Blu-ray release: ‘Radical Japan: Cinema and State’

By   |  Aug 10, 2025

Radiance Films are bringing a collection of nine films directed by Nagisa Oshima entitled ‘Radical Japan: Cinema and State’ to US and UK Blu-ray on November 17, 2025.

The start of an ongoing series, this first volume of ‘Radical Japan’ explores the films of new wave icon Nagisa Oshima. One of the most vital, challenging and admired bodies of work in cinema history, this boxset presents Blu-ray premieres of Oshima’s finest features across seven discs.

In ‘The Catch’ (1961), a village in World War II is shaken by the capture of a pilot; in ‘Death by Hanging’ (1968), a failed execution throws the justice system into disarray; ‘Diary of a Shinjuku Thief’ (1969) strikingly captures Tokyo’s 1960s counter-culture; ‘Boy’ (1969) is a vivid portrait of a family surviving through scams; ‘The Man Who Left His Will on Film’ (1970), Oshima’s reaction to the protest movement; ‘The Ceremony’ (1971), a meditation on how traditions oppress the young; and ‘Dear Summer Sister’ (1972), which questions Japan’s colonial relation to Okinawa.

Features:
• 4K restorations of ‘Death by Hanging’, ‘Diary of a Shinjuku Thief’, ‘Boy’, ‘The Man Who Left His Will on Film’ and ‘The Ceremony’
• HD digital transfers of ‘The Catch’ and ‘Dear Summer Sister’ (exclusive to this edition)
• Uncompressed mono PCM audio for each film
• Audio commentary by Samm Deighan on ‘Death by Hanging’
• Audio commentary by Tony Rayns on ‘Diary of a Shinjuku Thief’
• Audio commentary by Jasper Sharp on ‘The Ceremony’
• Introductions and appreciations of the films
• Archival interviews with Nagisa Oshima (1986 & 1995)
• Interviews with actors Tadanori Yokoo and Kazuo Goto (2025)
• Interview with Junichi Konuma on composer Toru Takemitsu (2025)
• Extensive interview with Tony Rayns on Oshima (2025)
• Yunbogi’s Diary – Oshima’s short film about street children in Seoul (1965, 25 mins)
• 100 Years of Japanese Cinema – Oshima’s documentary celebrating the centenary of cinema (1995)
• Japanese Cinema: New Territories – a documentary (2011)
• Newly improved English subtitle translation for each film
• Reversible sleeves featuring original and new artwork
• 160-page book [Limited Edition only]
• Rigid box with full-height Scanavo cases and removable OBI strip [Limited Edition only]
• Region: A/B/C

‘Radical Japan: Cinema and State’ is available to pre-order now from RadianceFilms.co.uk.

Phil Mills
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