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CRITERION REVIEW: #302 HARAKIRI (dir. Masaki Kobayashi) 1962 [Blu-Ray Upgrade]
The Film: Masaki Kobayashi is too often one of those filmmakers who gets lost in the shuffle of Japanese auteurism, a sleight that Criterion continues to remedy as best they can. Kwaidan was an early Criterion favorite, their DVD release of Kobayashi’s magnum opus The Human Condition still ranks amongst their most essential and well-considered releases, and Samurai Rebellion is naturally a highlight of their “Rebel Samurai” box set. But it might be Harakiri — a rigidly geometric, fluidly time-bending, and giddily cathartic samurai court drama — that most urgently expresses Kobayashi’s mastery of the milieu and the medium, alike. Despite the discourse consistently returning our attention to the hallowed trio of Kurosawa, Mizoguchi, and Ozu, I can barely make it through Harakiri’s opening sequence (that spare voiceover, Toru Takemitsu’s airy score racing up my spine like a welcome cold shiver) without being reminded that Kobayashi’s most purely enjoyable film — arguably the most emotionally satisfying of its kind — is up there with Pale Flower and High and Low as the seminal Japanese film of the early 1960s.
The Upgrade: Yessssss. Speaking of Pale Flower, Criterion’s Harakiri Blu-ray joins the disc for Shinoda’s masterwork as sporting one of the finest monochromatic transfers the format has ever known. Freed from the ceiling of DVD, Harakiri shimmers and shines, every nuance of Kobayashi’s delicate and emotionally expressive lighting allowed to articulate its full meaning. The clarity of the image (with unparalleled contrast and consistent grain) allows the meticulous spatial planning of Kobayashi’s samurai courts to be fully understandable — even in the most crowded scenes, the layout of the clan and the social hierarchy it betrays is easy to understand, an effect which actually improves one’s appreciation of the film’s content, itself. Anyone who loves this film half as much as I do should feel extremely confident that Criterion’s Blu-ray is a great buy, even if you already own the DVD (give it to a friend, spread the love).
VISIT MOVIES.COM TO READ ALL OF MY REVIEWS OF CRITERION’S OCTOBER RELEASES!](http://30.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ltqvtaKPKg1qebry0o1_400.jpg)
CRITERION REVIEW: #302 HARAKIRI (dir. Masaki Kobayashi) 1962 [Blu-Ray Upgrade]
The Film: Masaki Kobayashi is too often one of those filmmakers who gets lost in the shuffle of Japanese auteurism, a sleight that Criterion continues to remedy as best they can. Kwaidan was an early Criterion favorite, their DVD release of Kobayashi’s magnum opus The Human Condition still ranks amongst their most essential and well-considered releases, and Samurai Rebellion is naturally a highlight of their “Rebel Samurai” box set. But it might be Harakiri — a rigidly geometric, fluidly time-bending, and giddily cathartic samurai court drama — that most urgently expresses Kobayashi’s mastery of the milieu and the medium, alike. Despite the discourse consistently returning our attention to the hallowed trio of Kurosawa, Mizoguchi, and Ozu, I can barely make it through Harakiri’s opening sequence (that spare voiceover, Toru Takemitsu’s airy score racing up my spine like a welcome cold shiver) without being reminded that Kobayashi’s most purely enjoyable film — arguably the most emotionally satisfying of its kind — is up there with Pale Flower and High and Low as the seminal Japanese film of the early 1960s.The Upgrade: Yessssss. Speaking of Pale Flower, Criterion’s Harakiri Blu-ray joins the disc for Shinoda’s masterwork as sporting one of the finest monochromatic transfers the format has ever known. Freed from the ceiling of DVD, Harakiri shimmers and shines, every nuance of Kobayashi’s delicate and emotionally expressive lighting allowed to articulate its full meaning. The clarity of the image (with unparalleled contrast and consistent grain) allows the meticulous spatial planning of Kobayashi’s samurai courts to be fully understandable — even in the most crowded scenes, the layout of the clan and the social hierarchy it betrays is easy to understand, an effect which actually improves one’s appreciation of the film’s content, itself. Anyone who loves this film half as much as I do should feel extremely confident that Criterion’s Blu-ray is a great buy, even if you already own the DVD (give it to a friend, spread the love).
VISIT MOVIES.COM TO READ ALL OF MY REVIEWS OF CRITERION’S OCTOBER RELEASES!
