The Tale of Oiwa’s Ghost Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

The Tale of Oiwa’s Ghost Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 14, 2025

Collectors of Asian cinema on Blu-ray discs may feel like it's déjà vu all over again with regard to The Tale of Oiwa's Ghost, since this film is another adaptation of a source story that has seen several theatrical feature and small screen versions through the years, including The Ghost of Yotsuya, which I reviewed in 2024 when it was released as part of Radiance's Daiei Gothic: Japanese Ghost Stories set. Rather interestingly, though, it looks like Radiance is now offering a standalone edition of that film which is being released on the same date as this film is coming out on disc. Perhaps indicating just how popular the source story has been through the years, The Tale of Oiwa's Ghost Followed The Ghost of Yatsuya by only a couple of years or so, something that is perhaps especially interesting given that The Ghost of Yotsuya was generally acclaimed at the time and has continued to be perceived as one of the better film versions of the troubling saga.

Some general plot outlines followed in this film are available in my The Ghost of Yotsuya Blu-ray review, but this is a rather subtly skewed version of the tale that can emphasize boorish male behavior at least as much as any vengeful female spirit's "shenanigans". It's also notable that this film is in black and white, giving it an almost Gothic noir quality at times. The lead performances by Tomisaburô Wakayama as an almost feral samurai named Tamiya Iemon and Ayuko Fujishiro as his used and abused wife Oiwa anchor the film in some surprisingly visceral scenes, and this "take" on the story has an arguably more "kitchen sink" realism aspect despite its obviously supernatural underpinnings.

The Tale of Oiwa’s Ghost Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: In years now of reviewing Radiance discs, both check discs and final retail versions, I had something very unusual happen with this particular release in both its check disc and final retail form. I could not get either disc to load successfully on any of my PlayStations, which is typically how I take screenshots. This was an issue for both Region A and Region B PlayStations ranging from 3 to 5. The Radiance masthead would load, but then I'd get a black screen. If I pressed Menu during the Radiance masthead, the logo would freeze and nothing else would happen. Interestingly, on my PC drive the main menu image loaded, but without any actual menu options appearing. This all suggests some kind of authoring issue, which I've reported up the chain of command, so to speak. I therefore defaulted to watching this on two of my 4K players where it loaded without any issue, but that necessitated me having to take screenshots from a 4K player, which despite capturing from an SD source may still not be offering a completely accurate representation of the palette, so caveat emptor (or whatever the appropriate analog might be).

The Tale of Oiwa's Ghost is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Radiance Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. Radiance's booklet contains only the following minimal information on the transfer:

The Tale of Oiwa's Ghose was transferred in high definition by Toei Co. Ltd. and supplied to Radiance Films as a high definition digital file.

A lot of this film is almost blanketed in an overwhelming darkness, and one of the definite pluses of this transfer is its appealing black levels. Contrast is generally strong throughout, helping to elevate some near chiaroscuro lighting and cinematography choices. As seems to be inevitable with some of these vintage Asian productions in particular, there are occasional anamorphic oddities, with some slight stretching at times toward the middle of the frame, and some attendant squeezing toward the edges. Detail levels are generally great, at least when lighting conditions allow. There are some discernable signs of age related wear and tear, but they're relatively minor and never very distracting.

The Tale of Oiwa’s Ghost Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Tale of Oiwa's Ghost features an expressive LPCM 2.0 Mono track in the original Japanese. There's an at least occasionally layered sound design in this production that can blend both things like fighting effects with subtler ambient environmental sounds. Nakaba Takahashi's score is also well rendered. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Tale of Oiwa’s Ghost Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Mari Asato (HD; 9:00) offers her thoughts on the film and Tai Kato. Subtitled in English.


• Facing Oiwa (HD; 6:57) is an interesting overview of the source story and its many adaptations by Lindsay Nelson.


• Introduction by Mari Asato (HD; 9:19) is accessible under the Play Menu and is authored to lead directly to the main feature. Subtitled in English.

Radiance provides a nicely appointed insert booklet with a really interesting essay by Tom Mes, along with cast and crew information and the typical transfer notes and credits. The sleeve is reversible, and Radiance includes its trademark Obi strip.

The Tale of Oiwa’s Ghost Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The fact that Radiance is now releasing a standalone edition of The Ghost of Yotsuya on the same day as this film should give fans a near perfect opportunity for a rather fascinating double feature. Tastes of course will vary, but one way or the other, so-called "discerning cineastes" can be treated to two rather radically different takes on the same source, and as such they provide some compelling examples of "contrast and compare". Technical merits are solid and the supplements very appealing. Recommended.