"Director: Masaki Kobayashi"

• Harakiri (Dual Format Blu-ray & DVD) | Blu Ray | (26/09/2011) from £13.35   |  Saving you £6.64 (49.74%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Of all Masaki Kobayashi's attacks on the cruelty and inhumanity perpetrated by authoritarian power (including The Human Condition and Samurai Rebellion) perhaps none are more brilliant than his visceral mesmerising Harakiri [aka Seppuku]. In a magnificent performance Tatsuya Nakadai (Yojimbo The Face of Another Ran) stars as Hanshiro Tsugumo a masterless down-and-out samurai who enters the manor of Lord Iyi requesting to commit ritual suicide on his property. Suspected of simply fishing for charity Hanshiro is told the gruesome tale of the last samurai who made the same request - but Hanshiro will not be moved... With its intricate structure and pressure-cooker atmosphere Kobayashi's first jidai-geki period drama is a full-scale demolition job of samurai ideals and feudal hypocrisy filmed with artistry and surgical precision and scored by celebrated composer Toru Takemitsu. Adapted from the same source novel in 2011 by notorious auteur Takashi Miike the original - winner of the 1963 Special Jury Prize at Cannes - still stands as a startling moment in Japanese cinema.

• The Human Condition | Blu Ray | (23/07/2018) from £16.39   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  One of the towering masterpieces of Japanese and world cinema, this three-part war epic has rarely been seen in the UK, at least partly because of its dauntingly gargantuan nine hour length. Director Masaki Kobayashi (Harakiri) was attracted to Junpei Gomikawa s source novel because he recognised himself in the character of the protagonist Kaji, an ardent pacifist who came of age during the aggressively militaristic 1930s and 40s. In part one, No Greater Love, Kaji is relocated to a mine-supervising job in Manchuria, where he is horrified by the use of forced labour. Part two, Road to Eternity, sees him conscripted into the Japanese army and forced to fight in the name of an aggressively imperialist cause. Part three, A Soldier s Prayer, deals with the consequences of Japan s defeat, not least for Kaji himself. Throughout, Kobayashi unflinchingly examines the psychological toll of appallingly complex decisions, where being morally right risks outcomes ranging from ostracism to savage beating to death. As Kaji, Tatsuya Nakadai (Sanjuro) is in virtually every scene, providing a rock-solid emotional anchor and a necessary one in Japan, where the film was hugely controversial for being openly critical of the nation s conduct during WWII. But it s this willingness to confront national taboos head-on that makes it such a lastingly powerful experience. SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS: High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation Original Japanese mono soundtrack Optional English subtitles Introduction to the film by critic Philip Kemp Selected-scene commentary by Philip Kemp Theatrical trailers Reversible sleeve featuring two choices of artwork by maarko phntm

• Kwaidan | DVD | (29/05/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Winner of the Special Jury Prize at Cannes Masaki Kobayashi's Kwaidan features four nightmarish tales adapted from Lafcadio Hearn's classic Japanese ghost stories. This lavish 'scope production drew extensively on Kobayashi's own training as a student of painting and fine arts. For the first time in the West The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present the complete 183-minute original Japanese cut. Its poetic expression is said to be unmatched in all of Japanese cinema;

• Kwaidan (Masters of Cinema) Limited Edition Blu-ray | Blu Ray | (27/04/2020) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  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. Breathtakingly photographed entirely on hand-painted sets, the film is an abstract wash of luminescent colours from another world. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present the complete 183-minute original Japanese cut of Masaki Kobayashi's masterpiece on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK. SPECIAL FEATURES Hardbound Slipcase 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 PLUS 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'd ever give

• The Human Condition Trilogy Dual Format Blu-ray & DVD | Blu Ray | (19/09/2016) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £69.99

  Kobayashi's monumental film can clarify and enrich your understanding of what it is to be alive. (A.O. Scott, New York Times) One of the towering masterpieces of Japanese and world cinema, this three-part war epic has rarely been seen in the UK, at least partly because of its dauntingly gargantuan nine-hour length. Director Masaki Kobayashi (Harakiri) was attracted to Junpei Gomikawa's source novel because he recognised himself in the character of the protagonist Kaji, a pacifist and socialist who came of age during the aggressively militaristic 1930s and 40s. Following Kaji's career from factory worker to Japanese army private, Kobayashi unflinchingly examines the psychological toll of appallingly complex decisions made along the way, where being morally ˜right' risks an outcome ranging from ostracism to savage beating to death. As Kaji, Tatsuya Nakadai (Sanjuro) is in virtually every scene, providing a rock-solid emotional anchor and a necessary one in Japan, where the film was hugely controversial for being openly critical of the nation's conduct during WWII. But it's this willingness to confront national taboos head-on that makes it such a lastingly powerful experience.

• Samurai Rebellion | DVD | (20/02/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Sasahara (Mifune) has spent his life as a retainer in the service of his lord. Yet when his lord seizes his daughter-in-law for his own gratification Sasahara is brought into conflict not only with his master but also his oldest friend Asano (Nakadai)...

• The Toshiro Mifune Trilogy | DVD | (09/05/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Sword Of Doom: Tatsue (Nakadai) a man brought up to recognise only the way of the sword as the way of life finds that the art of killing is a pleasure. Ranged against him is Shimada (Mifune) who regards the use made of the sword as the manifestation of a man's spiritual state and vows to end Tatsue's spree in an era without values... Samurai Assassin: Threatened from the East and West Japan and the Tokugawa Shogunate are dangerously unstable. Lord Li Naosuke the 'Red Devil' has raised up a puppet figure to become the Shogun lemoshil. The year is 1860. Among his opposition is the Mito Clan. Undefeated they are planning his assassination. Amongst their numbers is one Niiro Tsurichiyo (Toshiro Mifune). The illegitimate son of a powerful nobleman Niiro has been brought up in a merchants household harbouring ambitions to become a samurai. A swordsman of outstanding ability a social outcast earning his living through brawling and blackmail. Now the Mito Clan suspect him of being a spy... Samurai Rebellion: Sasahara (Mifune) has spent his life as a retainer in the service of his lord. Yet when his lord seizes his daughter-in-law for his own gratification Sasahara is brought into conflict not only with his master but also his oldest friend Asano (Nakadai)...