New from Eureka Entertainment‘s Eureka Classics range is this dual pack of two films, Bodyguard Kiba and Bodyguard Kiba 2, both known by various names, and both released in 1973, with a US recut of the former appearing, redubbed, three years later.
Karate expert and anti-drug vigilante Kiba (Sonny Chiba) returns to his home in Japan from a successful mission (of some type) in Tel Aviv, holding a press conference to announce his intention to wipe out the nation’s drug industry. This seems to be, chiefly, a way to promote the Karate School in which he studied – one that he believes gets insufficient respect.
He also offers his services as a bodyguard to anyone who is willing to come forward and provide information about the drug lords’ activities. This leads to a woman, Reiko (Mari Atsumi), approaching him at his home, claiming to have information and asking for his protection. His involvement with her will bring him directly into conflict with the Cosa Nostra, who start immediately to send him dangerous and coded warnings to back off. We find early on that she is definitely working to her own agenda. Continuing to investigate this can only end in violent conflict.
READ MORE: The Comedy Man (1964) – Blu-ray Review
The first film comes with its original Japanese mono soundtrack, with an English alternative for the US recut (discussed below). The film has a just about serviceable audio track, with parts of it sounding scratchy, and accompanying a picture that is very dark in places (the films are not particularly attractive to look at in general). The film itself is very dated, in everything from a slightly cheesy soundtrack to very dated visuals, and some questionable continuity in editing. It is, however, somewhat enjoyable to watch. There is good chemistry between the leads, and just enough intrigue in the plot to keep us guessing in between good action sequences. It is far from a classic, but a good addition to the collection of any completists in this genre. Wisely, it does not skimp on adult content appropriate to this type of release, and Chiba manages to be both enigmatic yet full of screen presence. Finally, at 87 minutes, it does not outstay its welcome.
The bonus features for Bodyguard Kiba start with a feature commentary from Mike Leeder and Arne Venema. As always with these two, it is superb, with conversation going everywhere from where it falls in Chiba’s development to the Grindhouse allusions in the film’s style. They are just a great pairing. They also talk about the US Version of the film (known just as The Bodyguard), released in 1976 with new scenes set in America to begin the film directed by Simon Nuctern. This is our second bonus feature. It is merely a few seconds longer and begins with Ezekiel 25:17 being quoted by Chiba – better known for its rewritten rendition by Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction. It is also, as expected, dubbed into English. Otherwise, it is much the same film, and is doing what many of the films of this era did: cash in on the martial arts craze in the USA, along with the growing fame of one of the stars.
Next up for the first film’s bonus content is ‘Talking Chiba: Interview with Kenji Tanigaki’. At a shade under 28 minutes, this interviews a Japanese director who has been working since the 1990s, and has also worked as a stuntman in Hong Kong. This interview is dubbed into English and plays alongside shots from Chiba’s career as well as Tanigaki’s work. It is focused chiefly on memories of Sonny Chiba’s career and is an American production – it is a new featurette – that seeks to get insight into how our lead and his career was perceived in his native land.
It is a more than decent interview, with some good insights, but it would have been nice to have a little more context on the interviewee than just ‘he’s a director and here are a handful of shots of his work’ (though we do learn he worked with Donnie Yen). It is always preferable when Eureka make an effort to help us understand who the participants are, which they have only done superficially here. The set is then rounded out with a trailer for the film from the time of release. As with the main feature, it is not the nicest of transfers, but completes a decent enough disc.
Bodyguard Kiba 2 was released merely months later. In this entry, Kiba spends time in prison for taking revenge on a rival who harmed his sister. Once released he finds work at a nightclub – as a bodyguard, obviously – where he finds himself coming into conflict, once again, with the Japanese underworld. As with the first film, it is unironically enjoyable, yet just as fun to watch for the things it does not do well, as the things it does.
Adult content is appropriate, but it feels forced in places. It feels reasonably of a piece with the first entry, with decent action, and a plot that does at least draw our interest. As with the recent release of Slaughter in San Francisco, from the same era, we have the similar plot of a disgraced lead finding work on an ad hoc basis that brings him into conflict. Plotting is not a notably strong point of this genre, but it all hangs together just fine. On a positive note, if anything the transfer is a little stronger than for the first entry, though it remains a darker image than we might have liked.
READ MORE: Green Room (2016) – Blu-ray Review
Once again, we kick-off the bonus features with a commentary from Leeder and Venema, and we are starting our petition here to have these two men commentate on every film ever made. That should not take them long. In all seriousness, this is how it is done: plenty of trivia, without any self-importance, and a two-hander where the participants share genuine chemistry. They tangent without ever losing their thread, they are very funny without being facetious, and they can make the links to other cinematic touchstones, such as Yojimbo. Their presence dramatically elevates this otherwise ordinary release.
Aside from the usual booklet, which we had not seen at the time of writing, extras are completed by the customary theatrical trailer, and a 35-minute documentary ‘Kiba or Chiba: Jasper Sharp and Tom Mes on Bodyguard Kiba’. This scores over the first disc’s featurette by being more pertinent to these films. It is a fascinating new conversation created for this release, seeming to have taken place over Zoom. It feels like a pocket explainer on Chiba and the cinema of the time, placing these films in context. Once again, though, Eureka have failed to explain to us exactly who these two men are, but they clearly know their stuff, rounding off a very decent release from an always-reliable distributor.
Bodyguard Kiba 1 & 2 is out on Blu-ray on 18th March from Eureka Entertainment.
