This is the licensed North American release of SWORD OF VENGEANCE, the original unedited and Japanese-language first entry in the famed LONE WOLF AND CUB feature-film series, better known in the West as SHOGUN ASSASSIN. AnimEigo released all six of the original feature films on DVD, individually and in a box set. This is what purists will want to seek out.
More recently, AnimEigo has been releasing the English-dubbed versions of the same film series under the main title of SHOGUN ASSASSIN. In this series there are only five films because the first two were edited together into one film and released as SHOGUN ASSASSIN back in 1980. Up until 2003 that was the only “Lone Wolf and Cub” or “Baby Cart” film that Western audiences were able to see and only as a bootleg in most cases. Thanks to AnimEigo, we now have the option to watch either version of the films, although as of this writing there are still several SHOGUN ASSASSIN sequels yet to be released.
The print is in excellent shape and is light years ahead of past bootlegs. There is moderate grain and light speckling. Colors and contrast are excellent. High-resolution displays will show moderate compression artifacts but nothing distracting unless you have your nose to the monitor. Original Japanese audio is presented in two-channel Dolby mono.
English subtitles are large, yellow and possess a thick black border. They’re easy to read but something less obtrusive like simple white subs with a thin black border would be preferable. Optional limited English subtitles are included, presumably for viewers learning Japanese.
Given the popularity of the LONE WOLF AND CUB franchise and its limited availability it seems that AnimEigo missed a unique opportunity to put out an impressive release in terms of bonus material. They stay with their stock formula instead.
Trailers – Original trailers are provided for SWORD OF VENGEANCE, BABY CART IN PERIL, BABY CART IN THE LAND OF DEMONS, and ZATOICHI THE OUTLAW.
Liner Notes – There are 26 pages of liner notes on the DVD itself and all of it is Japanese history loosely related to the story in the film. AnimEigo provides liner notes on all of their chambara releases and they all possess the same history lessons and contain nothing directly related to the production or the people involved. It’s interesting if you want to know about Japanese history but as stated in another AnimEigo disc review, there are better places to look for that then on a DVD for a grindhouse movie.
• Format: Region 1 NTSC DVD
• Aspect Ratio: 16:9 Widescreen (2.40:1)
• Audio: Japanese 2.0
• Subtitles: English
• Length: 83 minutes
• Release Date: 2003.08.26
Related Topics:
AnimEigo • DVD • Lone Wolf and Cub 1: Sword of Vengeance (1972)
