The Most Dangerous Game Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

The Most Dangerous Game Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 17, 2023

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of The Game Trilogy set from Arrow.

Arrow is offering fans of Yusaku 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 Yusaku 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.

The arguably more famous film bearing this same title involved a madman hunting humans for sport, and in a way, you could almost make the case that this film follows the same trajectory, albeit with in this particular case what might be termed a "hired madman" doing the killing. And in fact probably even more so than the ultimately kind of likable John Wick (at least if you're not getting your butt kicked by him), Shohei Narumi (Yusaku Matsuda) is very much an anti-hero, engaging in some fairly questionable behaviors as he marauds his way through a labyrinthine plot which involves corporate intrigue that kind of reminded me in a way of some of the "shenanigans" that suffuse Black Test Car.

Suffice it to say that the film, while perhaps surprisingly dense in its narrative ambitions (ambitions which frankly may not be completely realized, due at least in part to the rote nature of so much of the story), really relies most heavily on Matsuda's incredible charisma and a potent dose of action. A quasi-love interest is a passing sidebar that involves a beautiful moll named Kyoko (Keiko Tasaka).

The Most Dangerous Game Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Most Dangerous Game is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Arrow's insert booklet lumps all three films together on its page devoted to the restorations, per the following:

The Most Dangerous Game, The Killing Game, and The Execution Game are presented in their original 2.35:1 aspect ratio with mono sound. The high definition masters were supplied by Toei and sourced from the best available archival materials, with additional colour grading and picture restoration by Arrow Films at R3Store Studios.

The Most Dangerous Game has some variable presentational elements which means you may have to settle on "glass half full" or "glass half empty" status. All three films in this set can suffer from some inherent limitations of whatever element was utilized, and there are therefore some passing deficits in The Most Dangerous Game that are perhaps most evident in some of the darker material, where crush is apparent and detail levels are less fulsome. In the more brightly lit material, general detail and especially fine detail improves measurably, though the palette still has a somewhat aged, often skewed toward brown tones, appearance. There are some minor age related wear and tear blemishes, but nothing of any major import. Grain resolves naturally for the most part, but can tend to be more noticeably roughhewn in the lower light scenes.

The Most Dangerous Game Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Most Dangerous Game features a spry sounding LPCM Mono track in the original Japanese. A fun jazz inflected score by Yuji Ohno sounds nicely full bodied and bright without any brashness. A few passing sound effects can occasionally sound a bit boxy, but dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Most Dangerous Game Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary by Chris Poggiali and Marc Walkow


• The Action Man (HD; 20:05) is an interview with director Toru Murakawa. Subtitled in English.


• Original Theatrical Trailer (HD; 2:23)


• Image Gallery (HD)

The Most Dangerous Game Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Yusaku Matsuda died rather tragically young, just as his international star was beginning to rise courtesy of such films as Black Rain, and for anyone curious about the "fuss" surrounding him, this film and its two follow ups provide more than enough evidence as to why he was such a sensation. The film itself is little trite at times, but Matsuda is always more than watchable. Technical merits are generally solid (I'd argue audio a bit more than video), and the supplements very enjoyable. Recommended.