Cyberdemon

Kind of self-explanatory I guess...
I have the Dutch 2-disk uncut Ichi, the R1 Audition and the HK versions on Happiness of the Katakuris & Battle Royale.

I prefer the uncut versions of the film and English subs are a must - it doesn't matter what region the DVD is.

Also, I've noticed on eBay that Dead or Alive 1, 2 & 3 are available. Are these legit or pirates?

Finally, Visitor Q - US or German release?

Thanks in advance,

Cyberdemon

Bilbo Baggins

Well...So far you have probably the best versions to get of Ichi The Killer and Audition (considering how much the Japanese DVDs of these movies cost).

I personally think the picture quality of the HK Happiness of the Katakuris is bad. I am curious if anyone here has gotten the R1 release yet and how it is compared to the Hk version.

Battle Royale is not a Takashi Miike film. Kinji Fukasaku directed that movie.

The Dead or Alive DVDs on EBay are bootlegs for the most part. Tartan has released part 1 which I have and again the picture sucks. They just released part 2. I should have it next week. Hopefully they did a better job with that one than they did with the first one.

And as far as Visitor Q goes that movie was shot on digital video so both versions are only OK. I would go with the US version as it is cheaper. Both versions really don't have that much in terms of extras so...

brombie

Can't comment on the HK version of Katakuris since I haven't seen it, but the R1 version has a great picture quality. I need to watch the movie again to focus on the technical aspects of it.

My setup is a 65" HDTV and I usually notice EEs and grains very easily due to the size of the TV and the proximity from which I'm watching it ...but there's definitely nothing there that distracts me from getting taken away by the sheer joy of watching this movie!

Trigger

Katakuras I have the HK dvd and I thought the video quality was mediocre. I didn't really think it was that great a movie either to be honest - Quiet Family (korean version of same film) was much better (IMO). I have both the HK and Dutch versions of Ichi and the Dutch is great. I have the Tartan Dead or Alive and have yet to watch it. I didn't even know there was more than one of these. :/ The HK version of Audition is fine... I haven't felt a reason to "upgrade". I don't have Visitor Q and don't even know what it's about. What about his other films? Didn't he do Cure and some others?

skokefoe

I just got the R1 Happiness of the Katakuris disc yesterday- I'm pretty amazed at the features and quality of it. I didn't watch the whole movie yet (although I saw it at the theater last summer- I like it a lot), but the quality of the picture and sound look great from what I skipped through.

The features are even more impressive- a pretty good 33 minute interview (dubbed, which is good to have an option, but I wish they included subs with his original voice too) with Takashi Miike, an hour-long making of (I watched about 15 minutes and it was no ordinary crappy promotional featurette), it's got a few trailers, a bio/filmography on Miike, and also a director's commentary for the whole thing (original Japanese commentary with English subs). Quite a nice set for such an oddball movie with a reasonable price.

The Fudoh R1 DVD is nothing to write home about, but I enjoyed the movie quite a bit.

skokefoe.

Giles

why has the DVD Region 1 rollout of Miike's films in the states been so slow? Are the licensing prices prohibitively expensive? Or are his films still an underground phenomena that has limited appeal?

fnordboy

I would say that at this time it is a somewhat underground phenomena. He seems to be getting noticed more and more lately by the american public though. So hopefully we will see more R1 releases in the near future.

ehonauer

I'd assume the latter. Case in point: Happiness of the Katakuris came out two days ago, and I still haven't seen a review at any of the major DVD sites. However, we do have reviews of Troop Beverly Hills available...

Ventura/Chimera/American Cinematheque/Vitagraph have done excellent work so far with Audition, City of Lost Souls, and Happiness of the Katakuris. Audition is non-anamorphic, but the subsequent titles are anamorphic. Katakuris is a jam-packed disc - 60 minute documentary, 30 minute interview, full-length commentary, trailers, etc. I hope they can obtain the rights to more Miike flicks, they really do right by him.

TokyoShock/MediaBlasters has a shakier record - Fudoh was the first Miike release in R1, but has a so-so transfer and no extras. Visitor Q was shot in a week on DV, so the results are never going to be pretty, but still no extras. They have the rights to Ichi the Killer, but quality-wise they're going to have to compete with the Dutch 2-disc version. Hopefully they'll take their time and do it right.

Kino has obtained the rights to the Dead or Alive trilogy, which makes me nervous - they don't have the best track record, and might just transfer Tartan's PAL masters to NTSC. If they do, it's just going to feed the bootleg market, where there are fan-subbed versions of the Japanese DVDs available.

His films will continue to be released through independent channels, and these types of operations don't have the capital to keep up with Miike. Even Criterion, arguably one of the most successful independents, can only put out 6-8 titles a month. It would take them at least a year of full-time work to catch up with Miike's back catalog. Can you imagine a major studio distributing a Miike film here? I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon, and Miike has said himself he's not going to change the way he works to deal with Hollywood. I think he's taken his global success in stride, and the rest of the world will have to struggle to keep up.

Here's a list of 12 popular Miike films awaiting R1 release. By the time they come out, there will probably be another 12.

Ichi the Killer
DOA Trilogy (Dead or Alive, Dead or Alive 2, Dead or Alive: Final)
Shijuku Triad Society Trilogy (Rainy Dog, Ley Lines, Blues Harp)
Graveyard of Honor
Agitator
The Guys From Paradise
Bird People of China
Full Metal Yakuza

zerotl

Good breakdown "ehonauer", atleast it's not miramaxed.