Supplementing the Masters of Cinema Mikio Naruse Vol. 1 boxset, followed by Criterion's When a Woman Ascends the Stairs - we have only the third ever DVD release of Naruse films for English friendly audiences. And many may consider it to contain his most important works. I do. Mikio Naruse demands a certain deserved reverence with film fans. His non-judgmental cinema creates a kind of pragmatic balance between compassion and sensitivity... steeped in subtly deep melodrama but frequently with an overall bleak and pessimistic outlook. It is quite impacting and often unforgettable.

Although the 3 main features of this boxset are housed in individual (transparent) keep cases - see images above and below - they are not sold separately at this time and can only be obtained in BFI's Mikio Naruse Collection Boxset. They are in the PAL standard, coded for Region 2 and have optional English subtitles. All three discs are dual-layered. I will discuss the supplements below.

Image:

Quality varies somewhat. Firstly, When a Woman Ascends the Stairs is anamorphic but does not appear to be progressively transferred - although this weakness is hardly noticeable. What I suspect is that, like MoC, BFI were given NTSC 'master sources' of this film and while Masters of Cinema decided to release them in that standard - BFI tried to convert them to PAL (for their PAL-locked audiences) but the variance in frame rates caused this minor combing (we see similar in some silent film transfers, although we now understand that combing is not necessary if you are given the correct source - and can convert). The conversion (proof is in the time - 4% faster than the Criterion) is a far better way to go than transferring an unconverted source like New Yorker Video in Region 1 frequently does. This produces a more prominent weakness known as 'ghosting'. Anyway, on my system I would not have diagnosed the DVD deficiency and was only able to see it through the magnifying glass of my computer. Aside from this When a Woman Ascends the Stairs is not far off the Criterion picture-wise (contrast, detail etc. - a few more artefacts) where the biggest differences I noted were in the subtitle translation (see below). I, obviously, can't say with certainty that it is wrong, but it is different in spots. Personally, I didn't find it altered the inference of the dialogue. The BFI may show more damage than the Criterion but it is in no way intrusive enough to impinge upon your viewing experience. This BFI disc has a 16 minute Freda Freiberg interview with writer Adrian Martin, another interview/introduction on the film (7 minutes) by Freiberg, a theatrical trailer and a separate commentary, with optional English subtitles, for about the first 15 minutes of the film. She brings up some salient points but even in this short space does some narrating and explanation of the storyline.

Floating Clouds has some damage - mostly in the form of light to heavier vertical scratches. Overall it has the same level of detail as When a Woman Ascends the Stairs, with decent contrast, but be prepared that there are times when significant speckles and scratches quickly drift through the image. It is not horrible - but it is there. On the extras on this disc Freiberg gives another short commentary of about 10 minutes of the film and another intro/interview for 10 minutes and Paul Willemen (Professor of Media, Film & Journalism - University of Ulster) does a very good 7 minutes on the film. I think this and Late Chrysanthemums may be my favorite Naruse films. It has a tendency to be overpowering in its barren subtleties.