Yojimbo

Bluesky

Some people complain that there is no point to sequels, remakes and reboots. Why make a new version when it obviously can't be as good as the original? They have a point. Hollywood has littered our screens with disappointment. Sometimes they are pretty and well acted but completely misunderstand the original film: Blade Runner 2049. Sometimes they just mess things up like the remakes of The Day The Earth Stood Still and Bangkok Dangerous. Sometimes they are good, and Yojimbo (a loose remake of The Glass Key) and Sanjuro, its sequel, are very good.

The BFI have released both films in a single package. It comes in both standard Blu-ray (HD from 4K restoration) and UHD (4K). Both of the films are black and white and benefit greatly from the high dynamic range that the UHD format provides. In terms of audio and visual quality the restorations are both up to the high standard that you will have come to expect in recent years.

When it comes to the special features, both films have audio commentaries. The one by Philip Kemp (recorded in 2000) is one of the better ones that I have listened to in recent years. It is refreshingly terse whilst providing a good deal of useful information about Yojimbo. Both commentaries are smoothly integrated into the films' audio tracks.

There are two Japanese documentaries from 2002. They are full of information and stories about the two films but can on occasion be a bit saccharine. The director Alex Cox has a couple of short pieces, a short overview of Kurosawa's work and an introduction to Sanjuro. The second is an enjoyable blast from the past. I remember the introduction he made for Yojimbo back in the days of BBC2's Moviedrome. The rest of the package is rounded out by two more documentaries and the usual array of trailers and stills from the films and their production. In all the special features are interesting and well balanced with little duplication of content.