Wolfguy (1975) - Sonny Chiba's Wildest Movie?

[inframan]

Saw it on the big screen recently, a lot of fun. Arrow is killing it lately with their releases.

[KUNG FU BOB]

On 16/05/2017 at 10:44 AM, Takuma said:

I saw it in 35mm... three times... on the same day!

You are my kind of madman @Takuma!

 

22 hours ago, KenHashibe said:

It's okay, Big Brother. We'll see if another opportunity to see this comes up someday.

Lucky bastard.

I don't think I've ever seen the same movie three times in the same day. Must be one hell of a movie.

Truly.

Right on @KenHashibe.

I've only ever watched one film three times in a day, and it's not what you might think. It was PI (1998). My wife and I watched it, then our friend stopped over and as we were recommending it to her, we decided to watch it again. Afterward we were discussing it and curious about what the director, Darren Aronofsky, would have to say about it, so we watched it again with the audio commentary.

 

1 hour ago, Takuma said:

 

That's a great commercial.

Well, my copy arrived today! One week early and properly/safely packaged to make its overseas journey in mint condition. Now that's the way to do it Arrow!

Now... will I be able to wait for my son to watch this? Yes, but only as I am swamped with work.

But still... I'll keep it right here on my desk so I can see it while I work. Hahahaha...

6 minutes ago, inframan said:

Saw it on the big screen recently, a lot of fun. Arrow is killing it lately with their releases.

Lucky man!

Can't wait for lunch-time so I can read the booklet.

[Tosh]

Got this ordered through Arrow, along with Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia and Time Bandits, it was a toss up between Time Bandits and Buckaroo Banzai but I had to choose one, got free shipping, maybe I'll pick up BB with The New Battles without Honor...

Ok going to finish up the last LWaC and looking forward to Wolfguy, it looks insane but I had to stop watching that arrow video as I want to go in fresh

[KUNG FU BOB]

On 5/19/2017 at 6:35 PM, Tosh said:

Got this ordered through Arrow, along with Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia and Time Bandits, it was a toss up between Time Bandits and Buckaroo Banzai but I had to choose one, got free shipping, maybe I'll pick up BB with The New Battles without Honor...

Ok going to finish up the last LWaC and looking forward to Wolfguy, it looks insane but I had to stop watching that arrow video as I want to go in fresh

Whoa dude, WOLF GUY, BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA and TIME BANDITS? Yup, I could basically look into your shopping cart and know you and I were going to be friends (STEPBROTHERS style). Hahaha... I can't fault you for it, but BUCKAROO would always win out for me over TIME BANDITS though. I haven't picked up Arrow's TIME BANDITS yet, but their BB edition is geektastic!

Watched WOLF GUY with my son. Lots of fun. He liked it a lot, but thought it would be "even crazier" and have "more action". I understand him feeling that way, but when I watch it, knowing fully the context/time period from which it came, I think it IS very crazy. Still, when it was over he had a great big grin on his face, and said "I really want to see THE STREET FIGHTER again." Could any words make a dad more happy?  (You may be thinking- well, how about if he said "I found true love, Dad", or something important like that? If you are thinking that- No! Shut your rational holes! )

The WOLF GUY extras are three great interviews (and the theatrical trailer). Believe it or not, though the Chiba one is cool, it was my least favorite of the three. These guys really tell-it-like-they-see-it man! I got the feeling that they are so old and feel beyond any repercussions from industry people, that they just didn't bother to hold back anything, speaking quite frankly. I laughed multiple times at their statements. You guys will get a kick out of them.

I read the first part of the booklet, written by Patrick Macias. Very enjoyable, and as usual, Macias never overstays his welcome; to the point and informative, told with his unique style. I'd like to hear him do an audio commentary on a film like WOLF GUY.

[Tosh]

I want to say thumbs up to Arrow, they gave me free shipping and got it shipped overseas in 5 days, now that is customer service on the highest level and a sign of a well run business, they'll get my $ again.

[Tosh]

3 hours ago, KUNG FU BOB said:

Whoa dude, WOLF GUY, BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA and TIME BANDITS? Yup, I could basically look into your shopping cart and know you and I were going to be friends (STEPBROTHERS style). Hahaha... I can't fault you for it, but BUCKAROO would always win out for me over TIME BANDITS though. I haven't picked up Arrow's TIME BANDITS yet, but their BB edition is geektastic!

Watched WOLF GUY with my son. Lots of fun. He liked it a lot, but thought it would be "even crazier" and have "more action". I understand him feeling that way, but when I watch it, knowing fully the context/time period from which it came, I think it IS very crazy. Still, when it was over he had a great big grin on his face, and said "I really want to see THE STREET FIGHTER again." Could any words make a dad more happy?  (You may be thinking- well, how about if he said "I found true love, Dad", or something important like that? If you are thinking that- No! Shut your rational holes! )

The WOLF GUY extras are three great interviews (and the theatrical trailer). Believe it or not, though the Chiba one is cool, it was my least favorite of the three. These guys really tell-it-like-they-see-it man! I got the feeling that they are so old and feel beyond any repercussions from industry people, that they just didn't bother to hold back anything, speaking quite frankly. I laughed multiple times at their statements. You guys will get a kick out of them.

 

 

I read the first part of the booklet, written by Patrick Macias. Very enjoyable, and as usual, Macias never overstays his welcome; to the point and informative, told with his unique style. I'd like to hear him do an audio commentary on a film like WOLF GUY.

 

Ah BMtHoAG is one of those movies that sticks with you, kind of like a knife in the chest, I would say they don't make movies like this anymore but it's more like they won't make movies like this anymore. For some reason I hardly remember BB, need to watch it again, was going to rent it but I'll just order it to give Arrow my business. Time Bandits on the other hand has a place in my heart having loved it in my younger years, I remember them both being totally off in that great way 80's era left field, hope Arrow release Ice Pirates, another oddball flick.

The kid sounds like a chip off the ol' nunchaku

 

Heading out of town for the holiday weekend, going to have to hold off on these till I get back, aggh.

[Takuma]

21 hours ago, KUNG FU BOB said:

Watched WOLF GUY with my son. Lots of fun. He liked it a lot, but thought it would be "even crazier" and have "more action". I understand him feeling that way, but when I watch it, knowing fully the context/time period from which it came, I think it IS very crazy. Still, when it was over he had a great big grin on his face, and said "I really want to see THE STREET FIGHTER again." Could any words make a dad more happy?  (You may be thinking- well, how about if he said "I found true love, Dad", or something important like that? If you are thinking that- No! Shut your rational holes! )

Glad to hear that!

 

21 hours ago, KUNG FU BOB said:

The WOLF GUY extras are three great interviews (and the theatrical trailer). Believe it or not, though the Chiba one is cool, it was my least favorite of the three. These guys really tell-it-like-they-see-it man! I got the feeling that they are so old and feel beyond any repercussions from industry people, that they just didn't bother to hold back anything, speaking quite frankly. I laughed multiple times at their statements. You guys will get a kick out of them.

Agreed about the interview rank. I loved the producer Tatsu Yoshida interview.

However, I feel that was perhaps a bit more due to him being very outspoken than Arrow asking the best possible questions. Sometimes I wished Arrow would ask "harder" questions from the guys...

Also, I wonder why Chiba didn't say anything about Wolfguy...

[Vegeta84]

OK, so I finally watched my copy. 

The film: Can't say much that hasn't already been said. It's great and one of the most over the wall Chiba films of all time. (Probably of all time)

Special features were great. 

The only qualm I had was picture quality.  I noticed that in the darker scenes (especially in the first 1/3 of the film) there is something kind of wave thing going on.  I can't really explain, but it's like a constant flickering, and I've never seen this happen on a disc before. It's hard for me to explain, but there is some sort of motion in the background. It's not the TV as I tried the disc on multiple locations and it was the same. Kinda strange. 

Still, overall great package. 

[Takuma]

10 hours ago, Vegeta84 said:

The only qualm I had was picture quality.  I noticed that in the darker scenes (especially in the first 1/3 of the film) there is something kind of wave thing going on.  I can't really explain, but it's like a constant flickering, and I've never seen this happen on a disc before. It's hard for me to explain, but there is some sort of motion in the background. It's not the TV as I tried the disc on multiple locations and it was the same. Kinda strange. 

I noticed the same when I took a quick look at the disc. It wasn't present in the 35mm print I saw (three times) nor is it present on the new Toei Channel TV print, although that could be just because my recording is SD TV quality. Still odd, because it should be the same master (Arrow's booklet says the master was created by Toei).

I don't want to discourage anyone from buying the disc, though. It's not a huge issue, and we really need to make this disc a top seller so that Arrow will deem it profitable to license more Toei films.

[Karlos]

Has anyone contacted Arrow about this?

EDIT:

Have emailed Arrow at:

product@arrowfilms.co.uk

To let them know there appears to be a PQ issue.

I strongly suggest everyone who has bought this do the same.

If/when I get a reply I'll post it on here straight away.

Also, both this and DOBERMAN COP are now £14.99 each on Amazon.co.uk, which seems like a lovely "fuck you" to all those who pre-ordered.

[mpm74]

Just added Kyle's review for WOLF GUY. Not much about the flawed visuals you guys mention though...

http://cityonfire.com/wolf-guy-1975-review-enraged-lycanthrope-sonny-chiba-arrow-blu-ray/

 

[Vegeta84]

16 hours ago, Karlos said:

Has anyone contacted Arrow about this?

EDIT:

Have emailed Arrow at:

product@arrowfilms.co.uk

To let them know there appears to be a PQ issue.

I strongly suggest everyone who has bought this do the same.

If/when I get a reply I'll post it on here straight away.

Also, both this and DOBERMAN COP are now £14.99 each on Amazon.co.uk, which seems like a lovely "fuck you" to all those who pre-ordered.

I doubt they would do anything about it at this point, as it would cost so much to re author the discs for an issue many would consider "minor". It's distracting for sure, but it's not the worst thing that could have happened.  I just wish they saw the issue beforehand.  It's pretty annoying. 

[KUNG FU BOB]

On 5/24/2017 at 5:23 PM, Tosh said:

Ah BMtHoAG is one of those movies that sticks with you, kind of like a knife in the chest, I would say they don't make movies like this anymore but it's more like they won't make movies like this anymore. For some reason I hardly remember BB, need to watch it again, was going to rent it but I'll just order it to give Arrow my business. Time Bandits on the other hand has a place in my heart having loved it in my younger years, I remember them both being totally off in that great way 80's era left field, hope Arrow release Ice Pirates, another oddball flick.

The kid sounds like a chip off the ol' nunchaku

 

Heading out of town for the holiday weekend, going to have to hold off on these till I get back, aggh.

@Tosh I picked up the Twilight Time release of BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA and watched it last year (fantastic extras on that release too!). Yeah, this film sticks with you... like a dirty smell in your brain. It's one of a kind for sure.

Oh really? I've watched BUCKAROO at least 40 times since I saw it in the theater. Love that movie! Only saw TIME BANDITS a few times, in the theater and on HBO. Might've owned it on VHS at some point. Can't remember. Somehow, I don't think I ever saw ICE PIRATES though.

Yeah, my son is a wonderful guy. Even if he wasn't related to me we'd definitely still be best friends.

 

On 5/25/2017 at 11:21 AM, Takuma said:

Glad to hear that!

 

Agreed about the interview rank. I loved the producer Tatsu Yoshida interview.

 

However, I feel that was perhaps a bit more due to him being very outspoken than Arrow asking the best possible questions. Sometimes I wished Arrow would ask "harder" questions from the guys...

 

Also, I wonder why Chiba didn't say anything about Wolfguy...

Yes, that was the best interview. He definitely did seem outspoken, but doubt he would have said those things publicly back in the '70s when he was still working at the studio.

I'm friends with the guy that produced the special features- Mark Walkow- so I'll ask him your question.

I was also hoping to hear Chiba speak specifically about WOLF GUY. Based on the "part 1" attached to the interview, I gather they got one big, long interview with him that will be broken up onto several Chiba releases. Based on this, I would surmise that there will be more Chiba Blu-rays coming from Arrow beyond DOBERMAN COP and this one. And of course that's very good news!

 

On 5/30/2017 at 3:23 PM, Vegeta84 said:

OK, so I finally watched my copy. 

The film: Can't say much that hasn't already been said. It's great and one of the most over the wall Chiba films of all time. (Probably of all time)

Special features were great. 

The only qualm I had was picture quality.  I noticed that in the darker scenes (especially in the first 1/3 of the film) there is something kind of wave thing going on.  I can't really explain, but it's like a constant flickering, and I've never seen this happen on a disc before. It's hard for me to explain, but there is some sort of motion in the background. It's not the TV as I tried the disc on multiple locations and it was the same. Kinda strange. 

Still, overall great package. 

Huh, I didn't notice that picture problem at all. I'll have to go back and look. But it must not have been too bad or I'd have seen it.

 

On 5/31/2017 at 1:30 AM, Takuma said:

I noticed the same when I took a quick look at the disc. It wasn't present in the 35mm print I saw (three times) nor is it present on the new Toei Channel TV print, although that could be just because my recording is SD TV quality. Still odd, because it should be the same master (Arrow's booklet says the master was created by Toei).

I don't want to discourage anyone from buying the disc, though. It's not a huge issue, and we really need to make this disc a top seller so that Arrow will deem it profitable to license more Toei films.

Perhaps the flickering was just a result of your mind trying to take in all that Chiba goodness and funky music all at once?

 

On 5/31/2017 at 2:57 AM, Karlos said:

Has anyone contacted Arrow about this?

EDIT:

Have emailed Arrow at:

product@arrowfilms.co.uk

To let them know there appears to be a PQ issue.

I strongly suggest everyone who has bought this do the same.

If/when I get a reply I'll post it on here straight away.

Also, both this and DOBERMAN COP are now £14.99 each on Amazon.co.uk, which seems like a lovely "fuck you" to all those who pre-ordered.

Oh... that is annoying as far as WOLF GUY goes (though with this title, even if I'd known, it's doubtful I'd have waited the extra month to save money on it. ) I needed it now.  ) I hadn't pre-ordered DOBERMAN COP though, so if I can afford it in time to catch the sale, that's a decent price. Thanks for the heads up @Karlos.

 

On 5/31/2017 at 3:14 AM, mpm74 said:

Just added Kyle's review for WOLF GUY. Not much about the flawed visuals you guys mention though...

http://cityonfire.com/wolf-guy-1975-review-enraged-lycanthrope-sonny-chiba-arrow-blu-ray/

 

Cool. Look forward to reading his thoughts on it.

 

16 hours ago, Vegeta84 said:

I doubt they would do anything about it at this point, as it would cost so much to re author the discs for an issue many would consider "minor". It's distracting for sure, but it's not the worst thing that could have happened.  I just wish they saw the issue beforehand.  It's pretty annoying. 

I agree. It's unlikely they'd fix it at this point.

I'm surprised neither my son nor I noticed it.

[Karlos]

Just had a reply from Arrow:

This isn’t an issue we were aware of; we’ve tested our office copy and there are no problems. Do you have any evidence of the issue you’re experiencing?

 

[Vegeta84]

On 6/1/2017 at 11:17 AM, Karlos said:

Just had a reply from Arrow:

This isn’t an issue we were aware of; we’ve tested our office copy and there are no problems. Do you have any evidence of the issue you’re experiencing?

 

Hmm. I'm guessing they aren't as anal about the PQ or they simply weren't paying attention? It's mostly visible during the darker scenes and it's at its worst during the alley fight where Chiba is trying to protect that last band member. 

[Karlos]

Just got home and my copy was waiting for me. (Interestingly, Amazon charged me the lower price of £14.99).

Had a quick look and the PQ on this one, to my untrained eye at least, is not good.

The strobing effect is most certainly there, along with those lines you get when there's too much grain.

Very disappointing.

[KUNG FU BOB]

On 6/2/2017 at 2:38 PM, Vegeta84 said:

Hmm. I'm guessing they aren't as anal about the PQ or they simply weren't paying attention? It's mostly visible during the darker scenes and it's at its worst during the alley fight where Chiba is trying to protect that last band member. 

I wonder if maybe a "bad batch" got made? I'll take another look at mine and let you guys know if I see it.

 

On 6/2/2017 at 5:12 PM, Karlos said:

Just got home and my copy was waiting for me. (Interestingly, Amazon charged me the lower price of £14.99).

Had a quick look and the PQ on this one, to my untrained eye at least, is not good.

The strobing effect is most certainly there, along with those lines you get when there's too much grain.

Very disappointing.

Glad they honored the lower price for you, but sorry to hear that you are disappointed in the print. I would've guessed that maybe it was simply a matter of it being an old, low budget film- that the low PQ was reflective of the actual film- but according to those that have seen it in 35mm, that's simply not the case.

EDIT: Bluray.com has posted a review for this release and they mentioned the same issues you guys are talking about: http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Wolf-Guy-Blu-ray/172230/#Review

[ShaOW!linDude]

Sounds like more of you who got these troublesome discs need to email Arrow like @Karlos did, and forward along the review link that @KUNG FU BOB posted to them, too, and any other such that you can find. I'd like to see this at some point, but I know many of you have really been excited about this release and chomping at the bit for it. Sorry to hear viewing it has become problematic for y'all. That sux.

[Karlos]

I've forwarded the above review to Arrow Films.  I'll post any reply here asap.

[Karlos]

Reply received from Arrow just now -

Thank you for both of your emails, I will pass them on to the production team.

So, yeah, could mean anything. 

In the meantime, if you're thinking of purchasing this, read the review Bob posted the link to above, first.

[goldenarm]

On 6/2/2017 at 5:12 PM, Karlos said:

Just got home and my copy was waiting for me. (Interestingly, Amazon charged me the lower price of £14.99).

Had a quick look and the PQ on this one, to my untrained eye at least, is not good.

The strobing effect is most certainly there, along with those lines you get when there's too much grain.

Very disappointing.

I saw this too on my TV and computer monitor as well.  The movie was ok.  I prefer Chiba in period films and TV series like Kage no Gundan and Yagyu Conspiracy.

[Vegeta84]

So I read a review that mentioned Saburo Date's performance in the film.  I've seen the film twice and didn't see him at all in the film. Anyone know exactly where he is in the film? 

On 6/4/2017 at 7:01 AM, Karlos said:

dfd

[Tosh]

On 6/1/2017 at 0:52 PM, KUNG FU BOB said:

 

Oh really? I've watched BUCKAROO at least 40 times since I saw it in the theater. Love that movie! Only saw TIME BANDITS a few times, in the theater and on HBO. Might've owned it on VHS at some point. Can't remember. Somehow, I don't think I ever saw ICE PIRATES though.

 

 

 

Funny how we have opposite experiences with these two movies. Man, you got to see Ice Pirates, I want to call it a Star Wars parody with a mix of rock'em sock'em robots but it's really it's own thing, I still remember in the movie theater back in 84, my friend and I laughing so hard we couldn't breath at the end. Surprised this one passed you by.

 

So I got my disks and my blu wouldn't play them   Just got my region free player in the mail today so I'm going to have a great weekend! Looking forward to watching Wolfguy.

[KUNG FU BOB]

On 6/16/2017 at 7:15 PM, Tosh said:

Funny how we have opposite experiences with these two movies. Man, you got to see Ice Pirates, I want to call it a Star Wars parody with a mix of rock'em sock'em robots but it's really it's own thing, I still remember in the movie theater back in 84, my friend and I laughing so hard we couldn't breath at the end. Surprised this one passed you by.

 

So I got my disks and my blu wouldn't play them   Just got my region free player in the mail today so I'm going to have a great weekend! Looking forward to watching Wolfguy.

Okay, that's quite a description!  So if I get the chance, I'll definitely check out ICE PIRATES, @Tosh.

Did you dig WOLF GUY? Does your all-region player kick ass? What kind did you get?

By the way everyone... when I was praising the Arrow releases of this and DOBERMAN COP on Face Book, special feature producer Marc Walkow had this to say...

"Thanks Kungfubob! Much appreciated. And to all, if you want to see more films like these in special editions like these, best thing is to let your voices be heard by Arrow. You can write Kevin Lambert <kevin@arrowfilms.co.uk> and cc Francesco Simeoni <francesco@arrowfilms.co.uk> with a polite note telling them that you bought these discs, love them, and would buy more. Sad to say, there's nothing else like this on the current schedule that I'm aware of, nor have I been hired for any further gigs at the moment. So the more they hear from folks that they should be acquiring more of these films, and the more they hear that you enjoy the supplements I put together with folks like Patrick Macias and Tom Mes and others, the more likely they are to do something about it. Thanks again to all."

So please, people, you read the above? We're living in a world where you can reach out to the right people and be heard with the ease of pulling your phone out of your pocket- no stamp or stationary necessary. So during a commercial break from your favorite show, while riding the bus, or even during a bathroom break, please send Arrow Video a nice message telling them you love these releases and would support more of them (especially with Marc Walkow, Tom Mes and Patrick Macias produced extras).

Be a part of making it happen. Thanks!

Viva Chiba! Viva Chiba! Viva Chiba!

[Tosh]

On 9/4/2017 at 11:47 AM, KUNG FU BOB said:

Okay, that's quite a description!  So if I get the chance, I'll definitely check out ICE PIRATES, @Tosh.

Did you dig WOLF GUY? Does your all-region player kick ass? What kind did you get?

 

Oh man, first my 3 year old smart tv dies, then I was moving during the busiest time of the year for my work, the deal with the new apt I had to do some fixing up - drywall repair, painted the whole place including the popcorn ceilings(with a roller), got all that done and went last weekend and got new tv just to find out there's no audio out for the rca jack so I can't get my dinosaur of a surround system hooked up, now I have a monster of a hurricane coming at me and it's been pandemonium trying to get water/food/gas/supplies, every fricking year I say I'm going to get prepared and never do.

So I haven't got to it, wanting to get the audio figured out, trying to figure out a conversion to hdmi or digital audio out to rca but everything I've found goes the other way(to an old tv), seeing how my new tv crapped out around 3 years I'd like to keep my old sound, it's 25 years old and still sounds great, plan B is getting a sound bar. I got an all region blu from LG, it was around 100 bucks.

I did get to watch Time Bandits! LOVE this movie, all the way up to it's insanely bizarre ending. I'll pick up Doberman Cop, I'm going to place a good order next time. I'll be sure to drop Arrow a line, I want to also praise them on their excellent customer service.