Review by Gary Tooze

Production:

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DVD included

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The Film:

Writer-director Naomi Kawase, adapting Durian Sukegawa's novel "An" — the Japanese word for the red bean paste that's sandwiched between small pancakes to make dorayaki — is an unapologetically heart-tugging film. But its sentimentality is tempered by the elegant restraint of the fine lead performances.

Masatoshi Nagase, who had one of his first screen roles as a blues-loving tourist in Jim Jarmusch's "Mystery Train," plays Sentaro, middle-aged and glum. He serves up sweets at his dorayaki shop but has no taste for them. That's apparent to Tokue (Kirin Kiki), a charmingly odd 76-year-old who arrives at his counter determined to work with him. A sample of her homemade bean paste seals the deal.

Excerpt from NY Times located HERE

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

Sweet Bean looks clean and efficient on Blu-ray from The Masters of Cinema group in the UK. The image quality authentically reflects the Arriflex Cameras production via the dual-layered transfer with a max'ed out bitrate. It shows no gloss or imperfections of any kind - pristinely clean, realistic colors and probably precisely accurate to the theatrical presentation. The aspect ratio is 2.39:1 and rendered in 1080P.

CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The audio is transferred in the option of a robust DTS-HD Master 5.1 surround or a linear PCM 2.0 channel track - both 24-bit. There are no aggressive scenes nor heavy requirements for adroit separation (a few noted). The film's music is by David Hadjadj and it all sounds precise, clean and gentle. There are optional English subtitles and my Oppo has identified it as being a region 'B'-locked.

Extras :

Masters of Cinema provide a new, exclusive, 35-minute video interview with director/writer Naomi Kawase about the production. There is also a theatrical trailer and the package has another extensive MoC booklet with a 32-page booklet featuring a new essay on the film by critic Philip Kemp; an interview and statement from Kawase, and production images. The dual format disc has a DVD included.

 

 

BOTTOM LINE:
Sweet Bean is a beautiful film - full of Japanese sensibilities - cultural affectations to food, simplistic storylines and characters and gentle inter-generational communication hinting at Ozu. The director knows how to set pace and keep a realistic expression. There is a timelessness to Sweet Bean. Another excellent choice for MoC to release on Blu-ray. The 1080P presentation is rich as the film and the package with extensive booklet, and interview makes it ever so desirable. I wish all modern film were like this. Absolutely recommended! 

Gary Tooze

August 20th, 2016