The lone wolf archetype is a figure that has lived on in many samurai and action spectacles — the man who walks alone and walks a fine line of morals and principles, fighting for the common good, and the common coin. In walks Tomisaburô Wakayama and his performance of Shikoro Ichibel, the doctor/spy-for-hire (yeah, those opposing professions threw me off, too) who moves from one daring violent mission to another in Radiance’s newest release of three violent spectacles. Director Shigehiro Ozawa’s Killer’s Mission (1969), Eiichi Kudo’s The Fort of Death (1969), and Ozawa’s Eight Men to Kill (1972), – together these films form The Bounty Hunter Trilogy. These James Bond and spaghetti Western-inspired films are a great precursor to the highly influential Lone Wolf and Cub films which would make Wakayama a household name for all samurai cinema fans.
Here’s the rundown on each film. Killer’s Mission, the first chapter in which we meet our fierce, skillful protagonist, deals with Ichibel being hired to prevent the sales of firearms to a local lord planning an uprising against the Shogun with help from the Dutch Government. The sequel, The Fort of Death, is a Seven Samurai (1954)-inspired film in which Ichibel rounds up the fellow homies (samurai, ninjas, and ronin galore) to help protect a village of farmers from a ruthless lord. The final chapter, Eight Men to Kill, follows Ichibel being hired to recover a cache of stolen gold from the government’s mine. The creation of Shikoro Ichibel has its inspiration on its sleeves. In regard, to the James Bond comparison, he’s a secret agent that holds loyalty to no one but his own principles, he doesn’t miss a chance to make love to a beautiful lady (even beautiful villains) and he almost always sticks the landing of the mission at hand. As far as being a handsome leading man, Wakayama (Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance) has an against-type figure; he’s rotund with no glaring muscle strength, but it’s his masculine, fierce performance that makes up for his physicality (almost).
Now, James Bond-comparisons aside, Ichibel is not totally a gentleman. He spares an ass-whooping for no one, man or woman. An interesting freeze-frame action sequence in Killer’s Mission in which he fights with a female spy (played by Yumiko Nogawa (Zatoichi and the Fugitives); the same role being portrayed by Tomoko Mayama (Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance) in the sequel) highlights this. His attitude towards women can come off hilariously atavistic. There’s a cringey-but-humorous scene in The Fort of Death where he has to physically restrain a woman from having sex with him because it should be up to him – the man – to initiate these things (granted, this whole setup is a ruse for enemies to swoop in and ambush him, but you get the idea). These attitudes aside, Ichibel still mostly stands for what’s right and fights for the common man (but not without his fee being paid first).
THE BOUNTY HUNTER TRILOGY complete release. Photo courtesy of Radiance Films.
If old-school fake blood and violence is what you desire, these Toei produced films provide plenty of that. Killer’s Mission (the violence is even in the name) has violence and blood aplenty. As fake blood and violence permeate the screen, an interesting, harrowing moment happens later in the film where fake blood is used to a powerful effect. A character, while being tortured to disclose secrets, bites their own tongue to prevent themselves from disclosing anything more to their enemy. The other two films also carry unforgettable moments where the over-the-top violence is depicted in harrowing ways. A black-and-white flashback sequence in Fort of Death in which villagers are tortured and killed is an unflinching sight. A scene in Eight Men to Kill in which a person’s stomach is cut into to retrieve stolen gold is a startling, gory moment. Don’t let the corny gushing blood fool you, these films are brutal when they deliver on their respective titles’ promises. The villains are even more brutal, with the most despicable of them all, Azami Yajuro (Shigeru Amachi (The Beast and the Magic Sword), in a terrific performance) being saved for last in Eight Men, leading to a satisfying, albeit short final showdown.
As far as presentation goes, Radiance has done a great job here in restoring these violent spectacles. The high-definition digital transfer is in the bloody, gory details. With Killer’s Mission, there is a bit of flickering in some scenes (possibly due to Radiance transferring as much as they can from the original print) but overall, it has a great presentation in color and contrast. The presentation increases with quality as the trilogy continues with Eight Men to Kill being the best of them all. When it comes to featurettes, Radiance holds their own against home release mammoths such as Criterion or Arrow. This edition comes with a booklet that has a piece by samurai film expert Alain Silver, an obituary of Elichi Kudo by Kinji Fukasaku, and an interview piece on Shigehiro Ozawa after his retirement from filmmaking.
There are also six cool postcards of artwork from the three films. On the Killer’s Mission disc, there are trailers for the films, an enlightening film commentary with film critic/author Tom Mes, and an interview with film historian Akihito Ito about Shigehiro Ozawa. This is a particularly interesting interview in which Ito takes a moment to speak about the problematic, misogynistic attitude that these films can have towards its female characters. On the second disc, carrying feature presentations of both Fort of Death and Eight Men to Kill, there is a visual essay by samurai film expert Robin Gatto in which he discusses the work of Elichi Kudo as well as the film The Fort of Death itself. There is also a series poster and press image gallery. For all owners of the Criterion edition of the Lone Wolf and Cub films, this Radiance release is a terrific piece to add to their collection.
The Bounty Hunter Trilogy Special Features:
- High-Definition digital transfer of each film presented on two discs, made available on Blu-ray (1080p) for the first time in the world
- Uncompressed mono PCM audio
- Audio commentary on Killer’s Mission by Tom Mes
- Interview with film historian and Shigehiro Ozawa expert Akihito Ito about the filmmaker
- Visual essay on Eiichi Kudo by Japanese cinema expert Robin Gatto
- Series poster and press image gallery
- Trailers
- Optional English subtitles
- Six postcards of artwork from the films
- Reversible sleeves featuring artwork based on original posters
- Limited edition booklet featuring new writing by samurai film expert Alain Silver, an obituary of Eiichi “Kudo” by Kinji Fukasaku and an interview piece on Shigehiro Ozawa after his retirement from filmmaking
- Limited Edition of 3000 copies, presented in a rigid box with full-height Scanavo cases and removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings
Available on Blu-ray March 26th, 2024.
For more information, head to the official Radiance Films The Bounty Hunter Trilogy webpage.
To purchase, head to the official MVD Entertainment Group The Bounty Hunter Trilogy webpage.
Share this:
Categories: Films To Watch, Home Release, Recommendation
Leave a Reply