Lone Wolf and Cub (Collector’s Edition
DVD-Video Box/Anim Eigo/Koch)
Picture:
B- Sound: B- Extras: C
Films: A-
Years ago
I was working at a video store and I remember this one regular customer always
coming in and trying to special order VHS copies of Lone Wolf and Cub. The tapes
had been long out-of-print and were quite expensive as well, I think around
$30-$40 per tape. DVD was in it’s
infancy at the time and so he was hot to find these tapes. Some of the episodes did arrive, while others
did not. Needless to say those days are
long gone. Unfortunately I had never
seen the series myself, but I would listen carefully as this old-timer would go
on and on for what seemed like eternity about how great they were.
Finally
the entire series was released into the DVD format in a great collection
combining all six of the films, which were all shot in the early 1970’s. The collection includes…
Sword of Vengeance
Baby Cart at the River Styx
Baby Cart to Hades
Baby Cart in Peril
Baby Cart in the Land of Demons
White Heaven in Hell
Our
premise here is very simple: a man is
left with a murdered wife, a destroyed house, and only his baby and raggedy
baby cart left. So I guess you could say
his life kinda stinks. The films were
directed by Zatoichi director Kenji
Misumi and if you are a fan of those films you will surely love Lone Wolf and Cub if you aren’t already
a fan. This box set is the ideal choice
for getting the entire set in one place.
All 6
films are presented in 2.35 X 1 scope widescreen and are anamorphically
enhanced for DVD playback. The prints
for these films are way better than expected and demonstrate that some
restoration work has been done and that the prints must be in fairly good condition
already. There are still some
limitations that the DVD format demonstrates here, but overall the picture is
clean and shows a good balance of colors and depth. The cinematography is highly stylish and the
overall ‘look’ of the film is memorable as well. These 6 films are very consistent as well in
both the quality of the storylines and the production. The 2.0 Dolby Digital soundtracks are never
lacking either and works well for these films, and there are no dub tracks on
this set either…YEAH!
This is a
mega-set from Anim Eigo and while there are little in extra features it’s great
to get all of the films together. For
years these films were highly sought after on VHS and were in poor condition,
but this DVD set is clearly the way to get your hands on some classic Samurai
action!
- Nate Goss
