BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

Discuss releases by Eureka and Masters of Cinema and the films on them.
Post Reply
Message
Author
User avatar
swo17
Bloodthirsty Butcher
Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2008 10:25 am
Location: SLC, UT

BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#1 Post by swo17 » Tue May 26, 2015 10:59 am

Cruel Story of Youth

Image

This second feature by the Japanese cinema-insurgent Nagisa Ôshima (In the Realm of the Senses, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence) galvanised its home-turf with its topsy-turvy directorial dexterity and stinging castigation of an indolent, self-indulgent youth culture reposing on the eve of the turbulent 1960s.

When high-schooler Makoto is saved from the advances of a lecherous middle-aged man by uni student Kiyoshi, the pair embark on a fits-and-starts affair that finally settles into a sexually extortionary, mutually exploitative dependency that promises to spell their relationship's doom.

Ôshima's breakthrough portrait of alienated youth comes courtesy of the 2014 Shochiku 4K scan that resurrected the film's glorious color palette, recently described by critic and programmer James Quandt as "running riot with retro: pusing neon, turquoise telephones, hair teased into shellacked grandeur." The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present Cruel Story of Youth in a Dual Format edition, for the first time on Blu-ray in the UK.

SPECIAL DUAL FORMAT (BLU-RAY + DVD) EDITION:

• Gorgeous 1080p presentation of the film on Blu-ray from the 2014 4K Shochiku restoration
• Optional English subtitles
• New video interview with film critic Tony Rayns
• Original theatrical trailer
• 36-page booklet containing an essay, interview material, and rare archival imagery

User avatar
Gregory
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 4:07 pm

Re: Forthcoming: Cruel Story of Youth

#2 Post by Gregory » Tue May 26, 2015 1:36 pm

Great to see Oshima finally joining the MoC ranks, especially this one, which for years I've hoped Criterion would do something with. Based I'm assuming on the 4k Shochiku restoration, this should easily be a big step up from the Raro DVD and (pending specs) also offer some supplements on this transitional early stage of his career in which he was showing the first signs of breaking out of the mold, while making a film that hasn't lost its bite all these years later.

User avatar
manicsounds
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 10:58 pm
Location: Tokyo, Japan

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#3 Post by manicsounds » Thu Aug 13, 2015 7:02 pm


User avatar
Gregory
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 4:07 pm

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#4 Post by Gregory » Thu Aug 13, 2015 7:33 pm

As usual, the screencaps are useful but I don't know what Gary is talking about.
...the usual greenish overhang we have seen on countless older Japanese film. ... Like many films from that country the visuals are very thick and heavy.
Overhang? "Thick and heavy" visuals as a feature of Japanese cinema?
I would guess the 2.39:1 aspect ratio is an impressive 1080P presentation looking better than I imagined.
???

To see what "overhang" meant in other contexts, I searched for it on the site but I'm now even more confused.

On Kiss Me, Stupid: "...a likable film even with all the sexist overhang, which is really a big part of the fun."

On River's Edge: "Keep in mind the uncomfortable overhang of the film but it is certainly recommended to those who can accept the morally distasteful elements of the plot."

And did anyone else know that Gary had posted financial commentary at DVD Beaver? :shock:

User avatar
zedz
Joined: Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:24 pm

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#5 Post by zedz » Thu Aug 13, 2015 8:07 pm

That looks wonderful! Who cares about a slight blue-green tint?

Orlac
Joined: Tue Apr 14, 2009 4:29 am

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#6 Post by Orlac » Fri Aug 14, 2015 4:28 am

I was I was that daft, could get loads of BD freebies!

User avatar
tenia
Ask Me About My Bassoon
Joined: Wed Apr 29, 2009 11:13 am

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#7 Post by tenia » Fri Aug 14, 2015 4:46 am

Orlac wrote:I was I was that daft, could get loads of BD freebies!
Believe me, it is often not that easy and you often get check discs you need to send back once you've reviewed them.

User avatar
Drucker
Your Future our Drucker
Joined: Wed May 18, 2011 9:37 am

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#8 Post by Drucker » Fri Sep 11, 2015 4:01 pm


User avatar
Tommaso
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 10:09 am

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#9 Post by Tommaso » Tue Feb 02, 2016 6:40 pm

Finally watched this. Surprisingly, no greenish 'overhang' at all compared to other Japanese colour films of this vintage. The colours are so eye-popping all the time that I actually wondered whether they could be really correct. Whatever, an impressive film, not yet as biting and well-organised as Oshima's films of the later 60s, but definitely well worth checking out.

But actually, buying this in the end just felt like paying the entry ticket to the 55 min. Tony Rayns interview. More a lecture, really, and the good professor really tells you everything that you ever wanted to know about Oshima's early career, the studios, the political situation, and then he branches out into explaining the rest of Oshima's work and making entirely convincing comparisons between this film and "The Realm of the Senses". Amazing. I could listen to Rayns for hours on end.

Orlac
Joined: Tue Apr 14, 2009 4:29 am

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#10 Post by Orlac » Sun Feb 07, 2016 10:06 am

I read somewhere that the greenish overhang common to Japanese transfers is, like their different black levels, due to differing TV requirements.

User avatar
Gregory
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 4:07 pm

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#11 Post by Gregory » Sun Feb 07, 2016 4:02 pm

I for one find greenish overhang to be extremely refreshing!

Image

David M.
Joined: Sat May 10, 2008 1:10 pm

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#12 Post by David M. » Sun Feb 07, 2016 6:44 pm

Orlac wrote:I read somewhere that the greenish overhang common to Japanese transfers is, like their different black levels, due to differing TV requirements.
This is the myth that just won't die :lol:

The entire world uses the same HDTV system, as specified in ITU recommendation #709. The white point, black level, white level, everything, is the same worldwide.

It has its origins in the fact that in American NTSC (NTSC-M) the black level was set at 7.5 IRE, whereas PAL systems and Japanese NTSC had it logically set at 0 IRE. So importers of content from different countries had to adjust controls accordingly (or put up with gray washed out blacks, or lost details). This was in the days of analog voltages and hasn't been an issue since LaserDisc.

Orlac
Joined: Tue Apr 14, 2009 4:29 am

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#13 Post by Orlac » Sun Feb 07, 2016 6:48 pm

I'm thinking pre-HDTV in terms of set requirments. Some of the transfers could be old.

David M.
Joined: Sat May 10, 2008 1:10 pm

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#14 Post by David M. » Sun Feb 07, 2016 9:26 pm

Even pre-HDTV, the white point of all video systems worldwide has been standardized at D65 (which is just off neutral white). The color primaries varied between NTSC as originally designed, NTSC revised (SMPTE-C) and EBU/PAL, but that was fairly subtle in comparison.

Orlac
Joined: Tue Apr 14, 2009 4:29 am

Re: BD 118 Cruel Story of Youth

#15 Post by Orlac » Sun Feb 07, 2016 9:33 pm

Oh...so what's with the green/washed out black Japanese transfers?

Sorry, I'm getting confused!

Post Reply