New Release: Kuroneko Blu-ray and DVD

By
Laurence
– August 11, 2011Find Others: Blu-ray 3D, DVD, Movie, New Release, NewsGet More: , ,

Release Date: Oct. 18, 2011
Price: DVD $29.95, Blu-ray $39.95
Studio: Criterion

Kuroneko movie scene

Kichiemon Nakamura and Kiwako Taichi close their eyes to the growing horror of Kuroneko.

The poetic and atmospheric 1968 Japanese horror film Kuroneko is set in a village in war-torn medieval Japan, where a malevolent spirit has been ripping out the throats of itinerant samurai. When a military hero is sent to dispatch the unseen force, he finds that he must struggle with his own personal demons as well.

Directed by noted Japanese filmmaker Kaneto Shindo (Onibaba), Kuroneko (which translates into Black Cat in English) is an eerie twilight tale with a shocking feminist angle. Today, it’s also highly regarded for its ghostly special effects and exquisite cinematography.

Presented in Japanese with English subtitles, Criterion’s editions of the film offer a new high-definition digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray and new and improved English subtitle translation.

Here’s a list of the bonus features on the DVD and Blu-ray:

  • video interview with director Kaneto Shindo from the Directors Guild of Japan
  • new video interview with critic Tadao Sato
  • theatrical trailer
  • booklet featuring an essay by film critic Maitland McDonagh and an excerpt from film scholar Joan Mellen’s 1972 interview with Shindo

 

Buy or Rent Kuroneko
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About Laurence

Founder and editor Laurence Lerman saw Alfred Hitchcock’s North by Northwest when he was 13 years old and that’s all it took. He has been writing about film and video for more than a quarter of a century for magazines, anthologies, websites and most recently, Video Business magazine, where he served as the Reviews Editor for 15 years.