Kwaidan on Blu-ray, Fully Restored

Few things get me excited enough to post on social media these days. Fewer still motivate me to write a blog post. But when I received word that Criterion was at long last releasing a fully restored director's cut version of Masaki Kobayashi's Kwaidan, I knew there would be activity on both fronts. Readers familiar with my blog will know that I consider Kwaidan a masterpiece of film making, and I have written about it extensively elsewhere in Over a Hedge. While the new release merits a few words, I promise to keep it short and to avoid repeating myself.

The new version is noticeably brighter than Criterion's fifteen year old DVD release. While I miss some of the atmospheric moodiness of the shadowy DVD release and its saturated colours, the restored version is a welcome upgrade. Characters no longer disappear into shadows, the colours are more balanced, and details of costumes and scenes are readily visible. Perhaps it is brighter than Kobayashi intended, but I doubt we'll ever know.

The twenty-two minutes of restored footage caused me great concern before viewing the Blu-ray. Would it add story points or imagery that would undermine my initial thesis about the movie? Would it drag out the movie unnecessarily and diminish its stellar reputation in my mind? Would the extra footage reveal a director's vanity who could not accept that some cherished shots deserved to remain on the cutting room floor?

It turned out that all of my questions added up to so much needless worry. The restored footage added welcome colour to enhance story and character development without making me feel like I had been ripped off watching a butchered version all these years. As much as the footage that ranged from seconds to minutes added, it did not change the fundamentals of the stories or their themes. Perhaps the greatest testament is that at the end of three hours, I was left with a feeling of still being reluctant to leave Kobayashi's Japanese spirit world.

I was initially surprised to see that the three shortest episodes had the least amount of restored footage and that the longest episode, "Hoichi, the Earless," had the most added to its running time. Given a few days to reflect upon it, I realized that the three other episodes were already fully realized stories, with little to add. Hoichi, on the other hand, was always the centrepiece of the film, so it would make sense that in Kobayashi's mind it should approach feature length in its own right. The beach scenes with the fishermen honour traditional Japanese life and culture, and Hoichi's final biwa performance is wonderfully lengthened, allowing the viewer to appreciate the full impact of the story and the storyteller.

The Blu-ray format also affords the digital space to bring Toru Takemitsu's exquisite soundtrack to the forefront. I always knew it was important to the film, but this was the first time I experienced it as essential. It was one of the main reasons the film can still evoke a reaction in me after so many viewings.

In the interest of having this post ready in time for the sixth anniversary of my first Kwaidan post, I was unable to watch any of the bonus features, but there are plenty of them should you be wondering whether it is worth it to spend money on a disc in this age of streaming and outright piracy. For me, buying a Criterion release is about more than picture quality, sound quality, and bonus features--it is about supporting film restoration and preservation by a devoted group of cinephiles. If you take the plunge, I hope you enjoy the Kwaidan Blu-ray edition as much as I have.

Appendix A: My Kwaidan Essay(s)

While this is a multi-part essay, each one can be read on its own if a particular title grabs you.

Kwaidan's Hidden Depths
Kwaidan: The Power of the Word
Morality and Supernatural Justice
Kwaidan: Literal-minded Samurai Lose It

Appendix B: Kwaidan Episode Running Times

I wasn't able to quickly locate running times for the episodes, so I thought I'd share them here if anyone else is curious.

Episode	Blu-ray	DVD	Difference
The Black Hair*	0:40:01	0:37:31	02:30
The Woman of the Snow	0:42:57	0:35:27	07:30
Hoichi, The Earless	1:14:28	1:02:47	11:41
In a Cup of Tea	0:25:49	0:25:43	00:06

* Includes opening credits