Profound Desires of the Gods [Masters of Cinema] Dual Format (Blu-ray and DVD)

The culmination of Imamura’s extraordinary examinations of the fringes of Japanese society throughout the 1960s, Profound Desires of the Gods was an 18-month super-production which failed to make an impression at the time of its release, but has since risen in stature to become one of the most legendary — albeit least seen — Japanese films of recent decades.

Presenting a vast chronicle of life on the remote Kurage Island, the film centres on the disgraced, superstitious, interbred Futori family and the Tokyo engineer sent to supervise the creation of a new well — an encounter which leads to both conflict and complicity in strange and powerful ways.

A tragic view of a passing epoch that teeters on the edge of grotesque farce, Imamura’s merciless gaze combines with spectacular colour ’Scope photography to create a mythic saga convulsing with earthly impulses.

Special Features:

• Spectacular new HD transfer in the film’s original 2.35:1 aspect ratio

• New and improved optional English subtitle translation

• New video introduction by film scholar Tony Rayns

• Original Japanese theatrical trailer (in 1080p on Blu-ray)

• 44-Page Booklet with a new essay by Tony Rayns (to accompany his introduction); rare stills; two statements from Imamura; and a transcript of Imamura’s introduction and Q&A session at the 1994 Edinburgh International Film Festival’s screening of the film