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The Human Condition I: No Greater Love | The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity | The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer
Licensor Information
Shochiku
Directed by: Masaki Kobayashi
Featuring: Tatsuya Nakadai, Michiyo Aratama, Chikage Awashima, Kokinji Katsura, Tamao Nakamura, Ineko Arima, Jun Tatara, Yûsuke Kawazu, So Yamamura, Michirô Minami, Chishu Ryu, Akira Ishihama, Kei Sato, Taketoshi Naito, Shinji Nambara, Kunie Tanaka, Kyoko Kishida, Seiji Miyaguchi, Toru Abe, Masao Mishima
Masaki Kobayashi’s mammoth humanist drama is one of the most staggering achievements of Japanese cinema. Originally filmed and released in three parts, the nine-and-a-half-hour The Human Condition (Ningen no joken), adapted from Junpei Gomikawa’s six-volume novel, tells of the journey of the well-intentioned yet naive Kaji (handsome Japanese superstar Tatsuya Nakadai) from labor camp supervisor to Imperial Army soldier to Soviet POW. Constantly trying to rise above a corrupt system, Kaji time and again finds his morals an impediment rather than an advantage. A raw indictment of its nation’s wartime mentality as well as a personal existential tragedy, Kobayashi’s riveting, gorgeously filmed epic is novelistic cinema at its best.
Details by Film
The Human Condition I: No Greater Love
Year: 1959
Time: 208
Aspect Ratios
2.35:1
Audio
Japanese Dolby Digital Mono 1.0
Japanese Dolby Digital Surround 4.0
Streaming Options
Stream
2
The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity
Year: 1959
Time: 181
Aspect Ratios
2.35:1
Audio
Japanese Dolby Digital Mono 1.0
Japanese Dolby Digital Surround 4.0
Streaming Options
Stream
2
The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer
Year: 1961
Time: 190
Aspect Ratios
2.35:1
Audio
Japanese Dolby Digital Mono 1.0
Japanese Dolby Digital Surround 4.0
Streaming Options
Stream
2
Release Information:
Technical Specifications
Format:
DVD
Discs:
DVD-9 (3 Discs)
DVD-5 (1 Disc)
Total: 4 Discs
Regions:
1 (DVD)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35:1
Audio Options:
Japanese Dolby Digital Mono 1.0
Japanese Dolby Digital Surround 4.0
Resolution:
480p/29.97
Subtitles:
English
Supplements
Types of Supplements Included: Interview, Video Essay, Theatrical Trailer, Insert
- Excerpt from a rare Directors Guild of Japan video interview with director Masaki Kobayashi, conducted by filmmaker Masahiro Shinoda (Double Suicide)
- New video interview with actor Tatsuya Nakadai
- Video appreciation of Kobayashi and The Human Condition featuring Masahiro Shinoda
- Japanese theatrical trailers
- An insert featuring an essay by critic Philip Kemp
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The Human Condition I: No Greater Love
The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity
The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer
Picture
Audio
Supplements
Artwork
Release Credits
Producer: Curtis Tsui
Artwork: Sarah Habibi
Release Notes on Restoration
The Human Condition I: No Greater Love
The Human Condition is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1. Black bars at the top and bottom of the screen are normal for this format. This new high-definition digital transfer was created on a Spirit Datacine from new 35mm prints struck from the original negative. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, warps, jitter, and flicker were removed using the MTI’s DRS and Pixel Farm’s PFCLean system, and Digital Vision’s DVNR system was used for small dirt, grain, and noise reduction.
The monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from a 35mm optical soundtrack print. The surround soundtrack for parts 5-6 was remastered at 24-bit from the original 4-track stems. Clicks, thumps, hiss, and hum were manually removed using the Pro Tools HD system. Crackle was attenuated using AudioCube’s integrated audio workstation.
The monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from a 35mm optical soundtrack print. The surround soundtrack for parts 5-6 was remastered at 24-bit from the original 4-track stems. Clicks, thumps, hiss, and hum were manually removed using the Pro Tools HD system. Crackle was attenuated using AudioCube’s integrated audio workstation.
The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity
The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer