Arrow Video UK Blu-ray Synopsis: Throughout Japanese cinema, the image of the noble samurai righting wrongs katana in hand remains a fixture of the jidaigeki genre, with the authoritarianism and corruption of the country's medieval past often attenuated for the sake of spectacle and entertainment. But in the 1960s, director Eiichi Kudo's Samurai Revolution Trilogy shattered this idealised conception of the samurai, providing an authentic and scathing portrayal of Japan's tyrannical past to question the social and political landscape of his day. Beginning in 1963 with 13 Assassins (remade in 2010 by Takashi Miike), followed by The Great Killing in 1964 and 11 Samurai in 1967, the Samurai Revolution trilogy depicts the rot at the heart of the Tokugawa shogunate: despotic lords oppress their people and abuse their power with impunity, loyalty to the Shogun is valued above compassion and righteousness, and samurai have shed any trace of nobility in favour of their own self-interest, which they pursue with gleeful cruelty. Each film portrays a group of honourable samurai driven to plan the political assassination of a corrupt lord, hoping to light the fuse that will eventually destroy the regime. But the rebels must understand the fatal consequences of their mission. Should the Shogun falter, then their lives and the entire samurai class will be forfeit. Eiichi Kudo masterfully deploys expressive black and white cinematography, spectacular swordfights and compelling performances to paint a rich visual and narrative tapestry, using each from to further explore questions of ethics and morality. Featuring a who's who of iconic jidaigeki actors including Chiezo Kataoka (Bloody Spear at Mount Fuji), Ko Nishimura (Lady Snowblood), Kei Sato (Hara-Kiri) and Toru Abe (Zatoichi and the One-Armed Swordsman), Kudo's Samurai Revolution trilogy rank among the most important samurai films ever made and are a must-have for chanbara connoisseurs.

 

Views: Master film-maker Eiichi Kudo, who delivered around 30 features over 4 decades and a number of well received television shows, gave film fans a selection of genuine classics that cemented his name as one Japan's top directors. Thankfully, Arrow Video have combined three of his finest in this Samurai Revolution Trilogy that features 13 Assassins (1963), The Great Killing (1964) and 11 Samurai (1967). Each film, set during the Tokugawa shogunate, portrays an oppressed people under notorious lords. While they abuse their power and show nothing but cruelty to those around them, a group of honourable samurai set out to assassinate the corrupt Shogun on a mission of life or death! Beautifully captured in stunning black and white, strong in story with great performances from all and plenty of exciting sword-fights, the Toei produced Samurai Revolution Trilogy is a must for all lovers of chanbara cinema...

 

13 Assassins – Probably a title that is more recognised due to the popularity of Takashi Miike's incredible 2010 remake, the original 13 Assassins from 1963 is still a genuinely classics piece of Japanese cinema worth checking out. Although this ensemble piece wasn't too successful commercially, Toei knew they had something special and pushed on with Kudo for many years after. Set in 1844, during a period of change across Japan, 13 Assassins is about the fall of Lord Matsudaira; a high ranking samurai lord who has been greatly abusing his power and, ultimately, disgracing the bushido code. Convinced that things are only going to get worse, respected daimyo Sir Doi takes a blood oath to put a stop to the corrupt lord. After drafting a similarly minded team of assassins, plans are put in place to trap and kill Matsudaira and his 200 bodyguards by trapping them in a small town. Although the odds are against them, the 13 assassins give it their all in a blistering battle to the end in a bid to bring down the corrupt official! Offering gorgeously cinematography, stunning set pieces, authentic locations, and brutally raw performances, Kudo delivers an epic that refuses to romanticise samurai life that so many had done before and after it. While it saves the majority of the swordplay action for it's spectacular 30 minute grand finale, 13 Assassins is so wonderfully directed and acted that you can't look away. Much loved actor Chiezo Kataoka, star of Tomu Uchida's Bloody Spear at Mount Fuji (1955), leads the way as Shinzaemon Shimada, and gives another terrific performance. He is joined by the hugely prolific Ryohei Uchida, who appeared in almost 300 films throughout his career, who stars as Hanbei Kitou, while the handsome Kotaro Satomi stands out as Shinrokuro Shimada; another of the assassins. They are joined by greats such as Tetsuro Tanba, Satomi Oka, Michitaro Mizushima, Shingo Yamashiro, Kantaro Suga, and Kinnosuke Takamatsu, with Satomi Oka and the lovely Junko Fuji guest starring. Suspenseful, dramatic, and so much more, Eiichi Kudo's 13 Assassins is a masterpiece, complete with many glorious visuals and a great score, and has never looked better than it does here in this collection from Arrow Video!

 

Accompanying the feature on the first disc, is another informative audio commentary by Tom Mes who delves into the film and those behind it, as well as some historic facts from this particular period which proved quite interesting. That said, and while I can listen to him a little easier than David West (who covers the following two films), Tom still has the ability to put you to sleep with his soft spoke, accented voice. Film critic and music supervisor James Balmont delivers a fantastic 25 minute video essay on prolific composer Akira Ifukube, called The Samurai Variations, taking us through his life and career in film with a neatly edited piece and plenty of fancy big words. Following that, we get Samurai Guerilla Part 1 – a 26 minute piece featuring Eiichi Kudo's former assistant Misao Arai and film-maker Dirty Kudo, who discuss the director and Toei studios on how they helped shape Japanese cinema throughout the 1960s. This is an archival French production, presented in 4:3 widescreen with new English subtitles placed over the blurred originals, and makes for an interesting watch. Finally, we get two trailers on the film. The first, the runs for just under 3 minutes, is the unrestored original Japanese trailer which was cool to see. The second one, running just over 2 minutes, is also unrestored in Japanese, but carries French subtitles and shows brief clips behind the scenes. Regardless, these are great examples of how the film used to look before it got an HD restoration...

 

The Great Killing – Standing just as strong as Kudo's previous title, The Great Killing is the second chapter or his Samurai Revolution Trilogy and makes for an equally intriguing watch. Bearing some similarities to 13 Assassins – with a group of skilled revolutionaries getting together to bring a stop to a corrupt official, by killing off his chancellor en route. With even more striking scenes than before, most of which are stunningly framed and captured, made even more memorable in this restored black-and-white print, The Great Killing is a solid piece of chanbara cinema offering gritty, dramatic performances from it's cast, suspense, and intense sword battles that come across more realistic than choreographed. But amongst the melodrama and political intrigue, lies a well-crafted script written, once again, by Kaneo Ikegami. Aside from writing the first two titles of Kudo's trilogy, it's worth noting that he was also behind the screenplays for classics like 17 Ninja (1963), Outlaw: Gangster VIP (1968) and it's many sequels, Echo of Destiny (1972), Shadow Hunters (1972), and even some episodes of the much loved 70s television show, The Water Margin. It was nice to see 13 Assassins' stars Kotaro Satomi and Toru Abe return for more, joined by another list of great actors including Minoru Oki, Nami Munakata, Mikijiro Hira,Yoshio Inaba and others.

 

Joining this fantastic film on the second disc is an audio commentary with David West and, while I find it hard getting through a full recording with him (let alone a 2 hour movie), he does present enough interesting quips about the film to make for a decent listen, albeit sidetracking a number of times into randomness. Magician of Light and Magic is a 30 minute video essay by Daisuke Miyao on Eiichi Kudo's style of cinematography and set design – a fantastic piece that really gets into some of the finest shots from each of the films present. Misao Arai and Dirty Kudo return for Samurai Guerilla Part 2, the continuation of the archival French production that sees them focus more on The Great Killing, running for almost 27 minutes. And finally, we get another called Masaaki Ito Remembers Eiichi Kudo, a 13 minute tribute to the director by his former assistant and brother-in-law. As with the Samurai Guerilla documentaries, this is an archival French production presented in 4:3 with new English subtitles, but is interesting to watch.

 

11 Samurai – Loosely based on historical fact, as were the two before it, Kudo's final chapter is set in 1839 and sees the selfish young Lord Nariatsu trigger a rift between clans while on a hunting trip. Having been approached by Clan Lord Abe for killing one of his people, Nariatsu puts an arrow in his eye before fleeing – rewriting the story to his Shogun brother that he was defending himself. But when they are ordered to give Nariatsu the income of the land as compensation, Chamberlain Tatewaki puts his foot down. Angered by the injustice shown and the death of his own Lord, he speaks with an old friend, Hayato, who agrees to gather a team of samurai to seek revenge and bring down Nariatsu for what he has done. Following him to Edo, they join forces with a ronin named Ido Daijuro, who has his own reasons for bringing down the arrogant young Lord. So, as they hide out in a small village from a torrential rainstorm, the 11 samurai attack in a deadly battle with 50 dedicated bodyguards! Very similar to 13 Assassins in many ways and set just 5 years before those events, 11 Samurai proved to be yet another fantastic watch from this much celebrated film-maker – once again, stunningly shot and beautifully restored. There's such a rawness to all of the films in this trilogy, but I feel that this one delivered that even more so – especially in it's final scenes. Once again, a strong and dedicated cast help make the film very memorable with the great Isao Natsuyagi leading the way as Sengoku Hayato. Prior to this, Isao had made his name by starring as the lead in Hideo Gosha's wonderful Samurai Wolf 1 & 2 (1966), going on to star in films like Goyokin (1969), The Wolves (1971), Female Convict 701: Scorpion (1972), Shogun's Samurai (1978), G.I. Samurai (1979) and so much more. The handsome Kotaro Satomi returns under Kudo once again, playing Hayato's right-hand man Kenshiro, while popular actor Koji Nanbara – recognisable for his roles in films like The Human Condition (1959), Abashiri Prison (1965), Branded to Kill (1967), Zatoichi and the One Armed Swordsman (1971) and Wandering Ginza Butterfly (1972) – stars as his childhood friend, Chamberlain Tatewaki. The equally popular Kantaro Suga does a fantastic job as the hateful Lord Nariatsu, delivering a performance that captures the coldness and entitlement of his character so well, that you actually can't wait for him to be taken down. All are joined by Kei Sato, Ryutaro Otomo, Ko Nishimura, and Junko Miyazono who stars as Hayato's wife – reuniting her with Natsuyagi after starring together in Samurai Wolf (1966)...

 

Joining this incredible film on the final disc of the set is another audio commentary from David West, and a 20 minute video essay by Johnathan Clements called Fighting the Poison that sees him take a closer look at the Samurai Revolution Trilogy from a historical perspective. Part 3 of the French production, Samurai Guerilla, follows that – this time, discussing Eiichi Kudo's filming techniques and styles used in his jidaigeki films. Much like the others, this 26 minute piece offers a great insight to the director's style and is nice conclusion to the series. And finally, we get a featurette called Eiichi Kudo: The Art of Realism, an archival piece (from 2007) with French film-maker and programmer Fabrice Arduini who discusses the jidaigeki genre and Kudo himself. Once again, this comes from the same team behind the Samurai Guerilla episodes and is presented in the same fashion, playing more like a video essay of sorts, the 14 minute piece makes for an interesting watch as it reveals tons of great photos and poster art of Kudo and other Japanese film-makers at work.

 

Beautifully presented and restored, each film has never looked better than they do here and are only a few of the classic titles of Japanese cinema that leave a lasting impression. While perhaps not as celebrated as peers such as Akira Kurosawa, Tai Kato, Kinji Fukasaku, and Tomu Uchida, Eiichi Kudo could deliver just like the rest of them, and the Samurai Revolution Trilogy is the perfect example why. Released in a rigid box with new artwork by Tom Fournier and reversible sleeves, this limited edition collection also features an illustrated booklet with new writings by Alain Silver, Earl Jackson and Chris D. I loved this release!

 

Overall: The Samurai Revolution Trilogy from Arrow Video is a must for any true cinephile and lovers of Japanese cinema!

 

Arrow Video Blu-ray Extras: Audio Commentaries by Tom Mes & David West, Video Essays by James Balmont, Daisuke Miyao and Jonathan Clements, Three Archival Samurai Guerilla Episodes, Archival Interview with Masaaki Ito, Archival Video Essay with Fabrice Arduini, Theatrical Trailers