7.2 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Yoshie Nogami, a factory worker by day, works as a bar hostess at night. She begins a passionate affair with one of her regulars, but his changing demeanor and constant demands for money lead Yoshie down a dark path.
Starring: Miyuki Kuwano, Mikijirô Hira, Keisuke Sonoi, Bunta SugawaraForeign | 100% |
Drama | 67% |
Crime | 11% |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Japanese: LPCM 2.0 Mono
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
It's perhaps instructive to note how almost shockingly different the depictions of prostitution were in two films released barely a year or so apart from each other. Billy Wilder's 1963 adaptation of Irma la Douce , despite being shorn of almost all of its original musical comedy score, was a rather jaunty, farcical look at the "world's oldest profession". 1964's The Shape of Water, on the other hand, is a much more desperate feeling account, offering an almost fatalistic and probably undeniably melodramatic story involving a young woman named Yoshie Nomoto (Miyuki Kuwano). The film opens with Yoshie already seemingly decently adjusted to being a streetwalker, which is how she meets Hiroshi Fujii (Keisuke Sonoi). While there is still a transactional aspect to their relationship, perhaps just the slightest tinge of romantic feelings intrude, at least on Hiroshi's part, and his continued interest in Yoshie leads to a flashback detailing Yoshie's transition from an everyday factory worker who seeks to escape that rut to someone who ultimately is forced into prostitution, with a little "help" from an abusive pimp named Eiji Kitami (Mikijirô Hira)
The Shape of Night is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Radiance Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Radiance tends not to provide a ton of technical information in its insert booklets, and that's once again the case here, with only the following information offered:
The Shape of Night was transferred in high definition by Shochiku Co. Ltd. and supplied to Radiance Films as a high definition digital file. Additional restoration was performed by Radiance Films in 2024.The film's evocative use of color is frequently very well supported here, though my hunch is some may some passing scenes to be just a bit on the blue - green side, if almost subliminally at times. That said, warmer tones like pops of red or purple can resonate very effectively. Detail levels are excellent throughout, and fine detail on admittedly minor items like furniture fabrics or the really almost baroque looking screens in a very late scene, as well as on costumes, is precise. There are some passing anamorphic oddities and occasional softness, as well as some very minor signs of age related wear and tear. Grain resolves naturally throughout.
The Shape of Night features an LPCM 2.0 Mono track in the original Japanese. Perhaps surprisingly for such an "intimate" (in more ways than one) drama, the sound design can offer at least some scenes featuring some ambient environmental effects, and those, along with the score by Masanobu Higure, as presented with fluidity. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.
Rarely has such a sad, even maybe slightly tawdry, story been presented with such ravishing visuals, but that gives The Shape of Night an almost dialectical presentation that arguably makes it even more viscerally effective. Kuwano is both lovely and tragically affecting as Yoshie, and the film's luscious cinematography by Tôichirô Narushima is another undeniable asset. Technical merits are solid, and the supplements are especially enjoyable. Recommended.
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