Wicked Priest Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Wicked Priest Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 2, 2026

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of the Wicked Priest Collection from Arrow Video.

Perhaps just a little sadly it may not seem as shocking to contemporary sensibilities to see "wicked" and "priest" combined in one title as it may have been when the films Arrow has aggregated for this collection were first released, but as a supplement featuring Matt Alt and Patrick Macias on one of the discs in Arrow's five film set of Wicked Priest offerings gets into, the original Japanese title may be a bit more nuanced, in that wicked doesn't necessarily mean "evil" or even "bad" in a traditional sense. That said, fans of this franchise might be prone to joke that you'd be hard pressed to really argue that focal monk Shinkai (Tomisaburō Wakayama) doesn't behave in ways that are not often associated with the quiet, celibate and reflective life of such an ostensible religious figure. But that said, according to the same supplement Japanese lore and legend is nonetheless evidently rife with descriptions of what might be called raucous and/or bawdy priests and/or monks. The Wicked Priest films appeared between 1968 and 1971, and were ostensibly set in an early 1920s Taishō period, even if that may or may not reflect the rise of Shinto and diminution of Buddhism during that era (as per the same aforementioned supplement). In that regard, a joke in the supplement kind of suggests it's more than obvious that the Wicked Priest films are not exactly models of a documentarian approach, but they are rowdy entertainments that helped cement the status of Wakayama, which would soon be confirmed with his breakthrough role in the Lone Wolf and Cub series. Fans of this era of Japanese cinema will probably already know that Wakayama's younger brother was Shintarō Katsu who actually beat his elder sibling to superstar status courtesy of the Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman franchise. For those unacquainted with this duo, there are some fascinating rabbit holes to explore, maybe as internet palette cleansers in between the films in this set (which may contain an "in joke" or two about the brothers and the roles they played).

There's a rather interesting, almost throwaway, moment right at the start of this first Wicked Priest that sets up a central conflict which continues to run through the subsequent films, at least intermittently. A monk is seen fighting with a bunch of ruffians, and Shinkai actually joins the fray to try to quiet things, but instead is exiled from his monastery for perceived bad behavior (they ain't seen nothin' yet). While it's not explicitly discussed in dialogue and not even depicted that clearly, the monk who started the fracas is named Ryotatsu (Bunta Sugawara), and he turns out to be a central nemesis for Shinkai going forward. If the powers that be (or were, so to speak) at the monastery think porting Shinkai off to some hinterland will cause Shinkai to "change", well, they're right, but probably not in the way assumed. When the story segues forward in time, the first thing we see in Shinkai's new if supposedly unimproved new life is him orally pleasuring a female (somewhat hilariously, if shockingly for some, a recurring motif throughout the series).

Suffice it to say Shinkai does not go gently into whatever the Buddhist equivalent of a good night might be, and instead he becomes a vigilante of sorts, albeit one with a rather active libido and one without strictures on his behavior, since he's already crossed that Rubicon (if I may be permitted to mix international and/or historical metaphors). Shinkai ends up helping locals in various ways while also uncovering a kind of Buddhist conspiracy involving yakuza elements and unsurprisingly ultimately Ryotatsu.

Wicked Priest Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Wicked Priest is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1 (more about that in a moment). Arrow's insert booklet lumps all of the films together on the page devoted to the presentations:

The films in this collection are presented in their original 2.35:1 aspect ratio with mono Japanese audio.

Wicked Priest was restored by Toei Company, Ltd.

Wicked Priest 2: Ballad of Murder, Wicked Priest 3: A Killer's Pilgrimage, WIcked Priest 4: The Killer Priest Comes Back, and Wicked Priest 5: Blood on the Commandments were restored by Arrow Films from 4K scans of the original camera negatives supplied by Toei Company, Ltd.

Restoration and color grading was completed by Heavenly Movie Company.

Audio restoration was completed by Bad Princess Productions.

Despite the above verbiage and even in contradiction to the IMDb, this is in 2.39:1, though this may be another case as I've kind of hilariously discussed with regard to member submissions here at the site where 2.35:1 and 2.39:1 are often mistaken for each other. I see no signs of any "tweaking" here, either in terms of anamorphic stretching or odd framings that might indicate (slight) cropping. As with all of the other films in this set, Wicked Priest offers a really beautifully suffused palette that is especially impressive toward the warmer end of the spectrum courtesy of repeated uses of red throughout the production design. Fine detail is typically expressive, especially on costumes. There is some noticeable flicker in the opening vignette with regard to the blue background. Grain resolves naturally.

Wicked Priest Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Wicked Priest features an LPCM Mono track in the original Japanese. As with some others in this set, there's just a bit of thinness and brashness during the Toei masthead, but once the film gets underway things sound fine. Some of the evocative scoring choices featuring a koto and traditional "throat singing" help to set an almost spooky mood. There are occasional slight background pops (one circa 14:22), but nothing major. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Wicked Priest Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Arrow has packaged this release with two films each on Disc One and Disc Two, and with the fifth film and the following supplements on Disc Three:

• Composing the Gospel (HD; 20:56) is a new video essay about the venerable Isao Tomita by James Balmont.


• Taisho Troubles (HD; 20:26) is a new video essay by Jonathan Clements focusing on Wakayama and the historical context of the films.


• Offscreen Battles (HD; 31:32) is a new video essay with James Mudge offering an overview of 1960s Japanese cinema.


• Martial Arts and Super Mario Brothers (HD; 35:02) is the first of two pieces featuring Patrick Macias and Matt Alt. This one focuses on Wakayama.


• Priest or Monk (HD; 15:28) features Macias and Alt again moving on to plot points and historical context.


• Theatrical Trailers

Wicked Priest (HD; 3:13)




Wicked Priest 2: Ballad of Murder (HD; 3:12)




Wicked Priest 3: A Killer's Pilgrimage (HD; 3:17)




Wicked Priest 4: The Killer Priest Comes Back (HD; 3:11)




Wicked Priest 5: Blood on the Commandments (HD; 3:25)

Wicked Priest Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

This series gets off to an enjoyable start, and any fans only conversant with Wakayama's later, more taciturn, work in the Lone Cub and Wolf Series will most likely be delighted by how, well, frisky he is here. Technical merits are generally solid, with a few hiccups, and the release's franchise spanning supplements are enjoyable. Recommended.