Eureka in the UK have announced a Blu ray release for the classic Japanese horror movie Kwaidan as part of the Masters of Cinema series.
Made in 1964 and Winner of the Special Jury Prize at Cannes, Kwaidan features four nightmarish tales adapted from Lafcadio Hearn’s classic Japanese ghost stories about mortals caught up in forces beyond their comprehension when the supernatural world intervenes in their lives: “The Black Hair”, “The Woman of the Snow”, “Hoichi the Earless”, and “In a Cup of Tea”.
Photographed entirely on hand-painted sets, the Masters of Cinema Series presents the complete 183-minute original Japanese cut of Masaki Kobayashi’s masterpiece on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK.
Special features on the set include –
- Hardbound Slipcase
- PLUS: A 100-PAGE Perfect Bound Illustrated Collector s book featuring reprints of Lafcadio Hearn’s original ghost stories; a survey of the life and career of Masaki Kobayashi by Linda Hoaglund; and a wide-ranging interview with the film maker the last he sadly ever made.
- 1080p presentation on Blu-ray from Criterion’s 2K digital restoration of Kobayashi s original director’s cut
- Original monaural Japanese soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles
- Kim Newman on “Kwaidan” a new interview with the film critic and writer
- Shadowings [35 mins] a new video essay by David Cairns and Fiona Watson
- Original trailers
