Battles Without Honor and Humanity: The Complete Saga

Since seeing the five superb other films in the set (all also reviewed) I've been trying to decided on when to play the final Battles Without Honour and Humanity disc, but have been put off by the near four hour run time. Near to hitting review milestones,I decided I was time to go into the final battle.

View on the film:

Closing their magnificent box set with guns still blazing, Arrow present a terrific transfer,with the audio staying crisp and the print having a fitting level of grit, wrapped up with a short,but informative interview from the editor.

Asked by the studio in 1980 to create up a "Complete Saga" of the series that was to get a limited run in cinemas,and screened on TV,and getting the blessing of director Kinji Fukasaku (who was filming in the North Pole at the time of editing!) editor Toru Dobashi's decision to ignore the final flick in the run, (Final Episode (1974-also reviewed)) highlights the incredible high standards of Kazuo Kasahara scripts (who did not write the final film.)

Even when understandably having to be condensed with new montages and mildly distracting new narration, (due to it clearly not being the same narrator as the one who narrated the five Battles) Kasahara writing shines as a epic tale spanning the underworld history of Japan.

From the opening roar,Dobashi editing confirms Toshiaki Tsushima's gripping score as being a major character of the films, with Kinji Fukasaku's stylish, raw directing across four films being all blended together in layers of Tsushima thunderous score playing the final notes to thee battles without honour and humanity.