Asian Cinema Thread

Criterion USA has announced plans to release the Bruce Lee Greatest Hits collection which includes five films that Bruce Lee himself featured in (two of which he also directed). It will be available on 14th July 2020 for SRP $124.95.

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The films are Lo Wei's The Big Boss, Lo Wei's Fist of Fury, Bruce Lee's The Way of the Dragon, Robert Clouse's Enter the Dragon, and Bruce Lee's Game of Death.
 
Eureka Entertainment have started shipping copies of their new release of Kwaidan, can’t wait to see how it turns out as I held off importing the Criterion edition for ages.
 
HWR said:
Eureka Entertainment have started shipping copies of their new release of Kwaidan, can’t wait to see how it turns out as I held off importing the Criterion edition for ages.
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I've heard the transfer is similar to the Criterion release but has different extras. I am quite tempted to order it myself but I placed my budget towards the Jackie Chan 88 Films releases as those are selling out faster.
 
NormanicGrav said:
I've heard the transfer is similar to the Criterion release but has different extras. I am quite tempted to order it myself but I placed my budget towards the Jackie Chan 88 Films releases as those are selling out faster.
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That reminds me I need to pick up Heart of Dragon whilst the slip is in print.
 
Jon O Fun said:
Pretty impressive. BBFC gave them 6 months to switch and 88films did it in 2 weeks! Don't think I've seen any other studios actually using the new versions yet.
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Third Window Films is pretty much going to be the first with Tsukamoto collection later this month!

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The latest updated release schedule.

May 2020:​

DateNameLanguageDirectorFormatDistributor
18thFlavour of Green Tea Over RiceJapaneseYasujirō OzuBlu-ray & DVDBFI
18thFuneral Parade of RosesJapaneseToshio MatsumotoBlu-rayBFI
18thThrow DownCantoneseJohnnie ToBlu-rayEureka 'Masters of Cinema'
25thPink Films Vol 3 & 4:
Abnormal Family / Blue Film Woman		JapaneseMasayuki Suo, Kan MukaiBlu-ray & DVDThird Window Films

June 2020:​

DateNameLanguageDirectorFormatDistributor
1stParasiteKoreanBong Joon-hoBlu-rayCurzon Artificial Eye
15thOperation Condor: Armour of God IICantoneseJackie ChanBlu-ray88 Films
15thTokyo Story (4K Restoration)JapaneseYasujirō OzuBlu-rayBFI
22ndThe Mad FoxJapaneseTomu UchidaBlu-rayArrow Academy
29thTakeshi Kitano Three-Film Collection:
Boiling Point / Sonatine / Violent Cop		JapaneseTakeshi KitanoBlu-rayBFI

July 2020:​

DateNameLanguageDirectorFormatDistributor
6thHanagatamiJapaneseNobuhiko ObayashiBlu-rayThird Window Films
6thInferno Of TortureJapaneseTeruo IshiiBlu-rayArrow Video
6thZombie For SaleKoreanLee Min-jaeBlu-rayArrow Video
13thHiroshimaJapaneseHideo SekigawaBlu-rayArrow Academy
20thMaborosiJapaneseHirokazu Kore-edaBlu-rayBFI
27thGamera: The Complete CollectionJapaneseVariousBlu-rayArrow Video

Coming Soon (No Scheduled Date Yet):​

NameLanguageDirectorDistributor
The Burning Buddha Man & Violence VoyagerJapaneseUjichaThird Window Films
Dragon LordCantoneseJackie Chan88 Films
Fearless HyenaCantoneseJackie Chan88 Films
MelancholicJapaneseSeiji TanakaThird Window Films
Pink Films Vol 5: Women Hell SongJapaneseWatanabe MamoruThird Window Films
Ran (4K Ultra HD Blu-ray)JapaneseAkira KurosawaStudio Canal
Underwater Love (Blu-ray)JapaneseShinji ImaokaThird Window Films
Untold StoryCantoneseHerman Yau88 Films
 
Eureka Entertainment will be bringing Mr. Vampire back to the UK on Blu-ray this July. This 1985 anthology Hong Kong horror film was produced by Sammo Hung and directed by Ricky Lau. It had been previously released in the UK by Made in Hong Kong, Hong Kong Legends and Cine-Asia on DVD.

The film will be labelled as part of Eureka Classics (like most of the Hong Kong films such as Police Story and Sammo Hung collection).
 
Speaking of 88Films, they’re currently offering free shipping on their website if anyone is looking to buy some of their recent releases (the ones that are in stock anyway).
 
 
It seems 88 Films continues the Jackie Chan train with the 1976 film Shaolin Wooden Men spotted their official website.
 
NormanicGrav said:
HMV is running a 2 for £16 on BFI titles which do include an offer for the Akira Kurosawa Samurai Collection at £24.99.

Here's the list for those interested:
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A quick update. The upcoming 2020 re-release of Tokyo Story does include the Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family film, and I suspect the booklet will be the same also, with the main difference being the transfer which the 2020 version is the 4K restoration.

I'm bringing this up because a number of Ozu works were released by Criterion a few years after BFI's with 4K restorations so it wouldn't surprise me if we see some re-releases incoming, most notably with An Autumn Afternoon and Good Morning.
 
BFI has made a list of their picks for best Japanese film per year. Here's the results:

  • 1925: Orochi - directed by Buntaro Futagawa
  • 1926: A Page of Madness - directed by Teinosuke Kinugasa
  • 1927: A Diary of Chuji’s Travels - directed by Daisuke Ito
  • 1928: Crossroads - directed by Teinosuke Kinugasa
  • 1929: Days of Youth - directed by Yasujiro Ozu
  • 1930: What Made Her Do It? - directed by Shigeyoshi Suzuki
  • 1931: The Neighbour’s Wife and Mine - directed by Heinosuke Gosho
  • 1932: I Was Born, But… - directed by Yasujiro Ozu [available by BFI]
  • 1933: Japanese Girls at the Harbour - directed by Hiroshi Shimizu
  • 1934: Our Neighbour, Miss Yae - directed by Yasujiro Shimazu
  • 1935: Wife! Be like a Rose! - directed by Mikio Naruse
  • 1936: Sisters of the Gion - directed by Kenji Mizoguchi
  • 1937: Humanity and Paper Balloons - directed by Sadao Yamanaka
  • 1938: Fallen Blossoms - directed by Tamizo Ishida
  • 1939: The Story of the Last Chrysanthemums - directed by Kenji Mizoguchi
  • 1940: Spring on Leper’s Island - directed by Shiro Toyoda
  • 1941: Ornamental Hairpin - directed by Hiroshi Shimizu
  • 1942: The War at Sea from Hawaii to Malaya - directed by Kajiro Yamamoto
  • 1943: The Life of Matsu the Untamed - directed by Hiroshi Inagaki
  • 1944: Army - directed by Keisuke Kinoshita
  • 1945: Momotaro, Sacred Sailors - directed by Mitsuyo Seo [available by Anime Limited]
  • 1946: Utamaro and His Five Women - directed by Kenji Mizoguchi
  • 1947: The Ball at the Anjo House - directed by Kozaburo Yoshimura
  • 1948: Children of the Beehive - directed by Hiroshi Shimizu
  • 1949: Late Spring - directed by Yasujiro Ozu [available by BFI]
  • 1950: Rashomon - directed by Akira Kurosawa [available by BFI]
  • 1951: Repast - directed by Mikio Naruse
  • 1952: The Life of Oharu - directed by Kenji Mizoguchi [available by Criterion]
  • 1953: Tokyo Story - directed by Yasujiro Ozu [available by BFI]
  • 1954: Seven Samurai - directed by Akira Kurosawa [available by BFI]
  • 1955: The Eternal Breasts - directed by Kinuyo Tanaka
  • 1956: Crazed Fruit - directed by Ko Nakahira
  • 1957: A Sun-Tribe Myth from the Bakumatsu Era - directed by Yuzo Kawashima
  • 1958: Giants and Toys - directed by Yasuzo Masumura
  • 1959: Fires on the Plain - directed by Kon Ichikawa
  • 1960: The Naked Island - directed by Kaneto Shindo
  • 1961: Bad Boys - directed by Susumu Hani
  • 1962: Harakiri - directed by Masaki Kobayashi [available by Eureka Entertainment]
  • 1963: The Insect Woman - directed by Shohei Imamura
  • 1964: Woman of the Dunes - directed by Hiroshi Teshigahara
  • 1965: A Fugitive from the Past - directed by Tomu Uchida
  • 1966: Silence Has No Wings - directed by Kazuo Kuroki
  • 1967: Branded to Kill - directed by Seijun Suzuki [available by Arrow Video]
  • 1968: Death by Hanging - directed by Nagisa Oshima
  • 1969: Funeral Parade of Roses - directed by Toshio Matsumoto [available by BFI]
  • 1970: Eros + Massacre - directed by Yoshishige Yoshida
  • 1971: Throw Away Your Books, Rally in the Streets - directed by Shuji Terayama
  • 1972: Female Convict Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 - directed by Shunya Ito [available by Arrow Video]
  • 1973: Battles without Honour and Humanity - directed by Kinji Fukasaku [available by Arrow Video]
  • 1974: Sandakan No. 8 - directed by Kei Kumai
  • 1975: The Shiranui Sea - directed by Noriaki Tsuchimoto
  • 1976: Watcher in the Attic - directed by Noboru Tanaka
  • 1977: The Yellow Handkerchief - directed by Yoji Yamada
  • 1978: The Demon - directed by Yoshitaro Nomura
  • 1979: The Man Who Stole the Sun - directed by Kazuhiko Hasegawa
  • 1980: Zigeunerweisen - directed by Seijun Suzuki [available by Arrow Academy]
  • 1981: Muddy River - directed by Kohei Oguri
  • 1982: I Are You, You Am Me - directed by Nobuhiko Obayashi
  • 1983: The Family Game - directed by Yoshimitsu Morita
  • 1984: The Funeral - directed by Juzo Itami
  • 1985: Fire Festival - directed by Mitsuo Yanagimachi
  • 1986: To Sleep So as to Dream - directed by Kaizo Hayashi
  • 1987: The Emperor’s Naked Army Marches On - directed by Kazuo Hara
  • 1988: Akira - directed by Katsuhiro Otomo [available by Manga Entertainment]
  • 1989: Tetsuo: The Iron Man - directed by Shinya Tsukamoto [available by Third Window Films]
  • 1990: The Cherry Orchard - directed by Shun Nakahara
  • 1991: Only Yesterday - directed by Isao Takahata [available by Studio Canal]
  • 1992: Porco Rosso - directed by Hayao Miyazaki [available by Studio Canal]
  • 1993: Sonatine - directed by Takeshi Kitano [available by BFI]
  • 1994: Katatsumori - directed by Naomi Kawase
  • 1995: Like Grains of Sand - directed by Ryosuke Hashiguchi
  • 1996: Shall We Dance? - directed by Masayuki Suo
  • 1997: Cure - directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa [available by Eureka Entertainment]
  • 1998: Ring - directed by Hideo Nakata [available by Arrow Video]
  • 1999: Audition - directed by Takashi Miike [available by Arrow Video]
  • 2000: Eureka - directed by Shinji Aoyama
  • 2001: Spirited Away - directed by Hayao Miyazaki [available by Studio Canal]
  • 2002: The Twilight Samurai - directed by Yoji Yamada
  • 2003: Wild Berries - directed by Miwa Nishikawa
  • 2004: Nobody Knows - directed by Hirokazu Koreeda [available by BFI]
  • 2005: Linda Linda Linda - directed by Nobuhiro Yamashita
  • 2006: Paprika - directed by Satoshi Kon [available by Manga Entertainment]
  • 2007: United Red Army - directed by Kôji Wakamatsu
  • 2008: Love Exposure - directed by Sion Sono [available by Third Window Films]
  • 2009: Summer Wars - directed by Mamoru Hosoda [available by Manga Entertainment]
  • 2010: Villain - directed by Lee Sang-il
  • 2011: I Wish - directed by Hirokazu Koreeda [available by Arrow Academy]
  • 2012: Flashback Memories 3D - directed by Tetsuaki Matsue
  • 2013: Tale of Iya - directed by Tetsuichiro Tsuta
  • 2014: The Light Shines Only There - directed by Mipo Oh
  • 2015: Happy Hour - directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi
  • 2016: Harmonium - directed by Kôji Fukada [available by Eureka Entertainment]
  • 2017: Hanagatami - directed by Nobuhiko Obayashi [available by Third Window Films]
  • 2018: Shoplifters - directed by Hirokazu Koreeda [available by Thunderbird Releasing]
  • 2019: Domains - directed by Natsuka Kusano
 
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Poor Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983), though that is technically a British-Japanese production so maybe it didn’t count.
 
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