G.I. Samurai - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

G.I. Samurai



Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:

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Movie
One of the best parts of this job is running across films that you’ve never heard of before. Usually, I’ve seen a rather huge swathe of classic cinema, having been a fan of Sonny Chiba for most of my adult life (I grew up in the martial arts craze of the 80s and 90s), I thought I had seen MOST of his films. Turns out I hadn’t, and what better to introduce me to more Sonny Chiba than with a film that feels equal parts The Final Countdown, Toshiro Mifune, and a 1970s Disney live action movie all at once.

The Final Countdown comparison is going to be pretty obvious as it sort of mirrors the Kirk Douglas film by having a Japanese military force at the very tail end of WWII magically get transported back in time to the Warring States period, complete with a tank, heavy armaments, a boat, AND a helo in tow. Realizing that they’re technically up a creek without a paddle and in unknown territory, Lt. Iba (Sonny Chiba) tries to make the best out of a bad situation by circling the wagons and disappearing into the background of society. But those plans are thwarted by one of the warring samurai clans, who accept them into their “tribe” long enough for Iba to realize that the lords want to use his weaponry to their advantage.

After one of his own men decides to go rogue and terrorize the countryside with the modern tech, Iba decides to team up with the leader of the Samurai, and together they craft a plot to overthrow the local warlord and rule the country together in hopes of guiding Japan out of the warring era. But, as you could guess, fate has its own plans, and soon the Japanese Defense Force has more to deal with than simply walking over the old-fashioned warriors with their modern tech.

G.I. Samurai is a weird, WEIRD flick that is tonally rather bizarre. I’m used to the very straight-laced and serious Samurai films, so watching the tone shift from serious drama to 1970s near slapstick humor is strange. Maybe it’s because they were using music that reminds me so much of M.A.S.H. or old Disney fare like Condorman or Hawmps that threw me, or maybe it IS the tonal mish-mash. But either way, the film is weirdly hypnotic as a result. The film runs a bit too long by about 30 minutes in my opinion, and features almost mini subplots throughout that have a beginning and end, before shifting on to another plot point. That whole subplot with Yano going off on a murdering/raping spree halfway through the story was strangely out of place, and probably could have been cut completely if you really think about it.

At the end of the day, I ended up liking G.I. Samurai a lot, and really wish I had honed in on this film years ago. When I saw Arrow drop the press release a month ago, I was shocked that we were getting a Sonny Chiba film I had never seen, and after watching it, I’m super glad I did. It’s strange, a bit loosey goosey with plot, but it is full of some clever side characters and is surprisingly deep and impactful in the third act. I still think The Final Countdown did the concept more succinctly, but in a Japanese sort of way, G.I. Samurai is more compelling and entertaining.



Rating:

Not Rated by the MPAA




Video:

According to the title scrawl in the opening act, G.I. Samurai was restored by Kadokawa Pictures back in 2022 at an unknown resolution, and all materials and sources were provided by Kadokawa as well. And while I’m not sure what/how/etc it was done, the results are pretty stellar. I’m usually not a wild fan of the non-Arrow remasters that Arrow gets, but in this case, it actually looks pretty dang good. Fine details are great, showing off every bit of dirt and grime on the Japanese Defense Force soldiers' faces, as well as all of the natural backdrops in the Japanese countryside. Colors really pop here, with deep greens, rich blues, and some amazing shots of the ocean as seen from the helicopter ride to take out Yano. I did notice some grain spikes here and there (the beginning of the film, where it's middle of the night, is pretty obvious), and some optical shots that look a bit soft, but other than that, this looks really nice.








Audio:

Arrow provides a trio of audio options in its original Japanese, ranging from the typical Mono LPCM track (which I’m assuming was the theatrical mix, judging by the date of the film’s production), a 4.0 expanded DTS-HD MA mix, and a 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix. Each one gets progressively more spacious and better as they go along. The Mono mix is solid enough, but the 4.0 and 5.1 offer the biggest improvements sonically. The 5.1 is more of a slight improvement over the 4.0 mix due to this not being a massively bass-heavy movie, but the added center support anchors the dialog a bit more, and the surrounds for both tracks make good use of the ambient Japanese environment, or the more raucous action bits.










Extras:

• English Version
• Commentary by Samm Deighan and Tom Mes
• Critical Appreciations
-- The Good Fight
-- Acting in Self Defence
-- Back in Time
• Archive Interviews with the Cast are from 2005. Subtitled in English. The aspect ratio looks slightly wonky (stretched) on these.
-- Sonny Chiba
-- Isao Natsuyagi
-- Hiromitsu Suzuki and Monsieur Kamayatsu
-- Jun Eto and Isao Kuraishi
-- Eiji Suzuki
• Trailer Gallery
• Image Gallery

Final Score: ​

G.I. Samurai is one of those little time capsules that feels out of place in modern filmmaking, but is a blast to rewatch if you’re a fan of crazy films. Chiba is surrounded by a fantastic array of supporting actors, and he actually is much more nuanced in this production than he is in his normal action films of the day. Arrow’s Blu-ray release looks great, sounds good, and has a very nice cadre of extras to include as well. Effectively making this one pretty impressive collector’s edition. It may not be for everyone, but if this review intrigues you at all, it’s certainly worth checking out.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Sonny Chiba, Jun Eto, Moeko Ezawa, Koji Izuka
Directed by: Kosei Saito
Written by: Ryo Hanmura, Toshio Kamata
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 AVC
Audio: Japanese: DTS-HD MA 5.1, Japanese DTS-HD MA 4.0, Japanese LPCM 2.0
Subtitles: English
Studio: Arrow
Rated: NR
Runtime: 138 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: May 5th, 2026

Recommendation: Fun, if Not Weird, Watch