Cinelicious Pics restoring Belladonna of Sadness for US release

[Futurhythm]

Originally Posted by Norbie

Well that sucks. They can't ship the Limited Edition it to Australia!

Maybe Amazon and co. could get some stock.

I emailed them, and they ship to Australia now. The shipping is killer though ($75.95USD). The limited edition is also exclusive to them and won't hit any other retailers.

[The Mayor]

Originally Posted by Futurhythm

I emailed them, and they ship to Australia now. The shipping is killer though ($75.95USD). The limited edition is also exclusive to them and won't hit any other retailers.

They always shipped to Australia.

[Futurhythm]

Originally Posted by The Mayor

They always shipped to Australia.

They didn't. They added the option after I emailed them:

I've just added Australia as a shipping option on our website. Unfortunately it's very expensive ($75.95 USD). We're charging only what the postal service charges for shipping; no handling fees applied.

The special edition version is only available via our shop.

[Herry Dunston]

My local Florida Film Festival will be showing the premiere of Belladonna of Sadness. TICKET PLEASE!

[jacobsever]

Never heard of this until today. I'm not a fan of anime, but the animation style of this looks amazing. Not to mention the soundtrack!

It's playing here in theaters next week, and I'll definitely go check it out. Doubt I'll enjoy it enough to spend $120 on the LE book/blu ray. But I feel like they'll definitely release a standard version of this blu ray. I can't imagine them spending so much time and money to restore the film, only to have a small run of super expensive discs pressed, and a small theatrical run.

[Craig-Rogers]

Originally Posted by jacobsever

Never heard of this until today. I'm not a fan of anime, but the animation style of this looks amazing. Not to mention the soundtrack!

It's playing here in theaters next week, and I'll definitely go check it out. Doubt I'll enjoy it enough to spend $120 on the LE book/blu ray. But I feel like they'll definitely release a standard version of this blu ray. I can't imagine them spending so much time and money to restore the film, only to have a small run of super expensive discs pressed, and a small theatrical run.

Indeed, we'll be releasing the blu-ray on it's own this summer.

[Bobo1313]

Originally Posted by jacobsever

Never heard of this until today. I'm not a fan of anime, but the animation style of this looks amazing. Not to mention the soundtrack!

It's playing here in theaters next week, and I'll definitely go check it out. Doubt I'll enjoy it enough to spend $120 on the LE book/blu ray. But I feel like they'll definitely release a standard version of this blu ray. I can't imagine them spending so much time and money to restore the film, only to have a small run of super expensive discs pressed, and a small theatrical run.

you're missing out on an entire medium of greatness.

Give it a try.

[zrdb]

Man-if the film is anything like the trailer then it's too artsy for me.

[Thomas Guycott]

I'll have to check this out at the Alamo Drafthouse later this month.

[supercutz]

Originally Posted by spiffnme

Indeed, we'll be releasing the blu-ray on it's own this summer.

Great to hear!

[llj]

Originally Posted by zrdb

Man-if the film is anything like the trailer then it's too artsy for me.

Your instincts are probably correct if you don't dig arthouse.

As for people who don't like anime, I have to say there's so much variety out there that you're going to stumble upon something you like eventually. There are plenty of arthouse and b-movie style genre classics to appeal to those who don't like the typical otaku-bait anime, and as a medium it is much more than just "Pokemon", "Miyazaki", "tentacle rape", and "Big eyed lolita girls looking cute and doing cute things". It's possible some people might prefer certain eras of anime over others (people who want b-movie style anime are best served watching 80s anime films), but there's just such a rich history for film connoisseurs to explore.

Anime was also doing compact TV serials (which are NOT mini-series, btw--big difference) LONG before it became in vogue in the U.S. Up until the late 1990s, American TV was typically long running soap operas or ongoing episodic shows with little relation from one episode to another. Now you have all these little cable shows that air for 3 or 4 seasons and have a beginning, middle and end to them and people in the U.S. act like it's a new and revolutionary thing, but that was actually one of TV anime's greatest appeals for decades. Some of these TV anime are really well written too. Maybe not to the standards of a Breaking Bad or Mad Men, but certainly of a high quality by TV standards.

It really is a medium worth exploring. It's just all about knowing what types you like and looking for it.

[Oscar Rothman]

Pre-order http://www.amazon.com/Belladonna-Sad...16588&sr=1-147

street date - July 12

One of the great lost masterpieces of Japanese animation, never before officially released in the U.S., BELLADONNA OF SADNESS is a mad, swirling, psychedelic light-show of medieval tarot-card imagery with horned demons, haunted forests and La Belle Dame Sans Merci with J.R.R. Tolkien influences. The last film in the Animerama trilogy produced by the godfather of Japanese anime & manga, Osamu Tezuka and directed by his longtime collaborator Eiichi Yamamoto (ASTRO BOY and KIMBA THE WHITE LION), BELLADONNA unfolds as a series of spectacular still watercolor paintings that bleed and twist together. A young woman, Jeanne (voiced by Aiko Nagayama) is assaulted by the local lord on her wedding night. To take revenge, she makes a pact with the Devil himself (voiced by Tatsuya Nakadai, from Akira Kurosawa's RAN) who appears as a sprite and transforms her into a black-robed vision of madness and desire.

Extremely transgressive, BELLADONNA is fueled by a mind-blowing Japanese psych rock soundtrack by noted avant-garde jazz composer Masahiko Satoh. The film has been newly restored by Cinelicious Pics using the original 35 mm camera negative and sound elements and including over 8 minutes of surreal footage cut from the negative. On par with Rene Laloux's FANTASTIC PLANET and Ralph Bakshi's WIZARDS as an LSD-stoked 1970s head trip, BELLADONNA marks a major rediscovery for animation fans. If Led Zeppelin had a favorite film, this would be it. In other words, Stairway to Hell.

Special Features:
New Video Interviews with Director Eiichi Yamamoto, Art Director Kuni Fukai, and Composer Masahiko Satoh
Red Band Trailer, Green Band Trailer, Original Trailer
16 page booklet

[pro-bassoonist]

Belladonna of Sadness Blu-ray PRE-ORDER



NEWS and RESTORATION COMPARISON/TRAILER
https://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=19033

U.S. label Cinelicious Pics will release on Blu-ray Belladonna of Sadness. The release will be available for purchase on July 12.

One of the great lost masterpieces of Japanese animation, never before officially released in the U.S., Belladonna of Sadness is a mad, swirling, psychedelic light-show of medieval tarot-card imagery with horned demons, haunted forests and La Belle Dame Sans Merci, equal parts J.R.R. Tolkien and gorgeous, explicit Gustav Klimt-influenced eroticism. The last film in the adult-themed Animerama trilogy produced by the godfather of Japanese anime & manga, Osamu Tezuka and directed by his long time collaborator Eiichi Yamamoto (Astro Boy and Kimba the White Lion), Belladonna unfolds as a series of spectacular still watercolor paintings that bleed and twist together. An innocent young woman, Jeanne (voiced by Aiko Nagayama) is violently raped by the local lord on her wedding night. To take revenge, she makes a pact with the Devil himself (voiced by Tatsuya Nakadai, from Akira Kurosawa's Ran) who appears as an erotic sprite and transforms her into a black-robed vision of madness and desire.

Extremely transgressive and not for the easily offended, Belladonna is fueled by a mindblowing Japanese psych rock soundtrack by noted avant-garde jazz composer Masahiko Satoh. The film has been newly restored by Cinelicious Pics using the original 35mm camera negative and sound elements – and including over 8 minutes of surreal and explicit footage cut from the negative. On par with Rene Laloux's Fantastic Planet. and Ralph Bakshi's Wizards as an LSD-stoked 1970s head trip, Belladonna marks a major rediscovery for animation fans. If Led Zeppelin had a favorite film, this would be it. In other words, Stairway to Hell. (In Japanese with English subtitles.)

Special Features and Restoration Details:

New 4K Feature Restoration from the original 35mm camera negative and sound elements -- including over 8 minutes of surreal an explicit footage cut from the negative.
NEW video interview with Director Eiichi Yamamoto
NEW video interview with Art Director Kuni Fukai
NEW video interview with Composer Masahiko Satoh
Red Band Trailer
Green Band Trailer
Original 1973 Trailer
16-page booklet

Pro-B

[tenia]

Originally Posted by Norbie

Well that sucks. They can't ship the Limited Edition it to Australia!

They can ship it to France, but the shipping fees are $68 !

[pikagreg]

Perfectly fine with the standard set myself! Any idea if it will be available elsewhere or will it be Amazon exclusive?

[NLScavenger]

I'm pretty sure Belladonna will be available at other retailers like the other Cinelicious releases.

[Monroville]

Shame they couldn't have ported over the director's commentary from the Japanese DVD release a few years ago, as well as include a CD soundtrack with the limited edition version. The LP soundtrack goes for @ $300 to $400 (!).

It also would have been nice if they could have created a mediabook (with this or this as the cover) akin to what Koch Media in germany occasionally do.

If this does fairly well, will there be a chance that Ozamu Tezuka's prior release of 1001 NIGHTS will get a blu-ray release as well (as well as the long lost english dub created during it's initial release, or at the least a recreation)?:

A Thousand & One Nights English Trailer - YouTube

Animerama - Osamu Tezuka - Senya Ichiya Monogatari - YouTube

[Monroville]

For those interested, a site called finders keepers has reissued the long OOP LP record:

First ever reissue of Masahiko Sato's mythical score for the cult 70's anime Belladonna Of Sadness. Once again Finders Keepers really outdid themselves by bringing this increasingly unattainable piece (OG copy has gone for upwards of $18K on the 'cogs) back in print.

This elite diggers grail is not only rare, but also an mind-blowing example of psychedelic free jazz in its most potent and sensual form. From the label - "An unholy grail of near mythical status finally joins the Finders Keepers Records discography in the form of this first-ever reissue of Masahiko Sato’s elusive sensual psychedelic free jazz score to the stunning Japanese witchcraft animation Belladonna Of Sadness (Kanashimi no Belladonna) directed by anime screenwriter Eiichi Yamamoto in 1973.

An early feature-length example of a micro-genre in which Japanese anime producers collaborated with the “pink” film genre, Belladonna’s challenging occult, sexual and political subject matter was the cause of the film’s notoriety for many years, earning Yamamoto’s work a critical platform amongst some of the best counterculture animation films of the era... Original copies of the soundtrack, however, are much less likely to rear their heads on a weekly basis, with prices literally doubling each time the original stock copies swap hands amongst the same Italian dealers at central European record fairs. Italian soundtracks are expensive anyway, but this one, as I’m sure you’ll agree, has got extra credentials.

Finders Keepers Records, in direct collaboration with Sato himself, agree that this record should finally be liberated amongst those who know the magic words. With our decision to keep this album “strictly Sato” we removed a track – the main orchestral love theme by Asei Kobayashi and Mayumi Tachibana, which in all honesty is very much detached from Sato’s psychedelic soundtrack. Kept intact, however, are the songs sung and penned by Sato’s then wife Chinatsu Nakayama, including the track entitled TBFS (answers on a postcard?) that only appears on the master tapes and never actually made it to the theatrical cut of the film (although the theme is briefly alluded to, in different instrumentation, in a cut-scene available on the German DVD). This reissue project also marks the beginning of a longer intended relationship between Finders Keepers and Masahiko Sato, exploring his recorded work in both film music, jazz and avant garde composition."

[Le Grande Blu]

Originally Posted by Monroville

For those interested, a site called finders keepers has reissued the long OOP LP record:

I have this and it's great. I think a couple of tracks had to be left off for copyright issues though, but it's still well worth picking up. Also for non-US folk who don't fancy having to pay huge shipping charges, the accompanying book is available for preorder on Amazon UK:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Belladonna-Sadness-Book-Length-Companion-Japanese-Anime/dp/0996744738/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1463133515&sr=8-2&keywords=belladonna+of+sadness

[Norbie]

Originally Posted by Monroville

... It also would have been nice if they could have created a mediabook...

... If this does fairly well, will there be a chance that Ozamu Tezuka's prior release of 1001 NIGHTS will get a blu-ray release as well (as well as the long lost english dub created during it's initial release, or at the least a recreation)?:

Yes, it would be nice if it came in somethink like fancy digipack. But it's not a deal breaker, I'll still be getting the Belladonna blu-ray.

I too hope it sells well for them to release 1001 Nights on blu-ray in the near future. I wonder what sort of condition the negatives are at, or even if they exist for a HD transfer.