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Shogun [5 Disc Box Set] [1981]
![Shogun [5 Disc Box Set] [1981]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51FHHZZ8X6L._SL160_.jpg)
RRP: £37.99
Our Price: £10.97 (subject to change)
Editorial
Amazon.co.uk Review
From the golden age of the miniseries comes Shogun, the 10-hour, Golden Globe-winning saga based on James Clavell's bestselling epic novel. In his award-winning performance, Richard Chamberlain stars as John Blackthorne, the 17th-century English navigator on a Dutch trading ship. A storm runs the ship aground off the coast of Japan, a "torn and cruelly divided country" locked in a power struggle between Toranaga (the venerable Toshiro Mifune) and Ishido, two warlords who would be Shogun. Blackthorne gets over his initial culture shock ("I piss on you and your country", he defiantly proclaims to his samurai captors, which to his humiliation turns out to be an unfortunate choice of words) to become a trusted ally of Toranaga and the lover of the beautiful interpreter Lady Mariko (Yoko Shimada). Their forbidden, ill-fated romance--and Blackthorne's total assimilation into Japanese culture--is set against political intrigue as Toranaga prepares for the inevitable showdown with Ishido, and Blackthorne's growing influence threatens the local Jesuits who had built up a lucrative trade monopoly. Shogun was a production blessed with good karma, and it remains an awesome achievement from a bygone era when the miniseries was king. --Donald Liebenson
incomplete
Review date: 2008-04-04 Rating: 8 out of 10
This is as good as all the reviews claim. However we still need to wait for the Shogun Redux version since this is NOT the complete version. There remain many scenes (I recall four vividly) which would deepen and extend the experience; turn it, if you like, from a concerto to the symphony it first was. It is a pity it is described as complete when patently it is not.
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Reviews
Worthy box set
Review date: 2007-02-19 Rating: 8 out of 10
I have just watched this fine DVD box set, and I think it is excellent. Anyone who has an interest in Japan will enjoy this. The sets and costumes are superb. Much if not all was filmed in Japan. The castle is Himeji castle and not Osaka castle!
Impeccable and inclusive TV adaptation of Clavell's brilliant book
Review date: 2007-02-04 Rating: 10 out of 10
Incredible that such an inclusive and faithful TV adaptation was made of the book. I imagine that fans at the time couldn't have believed their luck! Richard Chamberlain gves an astonishing performance. Mifune as Toranaga is also very good - he's so different here - solid and respectable - than he is in all those old Kurosawa films.
Unlike The Last Samurai, the main events in this story actually happened. Richard Chamberlain plays Richard Blackthorne (or 'Anjin-san'), based on the historical figure of William Adams, a British 'pilot' who in 1600 was washed up in Japan and who went on to become the only foreign samurai in Japanese history and advisor to the shogun, Ieyasu Tokugawa (Lord Toranaga here). The small coastal town of Ito even has an annual festival in his honour.
Shogun - long but well worth it
Review date: 2006-06-25 Rating: 10 out of 10
Well just to add to the other positive reviews, this dvd box set is well worth having. If you've read the book then you'll find the dvd does justice to the story line only missing out minor scenes. The story and development of the characters gives a good insight into feudal japan and the way of the samurai. Whilst the dvds are in english by the end of the film you would have subconsciously learned some simple japanese language. Aside from the now classic story line that Clavell conveyed so well there are some very good extra features in the box set. The fifth disc contains many features such as background, interviews, the launch and making of the film, to name a few. Before buying this box set i was concerned about how it would change my interpretation of Clavells novel, however the author worked closely with the director in creating this set and it came out very well. There are some good effects considering the time and place it was made. Even though the film is quite old now it is still worth watching for younger generations with interest in Japanese culture or history, i would recommend reading the book and watching this afterwards, it can be simply an enjoyable watch if you have the patience for the length of this film or an experience that inspires you to learn more and watch more films like this. It certainly made me want to read more of Clavells books. You get the fold out box set with decorated discs and such but also a card envelope with commentary in a little manual thing. all in all its a very good film that adds nicely to your dvd collection:>
Forgot how good it was
Review date: 2006-03-27 Rating: 10 out of 10
I wasn't sure when I ordered this if I had done the right thing. You know one of those things that you watched a long time ago, as an impressionable young adult, which could only disappoint in the cold light of middle age!!! How wrong. This drama is as good now as it always was. The studio work is a little "hammy" but only because we are now used to such amazing special effects. The story is great, Richard Chamberlain is dreamy, and some of the scenes are nothing short of barbaric. But it makes for great viewing, and as a bonus you are sure you can speak Japanese at the end of it!!
Product Details/Specifications
Actor(s):
Richard Chamberlain
Yôko Shimada
Alan Badel
Frankie Sakai
Toshirô Mifune
Director(s):
Recording label: Paramount Home Entertainment
Manufacturer: Paramount Home Entertainment
EAN: 5014437852038
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 5
Format: Box set, PAL,
Release date: 2004-04-05
Number of discs: 5
Audience rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
Region code: 2
Theatrical release date: 1980-09-15
Language: English (Original Language)
Language: Japanese (Original Language)
Language: French (Original Language)
Language: Spanish (Original Language)