Photo courtesy of the Criterion Collection. © Shochiku Co., Ltd.Source: The Criterion Collection press release
Special Thanks to Courtney Ott
Photo courtesy of the Criterion Collection. © Shochiku Co., Ltd.
The Criterion Collection has announced the Shochiku horror film DEMON POND (夜叉ヶ池, Yashagaike, 1979) will be released October 15th in a 2-disc 4K UHD + Blu-ray set, as well as single disc Blu-ray and DVD editions.
Japanese New Wave renegade Masahiro Shinoda transforms a classic Kabuki tale with his own extravagant visual style in this dimension-shattering folk-horror fantasia. When a lone traveler (Tsutomu Yamazaki) stumbles upon a remote, drought-stricken village, he finds himself engulfed in a whirlpool of myth, mystery, and magic: in a nearby pond reside spirits who hold the fate of the town’s inhabitants—including lovers Akira (Go Kato) and Yuri (Kabuki legend Tamasaburo Bando, who also plays the ethereal princess reigning over the water)—in their hands. Set to the swirling strains of electronic-music pioneer Isao Tomita’s synth score, DEMON POND blends theatrical artifice with cinematic surrealism for an aquatic-apocalyptic fable of human love and folly caught in the current of nature’s wrath.
124 minutes • Color • Monaural • In Japanese with English subtitles • 1.85:1 aspect ratio
SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
• 4K digital restoration, supervised by director Masahiro Shinoda and actor Tamasaburo Bando, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• In the 4K UHD edition: One 4K UHD disc of the film and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
• New interview with film scholar Dudley Andrew
• Program on the film’s special effects
• PLUS: An essay by film critic Michael Atkinson
Photo courtesy of the Criterion Collection. © Shochiku Co., Ltd.4K UHD + BLU-RAY COMBO EDITION
SRP: $49.95
PREBOOK: 9/10/24
STREET: 10/15/24
CAT. NO.: CC3608UHDBD
ISBN: 979-8-88607-198-6
UPC: 7-15515-30371-2
BLU-RAY EDITION
SRP: $39.95
PREBOOK: 9/10/24
STREET: 10/15/24
CAT. NO.: CC3609BD
ISBN: 979-8-88607-199-3
UPC: 7-15515-30381-1
DVD EDITION
SRP: $29.95
PREBOOK: 9/10/24
STREET: 10/15/24
CAT. NO.: CC3610DDVD
ISBN: 979-8-88607-200-6
UPC: 7-15515-30391-0
Photo courtesy of the Criterion Collection. © Shochiku Co., Ltd.
Photo courtesy of the Criterion Collection. © Shochiku Co., Ltd.4K UHD + BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
- 4K digital restoration, supervised by director Masahiro Shinoda and actor Tamasaburo Bando, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
- One 4K UHD disc of the film and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
- New interview with film scholar Dudley Andrew
- Program on the film’s special effects
- PLUS: An essay by film critic Michael Atkinson
New illustration by Yuko Shimizu