Zatoichi: Darkness Is His Ally (1989)

[drush9999]

Originally Posted by CMNPlanet

Just got a shipping notice from DeepDiscount -- likely won't be here until after the holiday tho'.

Had mine from their sister company WowHD as well.

[dana martin]

got a notice from CD Universe

Shipping today

[CMNPlanet]

Arrived today.



1080i /1:85.1 / Japanese PCM 2.0 with yellow English subs

Two extras: a trailer that feels like it's from old VHS source (in Japanese with no subs) and an 11 minute still gallery of posters, lobby cards, etc. sourced from DVD.

A quick glance: it feels like a layer of artificial noise has been added, occasional white specks and dirt, but stabilization is good. Colors are nice but low-light and night shots can be muddy.

[DukeTogo84]

Originally Posted by CMNPlanet

Arrived today.



1080i /1:85.1 / Japanese PCM 2.0 with yellow English subs

Two extras: a trailer that feels like it from old VHS source (in Japanese with no subs) and an 11 minute still gallery of posters, lobby cards, etc. sourced from DVD.

A quick glance: it feels like a layer of artificial noise has been added, occasional white specks and dirt, but stabilization is good. Colors are nice but low-light and night shots can be muddy.

Awesome. So how would you compare it to the other Zatoichi films from Criterion in terms of picture quality? Also, out of 1-10 (10 being fantastic) what would you rate the PQ?

Cool that you already have it, as Amazon still hasn't shipped mine.

[CMNPlanet]

^ I haven't watched the whole thing through and through, just chapter hopping... it's solid, but I'd likely stick it somewhere between a 6 and 7 out of 10.

[DukeTogo84]

Originally Posted by CMNPlanet

^ I haven't watched the whole thing through and through, just chapter hopping... it's solid, but I'd likely stick it somewhere between a 6 and 7 out of 10.

Interesting. So it's not horrible to say the least. Decided to cancel my Amazon order and order from deepdiscount.

[Blu Titan]

Originally Posted by CMNPlanet

Arrived today.



1080i /1:85.1 / Japanese PCM 2.0 with yellow English subs

Two extras: a trailer that feels like it's from old VHS source (in Japanese with no subs) and an 11 minute still gallery of posters, lobby cards, etc. sourced from DVD.

A quick glance: it feels like a layer of artificial noise has been added, occasional white specks and dirt, but stabilization is good. Colors are nice but low-light and night shots can be muddy.

Where did you order from???

[Shingster]

1080i! **** me!

[Blu Titan]

Shipped from Amazon and will be delivered Sunday .

[IdeaOfEvil]

Just got my copy in from Rightstuf anime =)

[DukeTogo84]

Got my copy in.

Compared this to the DVD and I can say this easily looks much better than the Tokyo Shock DVD.

Could this look better? Yes. However, it's not one of the Tokyo Shock misfires, and again is a solid upgrade from the DVD for sure. So happy to retire my old copy.

[PissedOffPeoN]

Same :0 too bad it is in 1080i? Was there no 1080p master in japan?

[Shingster]

Originally Posted by PissedOffPeoN

Same :0 too bad it is in 1080i? Was there no 1080p master in japan?

This will probably end up being another Maborosi situation where the Japanese studio has a proper 1080p transfer and the resultant Jpn BD is 1080p whereas the US distributor has been fobbed off with a 1080i master.

[ghostface2012]

Just got my copy from Amazon.com to the UK. Have checked the disc and it appears to be region free. Checked on 2 multi-region players, plays on all regions (A,B & C), also checked on 2 region B locked players and a UK Xbox One.

[Blu2u]

The movie looks terrible. Compression and noise artifacts galore, all the more noticeable in any dark scenes. Day time scenes are more forgiving, but this looks more like a beta upscale than a DVD upscale. I'm hoping Arrow decides to upgrade this for the UK.

[DukeTogo84]

Originally Posted by Blu2u

The movie looks terrible. Compression and noise artifacts galore, all the more noticeable in any dark scenes. Day time scenes are more forgiving, but this looks more like a beta upscale than a DVD upscale. I'm hoping Arrow decides to upgrade this for the UK.

This blu-ray isn't going to win any awards. However, put in the Tokyo Shock DVD and compare it this new Blu-ray. It's literally night and day. Again, while this one won't win any awards, it's a HUGE improvement over the DVD. So that alone makes it worth the purchase.

[Robojaws]

Originally Posted by Blu2u

The movie looks terrible. Compression and noise artifacts galore, all the more noticeable in any dark scenes. Day time scenes are more forgiving, but this looks more like a beta upscale than a DVD upscale. I'm hoping Arrow decides to upgrade this for the UK.

Got mine a while back now and watched it right away.
Yes, there are compression issues and noise artifacts as well as some scratches etc. and the 1080i are especially annoying when it comes to the subs where you can spot the interlacing every time a new line of subs appear or the old ones disappear.
BUT still, it´s sorta looking accepatble even when projected on a bigger screen. Close-Ups look quite good and offer some nice detail, colors are strong and not washed out, blacks tend to crush from time to time and sometimes seem to be a little weak; never really gets the job done. Daytime scenes are mostly surprisingly strong when compared to the worst night time scenes and even if the transfer lacks what one is used to in 2018 and the criterion/arrow remasters, this release is not a complete letdown.

Besides the "compression and noise artifacts galore" the PQ looks natural, definetely no DVD upscale (don´t know what a beta upscale supposed to be) and I could not spot any traces of DNR or Edge Enhancement.

I´d rate the PQ something between 2,5-3 out of 5. A professional remaster would work some wonders for sure and there is clearly room for improvement. But for the sake of having all them Zatoichi movies, I´d still recommend a purchase. Who knows... if this release gets sold out and no mayor studio gets the rights for a decent remaster, the blu-ray could spike to a ridiciously high price for anyone who wants its Zatoichi collection complete.

AQ was okay. But if I remember correctly there where some parts where some minor hissing occured. Not overly distracting, but it was there (pretty sure).

I´d rate the AQ something between 3-3,5 out of 5.

All in all things considered this release is quite far from being perfect and clearly not as strong as the Criterion releases, but still worth a purchase in my opinion.

[TheLaughingMann]

Finally had enough saved to order this.

While I thought the 2003 version was good in an over-the-top way, I've heard volumes spoken of the basis for that one in the form of the older movies. Bought the Criterion, then I realize this was out...and now I have the complete "classical" Zatoichi series.

[Grethiwha]

Originally Posted by TheLaughingMann

Finally had enough saved to order this.

While I thought the 2003 version was good in an over-the-top way, I've heard volumes spoken of the basis for that one in the form of the older movies. Bought the Criterion, then I realize this was out...and now I have the complete "classical" Zatoichi series.

Don't forget about the 100 television entries that came between the Criterion set and this movie.
Those'll set you back another seven or eight hundred bucks US for the DVDs, to own the complete Zatoichi series.

[Shingster]

I don't believe you can own the complete series anymore, can you? Aren't the Japanese DVDs OOP now? Did they ever get round to releasing the fourth season? Plus they didn't have English subs anyway did they?