Battles/New Battles Without Honor and Humanity

Discuss releases from Arrow and the films on them.

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kekid
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#51 Post by kekid » Tue Nov 24, 2015 10:25 pm

How does this box compare with the steelbook box released by hve in USA some years ago (especially in the area of extras)?

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zedz
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#52 Post by zedz » Wed Nov 25, 2015 9:03 pm

kekid wrote:How does this box compare with the steelbook box released by hve in USA some years ago (especially in the area of extras)?
That HVE box was pretty special when it came out (even though the steel case was too tight for the box inside!), but those are very old transfers now. The extras seem to be completely different. In the HVE edition, they were relegated to their own bonus disc and seemed to be generalized considerations of the entire series. They included an interview with the subtitle translator (kind of interesting, as I recall) and a typically worthless 'appreciation' by William Friedkin. On the Arrow set, there are extras for every film (don't know the extent of each of these yet, but I'd be surprised if they didn't add up to more than the HVE bonus disc) and a commentary for the first one - no commentaries on the HVE set: each of the film discs are bare bones. Arrow's hardbound book blows HVE's pamphlet away.

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swo17
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#53 Post by swo17 » Wed Nov 25, 2015 9:52 pm

zedz wrote:Arrow's hardbound book blows HVE's pamphlet away.
Probably true, though it contained a useful character map to help keep track of everyone.

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zedz
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#54 Post by zedz » Wed Nov 25, 2015 10:05 pm

swo17 wrote:
zedz wrote:Arrow's hardbound book blows HVE's pamphlet away.
Probably true, though it contained a useful character map to help keep track of everyone.
The Arrow book has what seem to be flow charts / algorithms for each film, so I think they'll win on that count too!

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What A Disgrace
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#55 Post by What A Disgrace » Sat Nov 28, 2015 8:52 pm

If anyone was wondering, the supplements runtime is as follows:

Yakuza Graveyard - 10:54
Men of Action - 10:44
Piranha Army - 35:40
Tales of a Bit Player - 10:45
Remembering Kinji - 17:34
Fukasaku Family - 15:23
Last Days of the Boss - 18:49
Introduction to the Complete Saga - 3:00

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FrauBlucher
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#56 Post by FrauBlucher » Sat Nov 28, 2015 11:39 pm


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Paul Moran
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 1:06 pm
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#57 Post by Paul Moran » Wed Dec 02, 2015 7:39 pm

When I got to Proxy War today, I discovered that the case only contained a DVD - no swing tray, no BD!
Not sure why I didn't notice this earlier: I always unseal and check contents on receipt, so either I didn't check on this occasion, or I just wasn't paying attention. :oops:
Fortunately, Arrow Films only want me to send back the Proxy War item for replacement, not the whole box set.

UPDATE (11 Dec 2015). Well, the kind folks at Arrow Films have sent me a whole new box set as a replacement for Proxy War, and they don't want me to return the other films! I'll stick the incomplete set in a cupboard for the time being - perhaps I can make up a complete set if/when Arrow release the individual films.

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movielocke
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#58 Post by movielocke » Mon Jan 04, 2016 1:20 am

Just received the set. Extremely impressive presentation, matching if not besting the zatoichi set. I can't wait to dive into the films.

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movielocke
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#59 Post by movielocke » Sun Jun 12, 2016 4:02 am

Finally diving into the films:

I was a little disappointed overall with the first film Battles without Honor and Humanity. The film opens in spectacular fashion. In the black market. In total chaos. It's brutal and shocking and authentic feeling, you immediately get the idea of the docu-esque style of capturing the yakuza this way. But the film's story is at this point a bit incoherent (I actually thought after finishing the second film that I was starting to understand the plot complexity of the first film a little better) and it rages and ranges all-over-the-place quite literally. The film obviously doesn't shy away from bloodshed, but it's the rapid anonymity of most of the yakuza targets that makes it difficult to follow. It gives you a sense of a chaotic and mistrustful life, but standing on its own I don't think the film is tremendously successful.

On the other hand, Hiroshima Death Match is capable of standing on its own. It tells a story much more tightly focused on a main character (though there are still rangy digressions building hooks into the previous film and presumably the third film) and the film is all the better for it, as the journey of this man from yakuza birth to the inevitable yakuza death presumably awaiting virtually the entire cast is quite compelling throughout.

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Re: Arrow Films

#60 Post by ALLCAPSAREBASTARDS » Fri Jul 15, 2016 10:56 am

Looks like Arrow will be re-releasing the "Battles Without Honor and Humanity" films individually: https://www.amazon.com/Yakuza-Papers-Ba ... 01FEE1X4S/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Has this been discussed? First time I'm hearing about it.

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swo17
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#61 Post by swo17 » Fri Jul 15, 2016 11:00 am

It was in fact disclosed along with the original announcement for the boxset (see the first post of this thread).

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Ribs
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#62 Post by Ribs » Fri Jul 15, 2016 11:12 am

Interestingly (and humorously), Paypal is auto-cancelling orders for the individual title made through Arrow's site because it autodetects the word "Yakuza" and assumes it's somebody ordering an assassination or something.

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rapta
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#63 Post by rapta » Sat Jul 16, 2016 6:46 am

Ribs wrote:Interestingly (and humorously), Paypal is auto-cancelling orders for the individual title made through Arrow's site because it autodetects the word "Yakuza" and assumes it's somebody ordering an assassination or something.
I saw that too. Dunno why Arrow decided to call them 'The Yakuza Papers' anyway - isn't that the US title for these films? They didn't put that title on the box set, so the only reason they must've done it is to make people more aware of there being 5 titles to collect.

If I were them, I would've just called them:

BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: HIROSHIMA DEATH MATCH
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: PROXY WAR
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: POLICE TACTICS
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: FINAL EPISODE

That's their full titles anyway, and would avoid any complications with PayPal.

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MichaelB
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#64 Post by MichaelB » Sat Jul 16, 2016 6:50 am

rapta wrote:I saw that too. Dunno why Arrow decided to call them 'The Yakuza Papers' anyway - isn't that the US title for these films?
...which were simultaneously released in the US.
If I were them, I would've just called them:

BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: HIROSHIMA DEATH MATCH
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: PROXY WAR
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: POLICE TACTICS
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: FINAL EPISODE

That's their full titles anyway, and would avoid any complications with PayPal.
...which of course you'd have completely foreseen, unlike the poor saps at Arrow?

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colinr0380
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#65 Post by colinr0380 » Sat Jul 16, 2016 7:49 am

Annoying my payment to the local yakuza gang in Japan that I'm crowdfunding to terrorise local pachinko parlours was also cancelled. How are they going to finish those full body tattoos now? Thanks PayPal! [-(

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Ribs
Joined: Fri Jun 13, 2014 1:14 pm

Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#66 Post by Ribs » Sat Jul 16, 2016 10:01 am

colinr0380 wrote:Annoying my payment to the local yakuza gang in Japan that I'm crowdfunding to terrorise local pachinko parlours was also cancelled. How are they going to finish those full body tattoos now? Thanks PayPal! [-(
Next time I'll think twice before putting "Payment for Yakuza hit on the Mayor" in the memo field on my check.

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domino harvey
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#67 Post by domino harvey » Sat Jul 16, 2016 10:26 am

Why wouldn't you just include the word "not" in the special instruction box with your order? That will negate everything!

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rapta
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Re: Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#68 Post by rapta » Sat Jul 16, 2016 3:49 pm

MichaelB wrote:
rapta wrote:I saw that too. Dunno why Arrow decided to call them 'The Yakuza Papers' anyway - isn't that the US title for these films?
...which were simultaneously released in the US.
And yet the US box set was called "Battles Without Honor and Humanity: The Complete Collection" rather than "The Yakuza Papers"? My question was why they changed the listing titles for the separate UK editions.
MichaelB wrote:
If I were them, I would've just called them:

BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: HIROSHIMA DEATH MATCH
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: PROXY WAR
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: POLICE TACTICS
BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY: FINAL EPISODE

That's their full titles anyway, and would avoid any complications with PayPal.
...which of course you'd have completely foreseen, unlike the poor saps at Arrow?
Sorry, I should have said "changed them to" (retrospectively). Once people's orders started getting cancelled, they presumably would have noticed the word 'yakuza' was a problem? At least they'll know now, anyway!

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Ribs
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New Battles Without Honour & Humanity

#69 Post by Ribs » Fri Apr 21, 2017 11:16 am

NEW BATTLES WITHOUT HOUNOUR AND HUMANITY: THE COMPLETE TRILOGY
New Battles Without Honour and Humanity
New Battles Without Honour and Humanity: The Boss's Head
New Battles Without Honour and Humanity: Last Days of the Boss
In the early 1970s, Kinji Fukasaku's five-film Battles Without Honour and Humanity series was a massive hit in Japan, and kicked off a boom in realistic, modern yakuza films based on true stories. Although Fukasaku had intended to end the series, Toei Studio convinced him to return to the director's chair for this unconnected, follow-up trilogy of films, each starring Battles leading man Bunta Sugawara and telling separate, but fictional stories about the yakuza in different locations in Japan.
In the first film, Bunta Sugawara is Miyoshi, a low-level assassin of the Yamamori gang who is sent to jail after a bungled hit. While in stir, family member Aoki (Lone Wolf and Cub's Tomisaburo Wakayama) attempts to seize power from the boss, and Miyoshi finds himself stuck between the two factions with no honourable way out. In the second entry, The Boss's Head, Sugawara is Kuroda, an itinerant gambler who steps in when a hit by drug-addicted assassin Kusunoki (Tampopo's Tsutomu Yamazaki) goes wrong, and takes the fall on behalf of the Owada family, but when the gang fails to make good on financial promises to him, Kuroda targets the family bosses with a ruthless vengeance. And in Last Days of the Boss, Sugawara plays Nozaki, a labourer who swears allegiance to a sympathetic crime boss, only to find himself elected his successor after the boss is murdered. Restrained by a gang alliance that forbids retributions against high-level members, Nozaki forms a plot to exact revenge on his rivals, but a suspicious relationship with his own sister (Chieko Matsubara from Outlaw: Gangster VIP) taints his relationship with his fellow gang members.
Making their English-language home video debut in this limited edition set, the New Battles Without Honour and Humanity films are important links between the first half of Fukasaku's career and his later exploration of other genres. Each one is also a top-notch crime action thriller: hard-boiled, entertaining, and distinguished by Fukasaku's directorial genius, funky musical scores by composer Toshiaki Tsushima, and the onscreen power of Toei's greatest yakuza movie stars.

LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS:
• High Definition digital transfers of all three films
• High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentations
• Original uncompressed mono audio
• New optional English subtitle translation for all three films
• Beyond the Films: New Battles Without Honour and Humanity, a new video appreciation by Fukasaku biographer Sadao Yamane
• New Stories, New Battles and Closing Stories, two new interviews with screenwriter Koji Takada, about his work on the second and third films in the trilogy • Original theatrical trailers for all three films
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Reinhard Kleist • Illustrated collector’s book featuring new writing on the films, the yakuza genre and Fukasaku's career, by Stephen Sarrazin, Tom Mes, Hayley Scanlon, Chris D. and Marc Walkow

Image

July 17

Calvin
Joined: Sun Apr 10, 2011 11:12 am

Re: New Battles Without Honour & Humanity

#70 Post by Calvin » Sat Apr 22, 2017 8:18 am

I'm really looking forward to this. The first Battles series was thoroughly enjoyable, if a bit overwhelming at times, and I've read that with these three films Fukasaku intended to take a deeper look than he did with those.

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Morbii
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Re: New Battles Without Honour & Humanity

#71 Post by Morbii » Tue May 02, 2017 6:50 am

Given that these are "unconnected", is there a good reason to start with the films that came before it?

I'm guessing not, but I wouldn't want to get this and find out otherwise.

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J Wilson
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Re: New Battles Without Honour & Humanity

#72 Post by J Wilson » Thu May 04, 2017 6:32 pm

Morbii wrote:Given that these are "unconnected", is there a good reason to start with the films that came before it?

I'm guessing not, but I wouldn't want to get this and find out otherwise.
No, these just capitalize on the name. Watch them whenever you want. If I'm remembering correctly, you don't even need to watch these three films in any order, they're all unrelated to each other.

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tenia
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Re: Battles/New Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#73 Post by tenia » Fri Jun 30, 2017 4:41 am

New Battles Without Honor or Humanity is pushed back to Aug 21st.

Jack Phillips
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Re: Battles/New Battles Without Honor and Humanity

#74 Post by Jack Phillips » Fri Jun 30, 2017 2:39 pm

tenia wrote:New Battles Without Honor or Humanity is pushed back to Aug 21st.
Excellent! \:D/
(I'll be away all summer and won't be able to watch them until Sept. anyway).

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