Yakuza ‘Battles’ Begin Dec. 8

Posted on December 8, 2015
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DREAMSVILLE’S WEEK IN DVD

“Battles Without Honor and Humanity” (1973), a violent yakuza saga that has influenced filmmakers from Quentin Tarantino to Takashi Miike. Made within just two years, the five-film series brought a new kind of realism and ferocity to the crime genre in Japan, revitalizing the industry and leading to unprecedented commercial and critical success. Fukasaku and his team broke with the longstanding studio tradition of photo for Battles Without Honor And Humanity BLU-RAY DEBUT casting marquee idols as honorable, kimono-clad heroes, defending their gang bosses against unscrupulous villains, and instead adapted true accounts torn from the headlines, shot in a documentary-like style, and with few clear-cut heroes or villains. The vibrancy and dynamism of the filmmaking, plus its shocking violence, Shakespearean plotlines, and wide tapestry of characters, launched a revolutionary new genre, establishing the series as one of the great masterpieces of world crime cinema. Thirteen Blu-ray disc limited edition box set, $149.95 from Arrow Video/MVD.

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