Revenge of the Samurai

It's a splendid week for fans of classic Samurai films to have access to money and a DVD player, though some may prefer a dark and haunting Korean thriller.

This Week's Region 1 DVD Releases

REBEL SAMURAI: SIXTIES SWORDPLAY CLASSICS
Japan. 420 minutes.
Release Company: Criterion Collection.

Four-disc collection. Titles also available individually. Detailed information about the films is available at the Home Vision web site. Here's a list of the features:

KILL! (1968):
# New, restored high-definition digital transfer
# Original theatrical trailer
# New essay by film and cultural critic Howard Hampton
# New and improved English subtitle translation

SAMURAI REBELLION (1967):
# New, restored high-definition digital transfer
# Excerpts from a 1993 interview with director Masaki Kobayashi
# Original theatrical trailer
# New essay by Japanese-film historian Donald Richie
# New and improved English subtitle translation

SAMURAI SPY (1965):
# New, restored high-definition digital transfer
# Exclusive interview with director Masahiro Shinoda
# New essay by film scholar Alain Silver
# New and improved English subtitle translation

SWORD OF THE BEAST (1965):
# New, restored high-definition digital transfer
# New essay by Japanese-film and pop-culture authority Patrick Macias
# New and improved English subtitle translation

SPIDER FOREST
South Korea. 2004. 120 minutes.
Directed by Song Il-gon.
Release Company: Tartan Extreme Asia.

"An enigmatic mystery that follows a tormented car accident survivor haunted by visions of murder, this dreamlike thriller is a challenging audience puzzle."--TLA Video web site.

Features:
# Deleted Scenes,
# Behind The Scenes
# Cast Interviews
# Photo Gallery
# Original Theatrical Trailer