The Great Chase (1975) Blu-Ray Review
Is Neon Eagle Video's Blu-ray of The Great Chase worth it? With a 2K restoration, new artwork, and some solid extras, this release gives an often overlooked 70s action oddity the boutique treatment. Here's a full review of the movie, video presentation, audio, packaging, and bonus features to help you decide.
Movie Review
Given that this film is titled The Great Chase, opens with footage of a professional car race, and shows female protagonist Shinobu Yashiro (Etsuko Shihomi) winning said car race, it's hard not to assume this film will revolve around some sort of racing plot. That assumption is short-lived, however.
The Great Chase, directed by Norifumi Suzuki, quickly segues to Shinobu's other line of work, working undercover for the Japanese Defense Agency. It's here she's tasked with infiltrating and stopping a drug smuggling operation that could also lead to her tracking down her father's killer.
The film runs 83 minutes, and within the first 8 minutes, we are treated to Shinobu, dressed in an elegant, white dress adorned in sequins, busting some heads in a casino. The remaining 75 minutes get weirder and wilder from there with characters like nightclub singing wrestler Mach Fumiake, a Native American assassin complete with stereotypical whooping sound and an arch villain that likes to dress up in a decrepit looking bear suit while sexually assaulting kidnapped girls.
The action doesn't disappoint either. Etsuko Shihomi is no slouch, having trained under Shinichi Chiba, better known as Sonny Chiba, in his "Japan Action Club". While her martial arts skills are impressive, especially when watching her whip around some red nunchaku, I was more impressed with her stunt work in The Great Chase. The climax in particular has her running through a rock quarry, flipping and diving to dodge explosions, before culminating with her hanging from a moving gondola lift as she chases the lead criminal.
The Great Chase is an entertaining film with a plot, and characters, that get progressively more bizarre as it goes while showcasing Shihomi's considerable action chops. While not a classic, it's definitely memorable and I, for one, am glad Neon Eagle Video restored and released this bizarre gem.
Video Review
The Great Chase Blu-ray features a 2K restoration presented in 1080p. I watched it on a 45" UltraGear™ OLED Monitor and it looked phenomenal. Neon Eagle Video did a tremendous job with the restoration. Colors looked vibrant, especially the reds in some scenes, adding some pop to the mid-70s aesthetics while close-up shots revealed impressive detail and clarity.
Screenshots
Screenshots were taken with mpv video player.
Audio Review
The film features the original Japanese 2.0 mono audio. I noticed sibilance in some of the dialog during my viewing, but it wasn't enough to detract from my enjoyment of the film. This may have been more noticeable due to me having to listen through headphones (Sony WH-1000XM4), so take it with a grain of salt. Other than that, the audio is adequate and I really love the archetypical 70's exploitation-style music choices used throughout the score.
Packaging Review
The Great Chase Blu-ray comes wrapped in a slipcover featuring new artwork from Justin Coffee. Justin is no stranger to cover art having illustrated covers for other Neon Eagle Video releases as well as other boutique labels such as Mondo Macabro and Error 4444.
The front of the slipcover features the main character Shinobu Yashiro (Etsuko Shihomi) front and center with a collage of eclectic characters from the film surrounding her.
The back features an illustration inspired by one of the more bonkers scenes in the film when a drug-lord dressed in a bear suit fornicates with his drugged-up sex slave. The blu-ray disc also features this same illustration.
What might not be evident is that Yashiro and the film's title are both embossed on the slipcover, adding some nice pop and gloss to an otherwise matte presentation.
Justin's artwork also adorns one side of the Blu-ray's reversible cover with the other side featuring the original Japanese artwork.
While I appreciate the inclusion of the original Japanese artwork, I don't foresee myself flipping the cover around as I much prefer Justin's artwork on full display.
Extras Review
Image Gallery
The Image Gallery contains stills from the film in both color and black and white, and runs 2 minutes and 46 seconds. It also contains scans of some promotional images, but overall, I found the gallery to be somewhat lackluster and not something I would revisit again.
Trailer
The trailer runs 2 minutes and 55 seconds. It starts off by hyping up Etsuko with action clips from some of her other roles including Sister Street Fighter, 13 Steps of Maki and The Young Aristocrats. The rest of it highlights the villains and supporting characters in The Great Chase, the different disguises Etsuko wears, and shows off some of the action that you'll see throughout the film.
Interview with critic and historian Tatsuya Masuto
The interview runs 19 minutes and 16 seconds and Tatsuya Masuto does a phenomenal job chronicling the career of Etsuko Shihomi. He shares a lot of interesting tidbits such as Angela Mao being originally cast as the lead in Sister Street Fighter, but a conflict prevented her from taking the role which ultimately led to Etsuko getting the starring role.
Masuto also discusses Japan's changing cinema demographics during the 1970s, providing some additional context into how Etsuko Shihomi gained broader appeal.
It's well worth a watch and really adds to my appreciation of the film.
Audio commentary track by Chris Poggiali & John Charles
Chris Poggiali, author of These Fists Break Bricks, and John Charles, author of The Hong Kong Filmography, 1977-1997, deliver a super informative commentary track on The Great Chase. They dive into the lives and careers of the main cast, discuss interesting cultural aspects during this time and touch on related movies. It's dense with information and definitely worth a listen.
Conclusion
Neon Eagle Video has given The Great Chase the treatment it deserves. While the film itself may not be a classic, the solid 2K restoration, informative extras and Justin Coffee's exceptional artwork, elevates this overlooked gem and makes it an easy recommendation for fans of 70s action and exploitation cinema.
Hit up DiabolikDVD or Cauldron Films to add The Great Chase Blu-ray to your collection (while supplies last).