Manufacturer: Arrow Video
Kinji Fukasaku (Battle Royale) gave the world Japan s answer to The Godfather with this violent yakuza saga, influencing filmmakers from Quentin Tarantino to Takashi Miike. Made within just two years, the five-film series brought a new kind of realism and ferocity to the crime genre in Japan, revitalizing the industry and leading to unprecedented commercial and critical success. Fukasaku and his team broke with the longstanding studio tradition of casting marquee idols as honorable, kimono-clad heroes, defending their gang bosses against unscrupulous villains, and instead adapted true accounts torn from the headlines, shot in a documentary-like style, and with few clear-cut heroes or villains. The vibrancy and dynamism of the filmmaking, plus its shocking violence, Shakespearean plotlines, and wide tapestry of characters, launched a revolutionary new genre, establishing the series as one of the great masterpieces of world crime cinema. LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS: Limited Edition Blu-ray Collection (2500 copies) High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentation of all five original films Original Mono audio (uncompressed PCM on the Blu-rays) Optional English subtitles for all five films Limited Edition packaging and reversible sleeves for all five films including original and newly commissioned artwork by Reinhard Kleist BATTLES WITHOUT HONOR AND HUMANITY (DISCS 1 & 2) Brand new audio commentary by critic and author Stuart Galbraith IV Yakuza Graveyard a new interview with Takashi Miike about Kinji Fukasaku and the yakuza film genre Original trailers for all five films HIROSHIMA DEATH MATCH (DISCS 3 & 4) Man of Action a new interview with series fight choreographer Ryuzo Ueno Original Trailer PROXY WAR (DISCS 5 & 6) Secrets of the Piranha Army a new documentary about the troupe of supporting actors who appeared throughout the series, featuring interviews with original Piranha members Masaru Shiga and Takashi Noguchi, plus second-generation Piranha, Takashi Nishina and Akira Murota Tale...