Rating: 
Summary: Never trust Slingshot DVD again!
Review: After purchasing "Academy Award Winner, the frist 50 years" ( a "0" star DVD ) and this DVD ( "2" star ), I have lost my confidence with Slingshot (Triton) I will think twice with any DVD with this label. The film itself is a great one (4 stars).
Rating:
Summary: Never trust Slingshot DVD again!
Review: After purchasing "Academy Award Winner, the frist 50 years" ( a "0" star DVD ) and this DVD ( "2" star ), I have lost my confidence with Slingshot (Triton) I will think twice with any DVD with this label. The film itself is a great one (4 stars).
Rating:
Summary: Never trust Slingshot DVD again!
Review: I remember seeing Rikyu in the theater, and it is a gem. The DVD transfer, however, is far and away the worst I have ever seen--so dark that frequently you cannot tell who is speaking, or even what characters are in the scene. So contrasty that all details in the shadows and highlights are washed out. The quality of the video distracts horribly from the story. Avoid this print. Eventually, they will have to produce a better one.
Rating: 
Summary: Heartbreakingly bad DVD transfer
Review: I remember seeing Rikyu in the theater, and it is a gem. The DVD transfer, however, is far and away the worst I have ever seen--so dark that frequently you cannot tell who is speaking, or even what characters are in the scene. So contrasty that all details in the shadows and highlights are washed out. The quality of the video distracts horribly from the story. Avoid this print. Eventually, they will have to produce a better one.
Rating: 
Summary: Stunningly beautiful
Review: I saw this film at a festival of Japanese cinema in London several years ago, and have never seen it since. But that single viewing was enough to convince me that this film was the most powerful, intelligent and beautifully understated films that I have ever seen. The pacing, the cinematography, the way the plot and characters are drawn all combine to make this my number one film. Surprisingly unknown for all its greatness, but one that I will value to have in my film collection.
Rating:
Summary: Great movie but TERRIBLE DVD transfer
Review: I won't go into the details of the movie itself, as the other reviews cover that well. I would like to warn anyone that this DVD has possibly the worst DVD transfer I've ever seen. It looks like someone brought a video camera into a movie theater and then transfered that to the DVD. Outside shots are incredibly grainy, colors are washed out, and details are fuzzy.
Rating:
Summary: Worst ever-seen transfer to DVD
Review: It's a tragedy that this masterpiece of film art and narrative was totally destroyed by the poor transfer to the DVD by Slingshot. I should have read Amazon's previous reviews about this DVD, and then I whould have not bought it. I orderd this DVD version because I admired the film when it was originally shown in a theater. Don't buy this DVD, period.
Rating:
Summary: Worst ever-seen transfer to DVD
Review: It's a tragedy that this masterpiece of film art and narrative was totally destroyed by the poor transfer to the DVD by Slingshot. I should have read Amazon's previous reviews about this DVD, and then I whould have not bought it. I orderd this DVD version because I admired the film when it was originally shown in a theater. Don't buy this DVD, period.
Rating: 
Summary: Rikyu and Hideyoshi, or the end of the Tea Ceremony Master
Review: Sen-no-Rikyu is the most famous master of sado, and anyone interested in cha-no-yu or late 16th Century Japanese history will enjoy this film. However, be prepared to be hit with many historical one-liners meant to prompt your Japanese historical memory that the viewer is expected to know; maybe this is not a problem with Japanese viewers, but people without a background in the Nobunaga-Hideyoshi-Ieyasu unification of Japan period should have a good Japanese history at their side to understand the historical currents behind the dialog. These would include the conflicts among the above 3, the persecution of religions, the conquering of rival daimyo, and the invasion of Korea. Yamazaki, I thought, did a superb portrayal of Hideyoshi (Nakamura Hiyoshi) of village origins who rose to be "Kwampaku" (imperial representative) of all Japan. He is hardly recognizable to those who know him from Tampopo or Marusa no Onna. Technically, the DVD is little more than a VHS copy. It is full screen, with subtitles burned into the image. It also appears that somewhere along the processing line, more contrast was added during a copying process which makes the bright whites washed out and the darks almost black. This has the added disadvantage of occasionally causing the white subtitles to disappear into the background, and pausing for closer perusal sometimes didn't help. The translation is also weak at times, appearing to be done by a native speaker of Japanese and not English. Many nuances are lost as a result. For the quality of production shortcomings, I subtracted a star.
Rating:
Summary: Yes, this transfer is as bad as you've heard.
Review: The film itself is remarkable and absorbing - one of those films that stays with you long after its over. Some people find it slow. I wouldn't want it to go any faster - and it could have been longer, as beautiful as it is. Best of all is a crucial scene that will resonate deeply with anyone who has ever knowingly, wilfully visited destruction upon themselves by an application of uncompromising honesty - because to do any less would be a violation of their principles. "Rikyu" leaves the question open as to whether such an act is stupid, noble, reckless, courageous, pointless or other. I suppose one's reaction to the film would depend on how one answers this question - or if one understands being powerless to do otherwise when put on the spot.
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