Winner of the Special Jury Prize at Cannes, Kwaidan features four nightmarish tales adapted from Lafcadio Hearn s classic Japanese ghost stories about mortals caught up in forces beyond their comprehension when the supernatural world intervenes in their lives: “The Black Hair”, “The Woman of the Snow”, “Hoichi the Earless”, and “In a Cup of Tea”.
Breathtakingly photographed entirely on hand-painted sets, the film is an abstract wash of luminescent colours from another world. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present the complete 183-minute original Japanese cut of Masaki Kobayashi s masterpiece on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK.
BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES
- Hardbound Slipcase
- PLUS: A 100-PAGE Perfect Bound Illustrated Collector s book featuring reprints of Lafcadio Hearn s original ghost stories; a survey of the life and career of Masaki Kobayashi by Linda Hoaglund; and a wide-ranging interview with the film maker the last he d ever give
- 1080p presentation on Blu-ray from Criterion s 2K digital restoration of Kobayashi s original director s cut
- Original monaural Japanese soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles
- Kim Newman on “Kwaidan” a new interview with the film critic and writer
- Shadowings [35 mins] a new video essay by David Cairns and Fiona Watson
- Original trailers