Third Window Films Discussion Thread

[Dougling]

Originally Posted by GasmaskAvenger

Not too terribly worried about Tetsuo: The Bullet Man now as I finally secured a copy of the original Japanese blu-ray through a Japanese Amazon.co.uk seller based in Japan...for shipment to the States.

Convoluted, yes, but it was cheapest option in my entire time trying to buy this damn movie (Didn't want the German blu-ray, to be blunt).

Are there issues with the German Blu?

[GasmaskAvenger]

Originally Posted by Dougling

Are there issues with the German Blu?

I'm not aware of any issues with the German disc, actually. It was just my own personal preference to own the Japanese release.

[Tom09]

Originally Posted by Havok-San

I know all of this, so well. Damn. I've taken to purchasing multiple copies of stuff that's extremely important to me. Seems to be my only fix. Of course, then I'm stuck playing the resale game, or returning tons of things. It's a stressful thing when the majority of my life is movies. I guess I shouldn't be so picky, and I've gotten better about movies/games that aren't as sentimental to me. Still craziness.

I will give tons of credit to Amazon.co.jp, though. They've sent me tons of things in absolutely pristine condition. I had ONE item packaged poorly, and they replaced it within two days to the states. I wish I had more items to order from them, after every single positive experience I've had.

Here's hoping that it changes in the future for you. Keep contacting them, keep leaving packaging reviews. I've noticed some packages coming in recently ACTUALLY BOXED AND PROTECTED. Had a heart attack. Maybe change is coming.

Amazon Japan is charging a lot shipping, too. In comparison to that shipping from Amazon UK is ridiculously cheap. Many local (German) online shops are charging higher shipping costs than Amazon UK does for shipping to Germany >.<
I ordered many Japanese textbooks and dictionaries from Amazon Japan and for that amount of shipping I expect good packaging (but it's nothing special either. They only use this unique technique by fixing the products on a piece of cardboard with foil and then putting this into a usual cardboard box.)

I think the majority of the people is just way too picky. Amazon Japan for example says

Books are not replaceable merely for a damaged or missing "obi (paper band)".

The fact that Amazon Japan is explicitly mentioning this means that many requested refund/replacement, thus causing ridiculously amount of economical damage just because they are picky as hell.
The question is, is a product damaged when the packaging of the product is damaged? A sleeve is not part of the product. Just a gimmick. No reason for replacing it.

I also freaked out about this things earlier but as you already mentioned. Way to stressful. Nowadays I don't care if a collectors edition has a dent. Sleeves? Throw them all away. Don't have enough space form them anyways.
There is just one thing I don't accept to date ... scratched discs because that can indeed influence the life span.

[CrockettandTubbs]

There's quite a few TWF titles in HMVs 5 for £30 (3 for £20) offer:

Bullet Ballet
Cold Fish (back in stock soon)
Confessions
For Love's Sake (back in stock soon)
Greatful Dead (back in stock soon)
Han Gong-ju
Himizu
kamikaze Girls
Kotoko
Land of Hope, The
Lesson of Evil (back in stock soon)
Love & Peace
Love Exposure
Memories of Matsuko (back in stock soon)
Pluto (back in stock soon)
Story of Yonosuke, The
Tokyo Fist
Vulgaria (back in stock soon)
Woodsman and the Rain, The

[Dougling]

Originally Posted by CrockettandTubbs

There's quite a few TWF titles in HMVs 5 for £30 (3 for £20) offer:

Bullet Ballet
Cold Fish (back in stock soon)
Confessions
For Love's Sake (back in stock soon)
Greatful Dead (back in stock soon)
Han Gong-ju
Himizu
kamikaze Girls
Kotoko
Land of Hope, The
Lesson of Evil (back in stock soon)
Love & Peace
Love Exposure
Memories of Matsuko (back in stock soon)
Pluto (back in stock soon)
Story of Yonosuke, The
Tokyo Fist
Vulgaria (back in stock soon)
Woodsman and the Rain, The

Good stuff, might top up a few more on payday.

[rapta]

Originally Posted by CrockettandTubbs

There's quite a few TWF titles in HMVs 5 for £30 (3 for £20) offer:

Bullet Ballet
Cold Fish (back in stock soon)
Confessions
For Love's Sake (back in stock soon)
Greatful Dead (back in stock soon)
Han Gong-ju
Himizu
kamikaze Girls
Kotoko
Land of Hope, The
Lesson of Evil (back in stock soon)
Love & Peace
Love Exposure
Memories of Matsuko (back in stock soon)
Pluto (back in stock soon)
Story of Yonosuke, The
Tokyo Fist
Vulgaria (back in stock soon)
Woodsman and the Rain, The

Great prices for these. I went for Kotoko myself, and was considering The Woodsman and the Rain but might get it another time. Recommend getting all the Tsukamoto titles for these prices (Bullet Ballet, Tokyo Fist, Kotoko) as well as Miike's Lesson of Evil (which was in this offer ages ago and I missed it, but bought it direct from Third Window recently).

[Cocodon]

I've only seen a few of those:

Confessions
Greatful Dead
Kotoko
Love & Peace
Love Exposure

Didn't like Greatful Dead (first half was fine, second half went completely off the rails for me), Love & Peace, Love Exposure, and Confessions are all absolutely brilliant, and Kotoko is somewhere in between.

I'd like to see the version of Love Exposure before they chopped about two hours from the runtime, just to see what else Sion Sono would throw at us. It was absolutely mental and I loved it.

Confessions is one hell of a twisted revenge tale, featuring one of the strongest opening half hours I've seen.

[CrockettandTubbs]

Extras for Takeshi's 'Getting Any?' announced (dvdcompare.net):

Audio commentary by Sean Redmond, author of "The Cinema of Takeshi Kitano: Flowering Blood."

An interview with Takeshi Kitano.

"The film utilises a new 2K restoration from Office Kitano and the first 1000 copies will come with a limited slipcase illustrated by Marie Bergeron."

The slipcover:

[Show spoiler]

[Show spoiler]

[GasmaskAvenger]

I FINALLY own the entire trilogy on blu-ray!

[Havok-San]

Originally Posted by GasmaskAvenger

I FINALLY own the entire trilogy on blu-ray!

Oh, oh, nice. Japanese release for Bullet Man? The soundtrack murders me, especially near the beginning when his powers first come to.

[GasmaskAvenger]

Originally Posted by Havok-San

Oh, oh, nice. Japanese release for Bullet Man?

Yup.

And yeah, Chu Ishikawa's score for the third film (as well as the Nine Inch Nails song made for the end credits) is great. Can't wait to hear the sound mix in lossless audio.

I also own that Japanese soundtrack collection box set too. Should've put it alongside my blu-rays of the trilogy for the picture.

[Havok-San]

Originally Posted by GasmaskAvenger

I also own that Japanese soundtrack collection box set too. Should've put it alongside my blu-rays of the trilogy for the picture.

I had no idea one existed, or I'd be all over it. Time to find it, hopefully easily available.

[Le Grande Blu]

Blind Bought Destruction Babies. What an amazing film.

[moviegeek1992]

Hi guys, anyone seen Himizu and would recommend it? I blind bought Love Exposure and really liked it, unfortunately I wasn't a fan of Sono's Guilty of Romance or Cold Fish - most likely because they didn't have the same OTT feel as Love Exposure. Which of those three is Himizu closer in style to?

[Grethiwha]

Originally Posted by moviegeek1992

Hi guys, anyone seen Himizu and would recommend it? I blind bought Love Exposure and really liked it, unfortunately I wasn't a fan of Sono's Guilty of Romance or Cold Fish - most likely because they didn't have the same OTT feel as Love Exposure. Which of those three is Himizu closer in style to?

Guilty of Romance and Cold Fish not over-the-top enough?!

I think those movies are insane (and brilliant). But they are a lot darker than Love Exposure, which you can maybe say feels more cartoony by comparison.

How does Himizu compare? The main characters are teenagers, like Love Exposure. Actually younger. But it's darker than Love Exposure; poetry plays an important role in it, so similar to Guilty of Romance in those regards. But in other ways it maybe feels closer to Cold Fish.

It's emotionally over-the-top, like all Sono's films, but it's not quite as crazy as those other three. I don't know. It's distinctly a Sion Sono film, but it's hard to compare Himizu to any of those three, particularly.

You know what. I don't recommend Himizu for you. For you, I recommend Why Don't You Play in Hell? (available in the US). Or possibly Love & Peace.

[GasmaskAvenger]

I'm planning on ordering the remaining Tsukamoto titles later this month.

[Cinematt]

Originally Posted by moviegeek1992

Hi guys, anyone seen Himizu and would recommend it? I blind bought Love Exposure and really liked it, unfortunately I wasn't a fan of Sono's Guilty of Romance or Cold Fish - most likely because they didn't have the same OTT feel as Love Exposure. Which of those three is Himizu closer in style to?

I'd say Himizu won't be your thing. If you want over the top I'd go with Tokyo Tribe.

[GasmaskAvenger]

Just ordered Tokyo Fist (which i've seen before) and Bullet Ballet (which I haven't seen).

I'll order Snake of June and Kotoko later.

[Havok-San]

Weeelp, Amazon cancelled my Cold Fish order. Damn. It had been sitting for about two months, too.

[thirdwindowfilms]

Pre-order Shinya Tsukamoto's FIRES ON THE PLAIN on amazon for £14.99 at: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fires-Plain...b9eea2da13676d
(Though heard amazon prime members get it cheaper at checkout)
First 1000 copies get this lovely slipcase!
Dual-format dvd/bluray with brilliant extras!
HMV have it for £12.99 at: https://store.hmv.com/film-tv/blu-ra...627.1503279893
Zavvi for £14.99 (and in their 2 for £25 sale): https://www.zavvi.com/blu-ray/fires-.../11499345.html