The NZA Posted August 28, 2004 Share Posted August 28, 2004 Well, on Soviet Zangief's advice, i skipped much of the Lone Wolf & Cub Baby Cart series that im downloading (there were many adaptions of Koize's masterpiece, Lone Wolf & Cub, for japanese cinema & TV, but this series is heralded as the best, and most faithful), but sadly, the DVD is scarce, so thanks to suprnova.org for hookin it up. First off, its dubbed, which is a shame. The soundtrack is early 80's: sometimes fitting, sometimes not so much. Basically, this movie seems to be a compilation of some of the cooler scenes of said baby cart series (which starts with Sword of Vengence, then Baby cart at the river styx, and so forth), but what threw me off a bit was that to get everything to fit seamlessly into a few hours, they really rearranged the plot, making Retsudo Yagyu (Lone Wolf's antagonist) into the shogun himself....were i not to have seen the other films or read the story, this mightve worked more; for me, it was obviously a re-write, and came off odd at some parts. I think those who just watch this movie alone can enjoy it much more, but some of the plot details early on were changed up a bit, which was a shame, as i was fond of the sotry's origin. That said, this movie is badass. More cool action & blood than you can shake a katana at, and its quite stylish about it, too. Again, im not entirely certain if there's new material here, or if its bits from the series, im in the process of watching so ill post back...but i hope it is from the series, as it was very well done. Acting was more than Id expect from an old samurai/kung fu flick (outside of Kurosawa, of course), and characterization was well-done too...again, very faithful to the manga, which is already an outstanding piece. If youre looking for a badass stand-alone samurai flick, check this one out! If youre interested in the series, however, you might want to watch this later, as it could really confuse you as tho who the main characters are. Ill post back here after seeing more of the series....Sword of Vengence (part 1) was great, and Yagyu looks like the sensei in Kill Bill 2, so its what youd expect as well. Itto (Lone Wolf) and Daigoro (Cub) are dead-on, in my opinion. ps: a better review than my own and an excellent site for this & other great samurai flicks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jables Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 Dude have you seen Baby Cart yet? Absolute best of the friggin' series! SBS( local free-to-air station) ran the series a while back & I had 'em all on VHS. Lost to the Demons of unwary & constant travelling tho... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted August 31, 2004 Author Share Posted August 31, 2004 Wait, which one? I thought it was the Baby Cart series....i just got 2, "at the river styx", am now downloading all the way up to six, "White Heaven in Hell". Only one i cant find is 5, "Baby cart in the land of demons". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jables Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 I thought it was the "Sword of Vengeance" series... That's the problem with English Vs. Non-English: too ambiguous a translation! On that note, are you sure "Baby cart in the Land of Demons" isn't Baby Cart @ the River Styx? ('Styx' is the movie I was talking about incidentally) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted August 31, 2004 Author Share Posted August 31, 2004 hmm, im fairly certain youre right on the translation bit here. To my understanding (from here), Sword of Vengence was part 1, Baby Cart at the river Styx was part 2. Cart in the land of demons is supposed to be part 5, the only chapter i dont have now...was that the one you were recommending? Im hopin to watch Styx later tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jables Posted September 1, 2004 Share Posted September 1, 2004 Baby Cart at the River Styx is by far the best of the series. I saw parts III & IV and they got too caught up in style & trying to create atmosphere(failing miserably), that's why I'm surprised @ the prospectof a part V, 1) because of the slump in content, and 2) the alarmingly similar title. Live & learn I guess... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted June 7, 2005 Author Share Posted June 7, 2005 I'm still trying to go back & watch the other baby kart chapters, but im surprised a classic like Shogun Assasins doesnt get more love here. Its in the background of lots of things, from Kill Bill 2 to the GZA's Liquid Swords. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted January 8, 2006 Author Share Posted January 8, 2006 ...still no word on a better-quality US release of this classic. Junker reminded me about how great the baby kart series was in itself, and i remember reading somewhere a while back there'd be a box set of all 6 or so. Anyone seen that around? Im curious to see what it'd go for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Newtype Posted January 9, 2006 Share Posted January 9, 2006 Done. Go here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted January 9, 2006 Author Share Posted January 9, 2006 DVDs Included - Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance - Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart at the River Styx - Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart to Hades - Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart in Peril - Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart in the Land of Demons - Lone Wolf and Cub: White Heaven in Hell Awesome! Wait...$135. Man, i need richer friends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted September 10, 2006 Author Share Posted September 10, 2006 skeets! you ever get one of these? i hear you still have a place to stay and la lindsay if you do, man. im trying to show it to Sen but the copies i have are kinda shitty, shame for such a great series. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jables Posted April 27, 2010 Share Posted April 27, 2010 So Yes, to answer your question *checks watch* 3.5 years too late, yes. I actually just picked up the full boxed set for $50, and my god, it's still so brilliant. Reading back on my 04 posts I'm honestly none-the-wiser on which is which because goddamnit, the titles are all the same. Having rewatched the first 3 though, I stand by my call of #2 being the best. Reason I actually came looking for this thread was my observation of being on what many would consider to be the cultural outer(like everything else), in that I grew up with the Baby Cart series with subtitles, whereas it's the dubbed Shogun Assassin series that most of you grew up with and gets all the namedropping in things like Liquid Swords & Kill Bill. But yeah, especially GZA's album, it's about 45% Shogun Assassin dialogue/quotes to actual album content. Damned fine album though, and having now seen Shogun Assassin I can agree with NZA that the changes made to streamline the story completely change the tone of it, but for it's intended purpose of exploitation cinema it excels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted April 27, 2010 Author Share Posted April 27, 2010 almost six years later, and i have neither the series nor Shogun Assassins. damn, i wish your $50 set was region 1/free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jables Posted April 27, 2010 Share Posted April 27, 2010 All of it's pretty easily torrented, just be careful when torrenting Lone Wolf that it comes with subtitles. I DLed all 6 with none, which prompted me to get the boxed set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alive she cried Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 Thanks for reminding me, I meant to get these a few months back. Just ordered now, All Lone Wolf and Cub movies with Shogun Assasin, €46.99. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soldier of fortune Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 Can i borrow? After you've watched off course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jables Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 Thanks for reminding me, I meant to get these a few months back. Just ordered now, All Lone Wolf and Cub movies with Shogun Assasin, €46.99. there's a boxed set with Lone Wolf AND Shogun Assassin? Seems a little redundant to me, personally. I just torrented the first Shogun Assassin to match quotables. Given how hit & miss 3-6 are, I'm not sure if a condensed version of each pair would harm or help it's cause... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted May 1, 2010 Author Share Posted May 1, 2010 aw, not liking the later ones? i recall digging them, ive watched em on torrents from years past but yeah, a box set with that + shogun would be an insta-purchase, at the right price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alive she cried Posted May 1, 2010 Share Posted May 1, 2010 Can i borrow? After you've watched off course. No worries there's a boxed set with Lone Wolf AND Shogun Assassin? Seems a little redundant to me, personally. I just torrented the first Shogun Assassin to match quotables. Given how hit & miss 3-6 are, I'm not sure if a condensed version of each pair would harm or help it's cause... DON'T RUIN IT FOR ME!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jables Posted May 3, 2010 Share Posted May 3, 2010 No spoilers, like I said I really have to rewatch 4-6 because it's truly been a while. 3 was pretty a goddamned forgettable follow up to 2 though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alive she cried Posted May 20, 2010 Share Posted May 20, 2010 Just got the boxset the other day, watched Sword Of Vengeance last night, really enjoyed it. Itto is portrayed perfectly, man that guy is so cool. Shame about the soundtrack though, it's like at times there is no audio at all, an then suddenly you'll hear running water in the background that should've been there through the whole scene. Overall though good stuff 8/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted May 22, 2010 Author Share Posted May 22, 2010 ah, shit. ive got divx copies and was hoping the set'd improve the audio syncing...well, good to know going into it at least. let us know what you think when you've finished the set...i dont know if anyone else here read the whole series as well, curious to see if JZA's point about the latter films kinda dropping off for him holds. i recall them diverting greatly, but then again Lone Wolf & Cub's several-book ending was all kinds of epic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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