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Release: June 29, 2021

$7.99

Description

Greta Gerwig is radiant as Frances, a woman in her late twenties in contemporary New York trying to sort out her ambitions, her finances, and, above all, her intimate but shifting bond with her best friend, Sophie (Mickey Sumner). Meticulously directed by Noah Baumbach with a free-and-easy vibe reminiscent of the French New Wave’s most spirited films, and written by Baumbach and Gerwig with an effortless combination of sweetness and wit, Frances Ha gets at both the frustrations and the joys of being young and unsure of where to go next. This wry and sparkling city romance is a testament to the ongoing vitality of American independent cinema. DIRECTOR-APPROVED BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES High-definition digital master, approved by cowriter and director Noah Baumbach, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack Conversation between filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich and Baumbach Conversation between actor and filmmaker Sarah Polley and the film’s cowriter and star, Greta Gerwig Conversation about the look of Frances Ha between Baumbach, director of photography Sam Levy, and Pascal Dangin, who did the film’s color mastering Trailer PLUS: An essay by playwright Annie Baker

Release: December 8, 2020

$7.99

Description

Throughout the 1980s, Shohei Imamura (The Pornographers, Profound Desires of the Gods), a leading figure of the Japanese New Wave era of the 1960s, cemented his international reputation as one of the most important directors of his generation with a series of films that all competed at Cannes to great critical acclaim. This exclusive box set from Arrow Academy presents restored versions of three late career classics from the legendary filmmaker. Based on an ancient folktale, The Ballad of Narayama (1983) was the first of two works from the director to win the prestigious Cannes Palme d Or. Imamura s magnum opus depicts the members of an extended farming family eking out their existence in the mountainous north of Japan against the backdrop of the changing seasons before village lore decrees they make the sacrifice of abandoning their aged mother on the top of a nearby mountain when she reaches her seventieth year. Making its HD debut, Zegen (1987) takes a satirical look at Japan s prewar colonial expansion through the unscrupulous eyes of its flesh-peddler antihero as he establishes a prostitution enterprise across Southeast Asia. Finally, the harrowing Black Rain (1989) details the precarious existence of a household of atomic bomb survivors as, five years after being caught in the blast of Hiroshima, they struggle to find a husband for their 25-year-old niece. These three works epitomize the director s almost documentary style of filmmaking, exposing the vulgar yet vibrant and instinctive underbelly of Japanese society through a sympathetic focus on peasants, prostitutes, criminal lowlife and other marginalized figures to explore the schism between the country s timeless premodern traditions and the modern face it projects to the world. LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS Restored High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentations of all three films Original lossless Japanese PCM 1.0 mono soundtracks Optional English subtitles Brand new audio commentaries on all three films by Japanese cinema expert Jasper Sharp Brand new, in-depth appreciations of all three films by Japanese cinema expert Tony Rayns Alternate color ending to Black Rain, shot by Imamura but removed from the film shortly before its release Archival interviews on Black Rain with actress Yoshiko Tanaka and assistant director Takashi Miike Multiple trailers and image galleries Original Japanese press kits for The Ballad of Narayama and Black Rain (BD-ROM content) Limited edition 60-page booklet containing new writing by Tom Mes Limited edition packaging featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tony Stella