NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Masters of Cinema Blu-ray (August 2024): Masters of Cinema have transferred Kinji Fukasaku's Wolves, Pigs and Men to Blu-ray. It is cited as being from "a restoration of the original film elements supplied by Toei". It looks quite strong on a dual-layered disc with a max'ed out bitrate. There are a few inconsistencies where the 1080P shows some fluctuating damage and another scene, in the airport, where the contrast appears less defined. The majority though looks strong and heavy. The transfer provides a very supportive HD presentation.

NOTE: We have added 56 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Masters of Cinema use a linear PCM mono track (24-bit) in the original Japanese language. Wolves, Pigs and Men has has plenty of violence, assault - even torture giving the mono a slight depth. The score was by Isao Tomita (Demon Pond, Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman, The Hidden Blade), and there are a couple of unidentified music numbers where the young gang are dancing wildly. Everything sounds authentically flat with some buoyancy in the uncompressed transfer. Masters of Cinema offer optional English subtitles on their Region 'B'-locked Blu-ray.

The Masters of Cinema Blu-ray offers a new commentary by Jasper Sharp (author of Historical Dictionary of Japanese Cinema.) He identifies the opening establishing shot of the shanty town / squalid economic circumstances where much of the film will take place. He describes Wolves, Pigs and Men as "a gritty take of sibling rivalry". Jasper talks about, then 30-year old, director Kinji Fukasaku, his Battles Without Honour and Humanity series, the cast, Toei Studios, the freeze-frames in the credits used to introduce characters - reminiscent of crime reporting, and plenty more. It's thorough and excellent. There is also almost an hour's worth of three separate interviews with screenwriter Jun’ya Satô (1975's Bullet Train), producer Tatsu Yoshida and Kinji Fukasaku’s biographer, Sadao Yamane. Lastly is a trailer and the Blu-ray package has both a limited edition O-card slipcase featuring new artwork by Grégory Sacré and a collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Japanese cinema expert Joe Hickinbottom (New Blood: Critical Approaches to Contemporary Horror.)

Kinji Fukasaku's Wolves, Pigs and Men has three brother characters who grew up together in the slums but have each escalated to different economic strata including associations to organized crime. There is resentment, double-crossing, betrayal, ex-cons with the backdrop of a noir-ish familial dysfunction, yakuza underworld hierarchy, and a bleak realistic outcome. Is there any bond of blood or honor among thieves? Morality is a prominent theme in Wolves, Pigs and Men. This is a wonderfully realized, harsh, family-crime drama with social criticism. I really enjoyed it. The Masters of Cinema Blu-ray is a fabulous package; expert commentary, interviews, booklet... of an exceptional film from the genre and era. Strongly recommended!

Gary Tooze