Wicked City (1987) September 29, 2020

[Blades1370]

Released by Discotek Media

Been a long time since I last saw this (VHS days), but what I do remember was a good storyline, and lots of gratuitous sex and violence.

Day 1 for me, just hope that it has the original English dub from the VHS release

[dallywhitty]

Hasn't this already been released on Blu-ray, or did I just dream that?

Anyway, great film. I'm not a massive anime guy, but much of what I've seen and enjoyed has been of the ultra-violent 80s variety.

[Blades1370]

Originally Posted by dallywhitty

Hasn't this already been released on Blu-ray, or did I just dream that?

Anyway, great film. I'm not a massive anime guy, but much of what I've seen and enjoyed has been of the ultra-violent 80s variety.

Was released in Japan earlier this year (don't always check for international releases), to be honest I completely forgot about this anime film until checking on upcoming US releases and seeing this title pop up.

[AreaFive]

Originally Posted by dallywhitty

Hasn't this already been released on Blu-ray, or did I just dream that?

Are you thinking of Demon City Shinjuku perhaps? It was just released.

[Surge92]

Originally Posted by dallywhitty

Hasn't this already been released on Blu-ray, or did I just dream that?

Anyway, great film. I'm not a massive anime guy, but much of what I've seen and enjoyed has been of the ultra-violent 80s variety.

Oh, man. I thought it was the HK live-action adaptation for a minute there.

[monwobbbo]

Originally Posted by Surge92

Oh, man. I thought it was the HK live-action adaptation for a minute there.

Me to. Bummer it's not

[WaverBoy]

This is the WICKED CITY I’ve been waiting for on Blu, thanks for the heads up! And I had no idea DEMON CITY SHINJUKU had just been released a couple days ago! Thanks guys!!!

Now I could really use Blu-rays of Project A-ko and the uncut original episodes of UROTSUKIDOJI, please and thank you!

[professorwho]

Originally Posted by WaverBoy

Now I could really use Blu-rays of Project A-ko and the uncut original episodes of UROTSUKIDOJI, please and thank you!

Project A-Ko is a no-go. The original negatives and even the film prints for it are considered lost or destroyed, so every single release uses Pony Canyon's CAV Laserdisc as a basis, as it is currently the highest quality "source" of the film.

Now, there might be remastered releases down the road using the highest quality LD players to capture it combined with some digital restoration, but even if that does happen, we're stuck with a 420i Composite video master.

[Dragon78]

Yeah, a shame about project A-ko, but I would still buy a Blu Ray release for it even if it is just slight upgrade from DVD.

[WaverBoy]

Originally Posted by professorwho

Project A-Ko is a no-go. The original negatives and even the film prints for it are considered lost or destroyed, so every single release uses Pony Canyon's CAV Laserdisc as a basis, as it is currently the highest quality "source" of the film.

Now, there might be remastered releases down the road using the highest quality LD players to capture it combined with some digital restoration, but even if that does happen, we're stuck with a 420i Composite video master.

Horrible news! What the hell happened to it? I noticed the last official DVD looks pretty feeble.

[fred25_Ca]

Wow, that's awesome, i've been dying for this to be release on blu ray. Whatever happened to Yoshiaki Kawajiri? He used to direct the best anime with monsters, such wonderful designs. This, Demon city, Ninja Scroll and Bloodlust are all fantastic. Glad they will all be on blu now!

[El_Fez]

Originally Posted by professorwho

Project A-Ko is a no-go. The original negatives and even the film prints for it are considered lost or destroyed, so every single release uses Pony Canyon's CAV Laserdisc as a basis, as it is currently the highest quality "source" of the film.

Goddamned, that sucks! I have the old USMC dvd and I kept thinking "Goddamned, this looks like VHS!" when I watched it last time.

Oh well. Stranger lost films have turned up before, so there's always hope. If they can find a episode of Doctor Who in Nigeria 50 years on, you never know.

[DukeTogo84]

Originally Posted by fred25_Ca

Wow, that's awesome, i've been dying for this to be release on blu ray. Whatever happened to Yoshiaki Kawajiri? He used to direct the best anime with monsters, such wonderful designs. This, Demon city, Ninja Scroll and Bloodlust are all fantastic. Glad they will all be on blu now!

Yeah, I always considered him to be the best anime director of all time. Last thing I saw him direct was the Highlander film and then it seemed like he vanished off the face of the Earth.

He was trying to get investors for Ninja Scroll 2, but it didn't work out as no one seemed to think it would turn a profit.

[eledoremassis02]

Originally Posted by professorwho

Project A-Ko is a no-go. The original negatives and even the film prints for it are considered lost or destroyed, so every single release uses Pony Canyon's CAV Laserdisc as a basis, as it is currently the highest quality "source" of the film.

Now, there might be remastered releases down the road using the highest quality LD players to capture it combined with some digital restoration, but even if that does happen, we're stuck with a 420i Composite video master.

Ultimate high quality LaserDisc with Domesday Duplicator and grading HDR - YouTube

This might be their best bet!

[Blades1370]

Originally Posted by WaverBoy

This is the WICKED CITY I’ve been waiting for on Blu, thanks for the heads up! And I had no idea DEMON CITY SHINJUKU had just been released a couple days ago! Thanks guys!!!

Now I could really use Blu-rays of Project A-ko and the uncut original episodes of UROTSUKIDOJI, please and thank you!

Now there is another Anime I had forgotten about, Project A-Ko, sucks to hear about the state of materials (or lack thereof) for producing a new master.

Wicked City, and Project A-Ko used to own on VHS, including all 39 tapes of the three Starblazers series (13 tapes per season), Amine is literally the only thing I ever owned on that format.

Wish the DVD boxed sets were still available for purchase on Starblazers, know to many I am sacrilegious in preferring the US dubbed versions over the original Japanese audio, but it's simply what I grew up watching back in 1979.

[Darkstream]

Wicked City is one of my favorite anime movies ever. I know a lot of people think Ninja Scroll is Yoshiaki Kawajiri's best, but I've always preferred Wicked City over it. Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust may actually be Kawajiri's best, though.

[SuperFlyHighGuy]

Does this have any nudity in it?

[Darkstream]

Originally Posted by SuperFlyHighGuy

Does this have any nudity in it?

Yes. Quite a bit. Very sexual, and gory, too. It's not as extreme as Urotsukidoji, but it's definitely not as tame as Demon City Shinjuku.

[DukeTogo84]

I wonder who has the rights to Kawajiri's Highlander in the US. I would love to see this one get a Blu-ray.

[Mikezilla3k]

Originally Posted by DukeTogo84

I wonder who has the rights to Kawajiri's Highlander in the US. I would love to see this one get a Blu-ray.

I believe the current rights holder worldwide is going all Rubinstein with it, asking for way too much money to distribute it.