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The Inugami Family
[Blu-ray 4K]
Blu-ray ALL - Japan - Kadokawa Review written by and copyright: James-Masaki Ryan (17th January 2022). |
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The Film
 "The Inugami Family" 「犬神家の一族」 (1976) February 1947 - Sahei Inugami (played by Rentaro Mikuni), the founder of the Inugami Pharmaceutical Company passes away. It is stipulated in his dying wish that all members of his family - his three daughters Matsuko (played by Mieko Takamine), Takeko (played by Miki Sanjo), and Umeko (played by Mitsuko Kusabue), their grandchildren, as well as Tamayo Nonomiya (played by Yoko Shimada), the daughter of a family friend. The entire family schedules a date to meet, but the junior lawyer Wakabayashi (played by a Hajime Nishino), who was one of two people who had access to the will is killed by poisoning. A bigger surprise for the police is the appearance of Kosuke Kindaichi (played by Koji Ishizuka), an out of town raggedy young man who claims to be a private detective hired by Wakabayashi. Kindaichi says that Wakabayashi had hired him because there was grave concern with the reading of the Inugami will, and as he expected, the contents of the will cause the members of the family to argue and fight amongst each other. But who was it that killed Wakabayashi, and who else will meet their demise? When listing the most popular fictional detectives for Japanese audiences, Kosuke Kindaichi would be near the top, alongside characters such as Detective Conan, Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, and Columbo. Novelist Seishi Yokomizo debuted the character in 1946 with "The Honjin Murders", serialized in the weekly magazine Houseki between April and December, and won the first Mystery Writers of Japan Award two years later in 1948. Yokomizo wrote a total of seventy-seven stories featuring the detective, and was part of public consciousness with the ongoing series which saw the detective age and mature over the years with the readers. Having unkept hair like a sparrow's nest filled with dandruff and toenails that are too long, the detective is not an example of keeping clean. His kimono is old and tattered, his hat barely keeps its shape, and the wooden geta that he wears on his dirt covered feet are possibly older than he is. Where he lacks in hygiene, he makes up for with his skills as a detective, able to solve some of most seemingly impossible cases with his wit and his charm. Like a cross between Tora-san and Columbo, the drifting detective was an interestingly unique character that delighted readers for generations, with Yokomizo's final written work being "Akuryoto" ("Demon's Island") in 1980. Yokomizo passed away on December 28th, 1981 at the age of 79. The character of Kindaichi's popularity spanned the decades not only through books but through adaptations in various media with films, radio and television. The first time he graced the screen was in 1947 in "Sanbon yubi no otoko" (translated as "The Three Fingered Man"), which was an adaptation of "The Honjin Murders", starring Chiezo Kataoka in the lead role. He would play the character a total of eight times for the screen, with adaptations of various books including "The Inugami Family" (1950-1951) in 1954 under the title "Inugami-ke no nazo: Akuma wa odoru" (translated as "The Mystery of the Inugami Family: Dance of the Devil"). But in these films, Kataoka looked closer to an American noir detective with a trenchcoat and hat, not at all resembling the character as described in the books. Other actors would also take on the role, but each would step a bit further from the literary image. In "Akuma no temari-uta" (1961) (based on "A Rhymes of a Devil's Ball"), Ken Takakura played the character with short hair, sunglasses, and driving a convertible. "Honjin satsujin jiken" (1975) ("The Honjin Murders") had actor Akira Nakao play the role as a chain smoking hippy. It seemed that every filmmaker wanted to reinvent Kindaichi into someone desirably cool rather than what Yokomizo envisioned. In 1975, publishing house Kadokawa Shoten's Haruki Kadokawa inherited the position of president from his father, Genyoshi. A major publishing company of books and magazines since 1945, the new president immediately looked at expanding the business into filmmaking and television, and with their vast library of literary works, licensing and negotiation of adapting existing properties as movies, dramas, and animated works became a new priority. They held the publishing rights to Yokomizo's Kindaichi series, and as Kadokawa was a fan of mystery works, adapting one of the books would become his first venture into producing a film. As for a director, his first choice was Kon Ichikawa, a filmmaker he highly respected not only with his cinematic works, but also with his works as a mystery writer in which Ichikawa used the pseudonym "Kurisutei", an homage to Agatha Christie. But at the time, Ichikawa was in a critical and commercial slump. During the 1950s and early 1960s, Ichikawa rode on a wave of critical and commercial hits, from "The Burmese Harp" (1956), "Fires on the Plain" (1959), "An Actor's Revenge" (1963), and more. His commissioned documentary on the 1964 Tokyo Olympics "Tokyo Olympiad" (1965) caused controversy with the Japanese government, as he focused on the destruction of old buildings to pave way for new structures for the Olympics, as well as giving too much screentime towards non-Japanese athletes. Although he stood by his decision, the Japanese producers demanded a recut which would focus more on Japanese pride, and thus a recut film without his involvement, "Sensation of a Century" was created. It was also at this time that his wife and longtime screenwriting partner Natto Wada decided to retire from screenwriting, leaving Ichikawa to continue filmmaking without her. The late sixties also saw a decline in cinemagoing, as color televisions became standard and television was taking over the living rooms. In 1969, Ichikawa, along with famed directors Masaki Kobayashi, Keisuke Kinishita and Akira Kurosawa formed the highly anticipated production company "Yonki-no-kai", but their first production "Dodeskaden" (1970) directed by Kurosawa also became their last, as it was a massive financial and critical failure. Ichikawa was without a studio contract as the studio system was collapsing in Japan, and his subsequent films such as "To Love Again" (1971), "The Wanderers" (1973) and others were ignored and quickly forgotten about. Kadokawa knew there was a risk hiring a director that hadn't had a hit in over a decade, but it was something he was willing to gamble on with his company's first feature film. Ichikawa was keenly interested in bringing Kindaichi to screen for many years but the rights eluded him. He was determined to bring an authentic version of the character to life. For the adaptation of "The Inugami Family", they went straight to the source material, keeping the character as it was written. Koji Ishizaka was cast as the iconic detective, and for the first time was played as a character with a dirty kimono, dandruff filled hair, and dirty feet. His age was appropriate as well, with the original story being set at the time Kindaichi was in his thirties, which was how old Ishizaka was at the time. Ichikawa worked on the script with Norio Osada and Shinya Hidaka who were much younger, and gave the script a fine tuning, with a few changes from the original story. The basics of the story - the setting, the characters, the murders were kept intact, but there some tweaks made, such as the Inugami family being a silk manufacturer into a pharmaceutical company, the setting being changed from 1949 to 1947, among others. There were additions also made, such as the new character Haru (played by Ryoko Sakaguchi), the young woman working at the inn, Matsuko's mother who had passed away in the original book was brought to life and played by Izumi Hara in a few important scenes. Liberties were made, but all were in approval of Yokomizo who gave his blessing, and even was given a cameo appearance as the innkeeper of the Nasu Hotel. The casting featured an all star lineup of stars both established and new. Rentaro Mikuni in heavy makeup played the deceased Sahei Inugami. Mieko Takamine, Miki Sanjo, and Mitsuko Kusabue - all established actresses since the 1950s played the three bitter daughters. Takeshi Kato, Hideji Otaki, Norihei Miki, Kyoko Kishida, and Eitaro Ozawa were cast in supporting roles, though each had lengthy careers in the past decades. With the three grandsons, Takeo Chii had a fairly established career for the past decade in supporting roles, Hisashi Kawaguchi had a long list of television credits also had a few supporting roles in films in the last few years, and Teruhiko Aoi was a famed singer and television star. Yoko Shimada in the role of Tamayo was a fair newcomer, debuting as a television actress in 1970 at the age of seventeen and starring in a handful of films including "I Am a Cat" in 1975, directed by Ichikawa. The range of different actors from different generations gave the production high appeal for both older cinemagoers and younger fans. "The Inugami Family" is basically a whodunit, with multiple suspects, and a detective on the trail that plays just as a standard Christie or Doyle murder mystery, but with Kindaichi, never expect to have only one dead body. Without spoiling, the body count is quite high here and is in keeping with the original story. There is constant bickering with the family, suspicious tasks by various people, as well as revealing moments with the past unearthed. A fourth daughter, a missing grandchild, a homosexual relationship, and much more that keeps the twists and turns invigorating and tense. As for the multiple later kills, they're almost as if they were planned all along, as the instruments used for each killing is represented by the golden family heirlooms - the koto, the chrysanthemum, and the axe, with the last one being the most obvious choice for a weapon. But once the full mystery is revealed, this was not at all a planned spree of murders, but an interesting case of a family's love, uncontrollable greed, and vengeance that is sure to stump viewers until the very end. The writing here and mapping of the series of events is well constructed and wonderfully done, especially under the control of Ichikawa. For the visuals, Ichikawa became interested in a new widescreen format developed by Toho which was called "Toho Wide". The film would be shot in the standard 1.37:1 aspect ratio, but the top and bottom of the frame would be slightly masked for an aspect ratio of 1.50:1. This would be only slightly wider than a standard size frame, and would have an easy way to transfer to eventual television broadcasts which would remove the mattes to reveal the full frame. Cinematographer Kiyoshi Hasegawa carefully framed the images to the unusual and new aspect ratio while still keeping a little legroom and headroom, while also carefully making sure the image was to Ichikawa's intention especially with the colors. Ichikawa wanted natural tones and he made sure that lighting, locations, and wardrobe were to his liking, as well as having a fairly muted color palate. Another interest in the visuals comes from the editing, which was supervised by newcomer Chizuko Osada, her second work as editor after Ichikawa's "I Am a Cat" the previous year. Here, the editing was fairly experimental. With shots sometimes lasting only a few frames like in the frenetic will reading scene, using stop motion like the boat rescue, the editing techniques are all over the place, yet very calculated by Ichikawa for the corresponding scenes. In addition to the visuals, the music is also a major character for the film. Jazz musician Yuji Ohno was an unconventional choice, as the composer who worked in television combined elements of prog rock, funk, and electric jazz in his music didn't seem like a fit for a period film that took place in postwar Japan. Yet somehow the newcomer to film composing gave the film a fresh feel with an iconic soundtrack that is just as recognizable in his home country as the "Lupin the Third" theme he would create just a year later. The film premiered in Japanese cinemas on October 16th, 1976, being distributed by Toho and marketed as Kadokawa Pictures' first production, with heavy emphasis on the cast and director. The film was a massive hit, grossing over ¥1.5 billion Yen and becoming the second biggest Japanese film of the year (though it was no match for "Jaws", which was way ahead of the competition grossing 5 billion in Japan). Critically the film was a comeback for Ichikawa, It won Best Film at the first Hochi Film Awards, Best Supporting Actress for Mieko Takamine at the Blue Ribbon Awards, Best Japanese Film Director at the Kinema Junpo Awards, as well as four awards for Best Cinematography, Best Score, Best Sound Recording, and a Reader's Choice Award at the Mainichi Film Concours. Kinema Junpo ranked it as the fifth best film of the year, and became a cultural sensation, with the Kindaichi novels having a resurgence in sales. The immediate success also led to multiple Kindaichi adaptations to be greenlit. Ichikawa immediately continued with a sequel with Ishizaka in the lead with not one, but two films the following year, with "The Devil's Bouncing Ball Song" released on April 2nd, 1977 and "The Devil's Island" released on August 27th, 1977, but this time produced entirely under Toho Studios rather than Kadokawa. Ichikawa and Ishizuka continued with adaptations of "Queen Bee", released on February 11th, 1978, and "The House of Hanging", released on May 26th, 1979. In competition, "Village of the Eight Tombs", directed by Yoshitaro Nomura and released by Shochiku Pictures was released a few months later on October 29th, 1977, with Tora-san himself Kiyoshi Atsumi playing the drifting detective and having Yoko Shimada from "The Inugami Family" in a cameo role. Toei released "Devil's Flute" in 1979, with popular comedy actor Toshiyuki Nishida in the Kindaichi role. Cult director Nobuhiko Obayashi added his own take with "The Adventures of Kosuke Kindaichi" also released in 1979, with Ikko Furuya as Kindaichi and having a surprising cameo by Toshiro Mifune as an elder Kindaichi from the future. Though none of the Ichikawa sequels or the unrelated adaptations would come close to being as successful as "The Inugami Family" in box office gross, the public consciousness was incredibly strong and many were top money makers for their respective studios. In addition to more films, Kindaichi has been a major fixture on television, with numerous television dramas, parodies, and more over the years even to this day. Interestingly, when "The Inugami Family" made its broadcast television debut on January 16th, 1978, it broke records with a share of 40.2%. Ishizaka also made one surprising appearance for television in 1980, for a series of Toyota commercials directed by Ichikawa, which can be found on the "Style of Kon Ichikawa" DVD. But this would not be the end. In 2006, Ichikawa remade "The Inugami Family" as "The Inugamis", which was again faithful to the book and therefore faithful to his 1976 film, with Ishizaka reprising his role as Kindaichi exactly thirty years later. Hideji Otaki also reprised his role as the priest and Takeshi Kato again played the police chief, but all other roles were recast with other veteran stars and newcomers alike. The film would sadly become Ichikawa's final film as director, passing away from pneumonia on February 13th, 2008 at the age of 92. It's been four decades since "The Inugami Family" was released theatrically and the impact it had in Japan is undeniable. Kadokawa Pictures grew substantially from its success and it's one of the major studios in Japan with many audience favorites. The image of Kindaichi as a tattered kimono and hat wearing detective has become canon. Sukekiyo's iconic and creepy white mask is easily spotted every year on Halloween as a top selling costume. The score by Ohno is still heard on television ads and commercials. Even with dozens of classics directed, Ichikawa's most popular and well known in Japan in "The Inugami Family". But why has "The Inugami Family" and its sequels not had any traction outside of Japan? Ichikawa is one of the most internationally celebrated directors from Japan, but it falls down to the films not ever having proper distribution overseas, including the DVD era. There is also the issue of the original books not having proper translations for many years. The novel of "The Inugami Family" received an English translation in 2007 as "The Inugami Curse", with more being translated, decades after their original publications in Japan. The entire Ichikawa-Kindaichi series of films seemed like an easy sell for international audiences, but unfortunately for the previously existing Japanese DVD and Blu-ray releases, none of them received English subtitle options. With this new 2021 4K restoration, Kadokawa has finally issued the film with officially translated English subtitles on home video, thus finally giving international audiences a chance to experience the cultural phenomenon that has eluded them for decades with this fresh and wonderful restoration. Note this is a region ALL Blu-ray 4K + Blu-ray set
Video
Kadokawa presents the film in the original 1.50:1 aspect ratio in 2160p HEVC with HDR10 on the 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray and in 1080p AVC MPEG-4 on the standard Blu-ray. The film was restored in 4K in 2021 by Imagica from the original camera negative. Over the years the film has had an interesting life on home video, each having differing color grading and differing aspect ratios. For the new restoration the film restored the 1.50:1 Toho Wide aspect ratio and for the colors, reference was taken from unopened master film prints struck in 1976. In addition to various notes on colors from Ichikawa's production notes, editor Chizuko Osada was consulted on the color grading. Colors lean towards a bluish hue while still retaining deep blacks and solid whites, and at the same time downgrading red tones. The overall film looks quite cold as skin tones are kept on the pale side, but there are some great examples of colors such as browns and golds within the Inugami residence. Black and white levels are also perfectly balanced, as seen in the simplistic opening credits, as well as the memorable stark flashback sequence. Damage is almost entirely gone, with speckles, scratches, and other marks being removed digitally. Film grain is kept minimal, though it hasn't been scrubbed fully, leaving a very clean but still filmlike transfer. Previous transfers on home video looked either too pale or too dark with green hues being boosted. This one as mentioned faithfully restores the original intended colors as close as possible and looks absolutely amazing, bringing life back to the classic film like never before. The film's runtime is 146:12, including the opening text with the restoration information.
Audio
Japanese LPCM 2.0 mono The original mono track is presented uncompressed and is also restored. The original soundtrack elements were digitized and corrected by removing hiss, pops, cracks, and other unwanted noise, while leaving a clean sounding audio track with the dialogue, music, and effects. Characters sound very clear throughout and the memorable and iconic score by Yuji Ohno sounds wonderful, never overbearing on the dialogue. There are optional English, Japanese subtitles in a white font for the main feature. This is the first time that the film has received an official English subtitle translation on home video, and the translation is excellent.
Extras
DISC ONE (Blu-ray 4K) Theatrical Teaser (0:53) The original teaser trailer, which interestingly crops the image to the CinemaScope aspect ratio, with Japanese text overlaid. The trailer has been remastered and looks just as pristine as the film itself. in 2160p HEVC, in 2.35:1, in Japanese LPCM 2.0 without subtitles 2 Theatrical Trailers (4:26) Two original theatrical trailers are included. The first is in the unmatted 1.33:1 aspect ratio and is missing the text overlays, having minimal dialogue scenes showcased. The second is in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio, and this one does have the original text overlays. Some of the shots are stretched to fill the CinemaScope frame while others are cropped from the top and bottom to fill the screen. in 2160p HEVC, in 1.33:1 / 2.35:1, in Japanese LPCM 2.0 without subtitles Screen Calibration An automated calibration screen to adjust the black and white levels of the screen. in 2160p HEVC DISC TWO (Blu-ray) Theatrical Teaser (0:53) The same teaser found on the above disc, downscaled to 1080p. in 1080p AVC MPEG-4, in 2.35:1, in Japanese LPCM 2.0 without subtitles 2 Theatrical Trailers (4:26) The same trailers found on the above disc, downscaled to 1080p. in 1080p AVC MPEG-4, in 1.33:1 / 2.35:1, in Japanese LPCM 2.0 without subtitles Screen Calibration The same calibration as above, but in HD. in 1080p AVC MPEG DISC THREE (Blu-ray) "The Inugami Family: The 4K Digital Restoration" featurette (11:31) This featurette chronicles the restoration process of the film, from the work that Imagica made by examining notes, using reference work from a 1976 film print, the input from editor Osada for color grading, comparisons between the previous home video masters to the new 4K restoration, information on the Toho Wide process, the sound restoration, and the reactions from a preview screening. Note this featurette was also uploaded to YouTube on Kadokawa's channel, and is also embedded below. in 1080p AVC MPEG-4, in 1.78:1, in Japanese LPCM 2.0 without subtitles "Kon Ichikawa: Secrets in the Visuals" documentary (re-edited and extended) (44:03) This lengthy interview with Ichikawa was conducted on July 26th, 1991 for inclusion on the remastered Laserdisc of "The Inugami Family" released later that year in Japan. He discusses the making of the film, from the creation of the title cards, the framing, the use of light, shadows, and colors, the rhythmic editing, as well as his career in cinema from his early days as an animator, and much more. The interview was originally released with a runtime of 22 minutes. In 2015, Kadokawa extended the interview by including some never before seen portions, extending the runtime to 44 minutes, and being released on the "Kon Ichikawa 4K Master Blu-ray Box" as an extra on its bonus DVD. Though the transfer here is in HD, it is upscaled from the standard definition master. in 1080i60 AVC MPEG-4, in 1.33:1, in Japanese LPCM 2.0 without subtitles "Off Shots: Behind the Scenes of Secrets in the Visuals" featurette (8:17) Here are some behind the scenes footage of the above documentary, with storyboards, stills, outtakes and more. This was also previously released as a bonus on the 2015 "Kon Ichikawa 4K Master Blu-ray Box". in 1080i60 AVC MPEG-4, in 1.33:1, in Japanese LPCM 2.0 without subtitles "Verification: How The Inugami Family Was Made" documentary (30:04) This documentary has interviews with the cast and crew, including Ichikawa, Seishi Yokomizo's son, editor Chizuko Osada, actor Koji Ishizuka, and more about the production. Talked about are bringing the iconic Kindaichi character to screen, the costume choices, the look of the film, the blood and gore effects, the various cameos by the crew, the editing style and more. This documentary was produced in 2006 and released on the Japanese Collector's Edition DVD the same year. in 1080i60 AVC MPEG-4, in 1.33:1, in Japanese LPCM 2.0 without subtitles "Birth! Kosuke Kindaichi" featurette (15:48) This interview with Koji Ishizuka is taken from the same session as the above documentary, where he talks in depth about the creation of his iconic role. From his initial casting, the choices with the wardrobe, the difficulties with the dandruff, and more. This interview was produced in 2006 and released on the Japanese Collector's Edition DVD the same year. in 1080i60 AVC MPEG-4, in 1.33:1, in Japanese LPCM 2.0 without subtitles "The Inugami Family, Kon Ichikawaw, Mieko Takamine" vintage featurette by Suponichi Creates (1:38) A vintage promotional featurette made by Suponichi Creates agency, it features candid shots of the behind the scenes of Matsuko meeting her mother, with narration by an uncredited announcer. The clip has never been released on home video until now, and it is taken from the original film elements, looking extremely good, with only minor film damage and good colors. in 1080p AVC MPEG-4, in 1.33:1, in Japanese LPCM 2.0 without subtitles Book A hefty 190 page A4-size softcover book is included with the set. There are numerous production stills in color and black and white, information on the characters, about the Toho Wide framing, as well as interviews with various cast and crew. "The Inugami Family: The 4K Digital Restoration" featurette Restoration comparisons (not available on disc) All the relevant extras from the previous Laserdisc and DVD editions have been carried over. The only things missing are the extras that were related to the 2006 remake film such as the scene comparison feature. With this new edition also including new featurettes and also having the extended 1991 interviews, it's easily the definitive release. It's still a wonder that there isn't a commentary track included, but possibly one for a future western release? One can hope, as this is a film that has many discussion points.
Packaging
The discs are packaged in a DVD-size standard keep case. The keep case and the book are packaged inside a large cardboard box. It's standard brown cardboard packaging with the film's title on the front, which is much too plain to be displayed on a shelf. Basically it is meant to be taken out and the book to be displayed on a bookshelf while the keep case is to be on a movie shelf. But as the keep case is taller and thicker than a standard Blu-ray case, it does stick out badly. As for the artwork, the film has had various iconic imagery for its home video releases. The image of Sukekiyo's haunting mask, the legs of one of the victims protruding from the water, the promotional still of all the family members listening to the will reading, etc. Here, new artwork is introduced with the balcony crime scene in black and white (mimicking the flashback sequence), with a splatter of blood on the ground. While yes it is a central and important scene, accentuating the red blood seems to go against what Ichikawa wanted, as he tried to lessen the blood red color, until the climactic gory moment near the end of the film. Better work could have been done here by going with the theatrical or previously used artwork instead.
Overall
"The Inugami Family" is a film I've personally championed for years and wished for international audiences to be able to experience director Kon Ichikawa's most popular film. It's a solid murder mystery with comical touches, shocking violence, with a brilliant cast and tons of twists and turns, and finally available with English subtitles in this great 4K UHD Blu-ray set. Kadokawa did a fantastic job with the 4K transfer, and even if the extras and the massive book is in Japanese only, it is still a must see. The release is very pricy at ¥16,280 for a single film, but until a non-book version is reissued or if a western distributor like Criterion, Arrow, BFI, or some other company can license the film (or the entire series), this is the definitive release. Highly recommended.
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