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DVD Title
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G.I. Samurai
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International
Title
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DVD Length
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Original
Length
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138 Minutes
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138 Minutes
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Company
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Year of Manufacture
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Adness
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2005
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Language
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Subtitles
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Japanese
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English
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Region
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Number of
Discs
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1
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1
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Aspect
Ratio
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Sound
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1.85:1 (Anamorphic)
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2.0 Mono
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Extras
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.
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Menus (English) |
.
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Chapters (12) |
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Trailers: G.I. Samurai, Shogun's Samurai,
Killing Machine, Karate Bullfighter,
Karate for Life, Legend of The Eight Samurai
(US), Ninja Wars (US) |
.
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Includes a 3 pg. booklet with liner notes by Patrick
Macias |
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Review
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Another nice Adness release (although not
quite up to par with their Shikoku
disc), G.I. Samurai tends to retail for
a very reasonable $15 new, although Amazon lists
it for more, which is an outstanding bargain
for the level of quality of this release. GI
Samurai boasts both a great video and audio
presentation, but is sadly lacking in the extra
department. |
G.I. Samurai has a solid video presentation
overall. The disc features a very vibrant
range of colors, but sadly there is some minor
discoloring, as the film appears to have a
slight blue tint to it. The brightness level
on this release is good, although looks to
be up a little too high when compared with
the contrast, as there really are no solid
blacks to be seen. In regards to digital inconsistencies,
they tend to be very minor. Artifacting and
shimmering are never a problem, while edge
enhancement is handled well as the film looks
generally sharp in detail.
The print used for the transfer is the film's
original Japanese version, which accounts
for an 40 additional minutes of playing time
when compared with the US edit, as heavily
touted on the front cover of this DVD. The
condition of the print itself appears to be
in remarkable shape. The number of noticeable
scratches during the course of the movie is
minuscule. Film grain is noticeable, but appears
to have been greatly reduced by Adness for
this release. Their efforts in this regard
is most noticeable during the scenes where
text is superimposed, as seen around the 119
minute mark, as the amount of grain is largely
increased here compared with the rest of the
film. G.I. Samurai is presented in
its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, or widescreen,
and is Anamorphic for widescreen TVs.
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G.I. Samurai's audio presentation is
faithful to the source material. Adness doesn't
pull any punches here, and sticks with the film's
original, Japanese, 2.0 mono presentation. More
options would have been nice, perhaps if Adness
sprung for a 5.1 surround track, as they did
with Shikoku,
but the mono track suffices. The audio on the
disc is done well, with no hisses or pops heard,
and is complimented by, removable, English subtitles. |
It's disappointing that Adness didn't continue
the trend they established with their previous
discs, and put some worthwhile extras on G.I.
Samurai. Even though, it's still not a barebones
release. There are seven trailers present, including
the film's original Japanese trailer, and some
nice liner notes, which appear in print format,
compiled by Patrick Macias (author of Tokyoscope:
The Japanese Cult Film Companion) that
give some nice insight on the film along with
subtle connections to other Toho pictures. |
Bottom line, Adness did a good job with this
release. The lack of significant extras is disappointing,
but the low retail price tends to compensate
for this. If one has an interest in the many
films of Sonny Chiba, then this DVD would likely
be a welcome addition to their collection. |
-Anthony Romeros
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