu-ray review

The Execution Game Blu-ray review

The Game Trilogy Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Video quality of each film is assessed in the above linked reviews.

The Game Trilogy Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Audio quality of each film is assessed in the above linked reviews.

The Game Trilogy Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Supplements accompanying each film are detailed in the above linked reviews. Additionally, this is another nicely packaged limited edition from Arrow that includes a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tony Stella, a folded mini poster, and Arrow's typically very nicely appointed insert booklet. Packaging features a slipcover.

The Game Trilogy Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If some of the story elements at play in all three of these films are occasionally on the tired side, the films themselves offer good, visceral action and a really appealing "cool" presence in the form of Matsuda. Technical merits are generally solid, and the supplements very enjoyable. Recommended.