Fantastic movie, but will wait for the subbed version
358604
I saw this movie at the cinema and enjoyed it immensely. As a fan of the anime, it stays reasonably true to the first season of Ruroni Kenshin, however, my wife saw it with me and really enjoyed it as a stand alone movie with slick styling and minimal wire fighting. The sets are stunning and the pace is good with moments of levity that avoid the film becoming just another sword flick.
The only disappointment is that this version does not seem to include English subtitles, so if you're not fluent in Japanese, you'll get nothing out of the film.
I'm sure there'll be an English version soon, wait for it and then do yourself a favour and buy it.
2597183
This is one of my all time favorite movies.  I was hoping to find it in my Amazon Unlimited or Prime Instant Video list so I could watch it over and over, but it's not there. I guess I'll have to add it to my wish list.
1990976
A fabulous story and movie!
My only "critique" are the hard-to-read English subtitles. :)
4594329
This film needs to be released in Widescreen with both a new special edition and a Blu-ray release. That would be the perfect compliment to the complete series set which was just released. Please do this Warner Bros! It is something a great number of people would appreciate. I have always wanted this film in its original aspect ratio. I already own this release but would double dip in a heartbeat for a proper release of the film!
2975249
It's great to have this wonderful movie available in ANY form, and with English subtitles, but I wish someone would release it in its original 2.35:1 widescreen version. Amazon confuses the issue even more by saying that this DVD's Format is "Full Screen" (ie, 1.33:1) but that its Aspect Ratio is 1.85:1. The awful truth is that it is indeed full-screen - without letter-boxing - so almost half of the glorious wide image is chopped off the sides to fill a 1950s-type, almost square TV screen that isn't even manufactured any more.

So this DVD is worth buying just to see the terrific movie, but we're NOT seeing it as it was filmed. We get most of the action, but none of the beauty.

(NOTE: Since Amazon likes to lump all reviews of a title together regardless of the particular format the reviewer is reviewing, at some time in the future this review may become quaintly irrelevant. If that happens, please understand that I am not an idiot; I just wasn't as lucky as later purchasers were who got the widescreen version.)
643638
Love this film and this is an amazing release! It is sad that the film hasn't got a release as good as this in Australia
31246
Before I say anything else, it's important to note that this DVD contains no English subtitles or voice acting. This is strictly Japanese only.

Comes with three discs. The first is the R18 version of the film, the second is the censored version, and the third is special features. Contrary to rumors, the censored version does not have additional content. The reason that the censored version has a longer run-time is due to the music video at the end. Most of the other differences are during the eclipse, some of the gore is censored, and there are shadows covering Casca and Femto during the rape. Better special features than the BRs that Viz has released so far. Some commentary from the creators and behind the scenes stuff. The cardboard cover is hand drawn by Kentaro Miura himself, and features an alternate version of the Berserk Volume 12 manga cover. My one complaint is that the R18 version doesn't support surround sound, which is a shame because I really enjoy watching these movies on the big screen with full speaker use.

Regarding the film itself, all that I can say is WOW! It's mind blowing. Easily the best of the Golden Age trilogy so far. Possibly the most graphic anime I've ever seen. The infamous rape scene is horrifying and heartbreaking and grotesque all at the same time. The demon massacre is every bit as horrific as the manga. This is the Eclipse that Berserk fans have been waiting for, not to mention that we finally get to see the Skull Knight animated. Speaking of SK, he easily stole the show here. They managed to capture that mix of creepiness, mystique, and heroism that makes his character so cool in the manga. My favorite scene in the entire movie is the one where Griffith breaks down and the behleit activates. You can feel his complete and utter despair when he tries to kill himself in the lake. Among the other notable scenes I feel the need to express praise for the Zodd/Skull Knight fight, the Godhand intros, Griffith's mental collapse within the Eclipse itself, the Skull Knight's attack on the ceremony, Gaiseric, and Silat.

All in all great movie. The biggest criticism I have for the content itself is where they ended it. In my opinion, it would have been better to extend the movie by 10-15 minutes, and show the birth of the demon child. Instead, it ends with Guts fighting off spirits with the Skull Knight, then skips to him departing as the Black Swordsman after the credits. I will be VERY disappointed of they skip the demon birth and Guts' first apostle kill and move on to the Black Swordsman arc.
1391228
I loved the movie.  However, the streaming was not 100%, there were delays during the screening of the movie.
2752511
Another classic!  This movie is nearly perfect!  The plot, action, and cinematography are excellent.  The picture is extremely clear and the color is vivid.  But, I have only one problem with the dvd that might be an issue for some of you.  On this dvd, you can't remove the subtitles which of course is slightly different from the english dubbed dialogue.  (One example is the actors are saying Mongols while the subtitles read Tartars.)  If this doesn't bother you or if you can ignore the subtitles this dvd is for you.
3440899
Supergirl has long been one of my favorite movies.  I'd catch it on TV when it was on and even recorded one version with my VCR.  But the one problem was that I was at the mercy of the TV channels, editing the movie as they saw fit.  Therefore, I'm glad that I bought this movie, the full 124-minute version, with all the scenes together, even ones that I don't think I had ever seen before.

The movie itself is great.  It's fast paced; it's inspirational, with a naive and scared teenager having to use her intelligence to save her people; it's got great acting, especially Faye Dunaway's inspired mad performance; and so forth.

The DVD contains the full version of the movie, as well as director's commentary--with director Jeannot Szwarc and historian Scott Bosco talking about the movie as it's playing.  It's an interesting take on it (particularly on the Phantom Zone scenes) and is obviously candid, since the director does embarrass himself a couple times.  Supposedly, there's also the theatrical trailer, which I'd love to see, but I can't access it with my DVD player (I'm sure it's just a problem with my DVD player and not with DVD itself).

Amazon does have an error, though.  Amazon claims this is rated PG; however, this version is unrated, because it's ten minutes longer than the PG-rated version.
4155584
They went a really absurd direction with the third film, but I liked it. It's quite different from the show, and I'm glad they did that. I'd rather have two different interpretations than a rehash of the original with updated visuals, so I'm interested to see where they take it with the final film.

As for this pre-order thing, you've probably heard by now that Studio Khara intervened and wanted to have direct input on the Western release (http://www.funimation.com/forum/faq.php?faq=faq_fun_general_1#faq_faq_funshows_13). Luckily I saw the English version when they had limited theater runs last year, and it was well done as usual. Honestly, I've never liked the fact that they went with Spike Spencer for Shinji. Although I think someone else would be better suited for the role, the rest of the cast is perfect. While I generally stick with the subbed version, both are quite good. So yeah, we're waiting forever on this thing, but if you're a real Eva fan, you'll have found a way to see this movie by now. I'll happily wait for the official western release, especially considering how we will ultimately get a better product because of Khara's influence. Unfortunately that communication seems to be taking a terribly long time.

All that said, reviews should focus primarily on the product and the film itself, not the timeliness of the release. This certainly doesn't deserve low ratings just because we don't have the physical copy in hand right away, and there's no reason you shouldn't have seen this yet.
4826202
Finally this film is available in DVD for us region 1 folks.  Prior to Animeigo's DVD, one had to watch a rough transfer on VHS.  The folks at Animeigo have not only cleaned up the sound, but they have given us a great looking transfer.  Moreover, there are nice extras that can be viewed independent of the movie, or, along with the movie (two sets of different colored subtitles) to inform you about kabuki terms, etc.

Another impressive enhancement to this copy is that they provide subtitles even for background noise or multiples voices.  At certain times, voices overlap and yet both voices get subtitles so you can enjoy more of the story.

I've seen this movie now on the big screen, on video, and DVD many times and I must say this DVD copy is quite enjoyable.  Most definitely worth owning if you are a fan of Ichikawa or great Japanese cinema -- if Animeigo lets this go out-of-print it will be a great shame.

Finally, I just want to add to other positive reviews of the film.  The dialog here is so funny, so crisp that the movie can be enjoyed for both its stunning visuals and smart dialog.  The narrator's comments that close the movie stun me every time I watch this.  What is the answer!?!
2383698
This is one of my favorite films, so I had long anticipated its blu-ray release.  When it finally came out, I didn't buy it right away, having been put off by some reviewer comments about edited-out scenes or the blu-ray being a "flipper" like the old DVD version.  I finally decided to just give it a chance.  Here's what I found, at least what was shipped to me from Amazon (product code 883929150328):

* The blu-ray is not a flipper.  It's a single disk that plays the film end-to-end.
* The blu-ray version appears to be identical (i.e., no scene edits) with the Region 1 DVD version that's been out there forever.  Maybe other region versions have very minor differences?
* The packaging is classy, with a high quality 33 page booklet bound into the blu-ray case (or maybe the blu-ray could be considered as built into the booklet).

In any case, the overall quality (visual and audio) is superb when enjoyed on a huge projection screen with an excellent sound system.  If this film is one of your favorites, don't hesitate to pick up the blu-ray; perhaps be sure it's the same product code mentioned above.
4030628
This film deserves all the praise it has received, and more. The story is terrific, filled with comedy, drama, honor, and a heavy dose of action. The fight scenes are beautifully portrayed as deadly ballets of sorts. Releasing it in theaters subtitled instead of dubbed was definitely the best choice, and the fact that it grossed over $140 million proves it. What other subtitled film can boast that? And if subtitles aren't your thing(ya illiterate bums...:P), the DVD has an English dub. Other than that, the extras are on the slim side, but who cares? This is a must own for any serious movie fan.
2087588
fantastic movie that is done on a low budget but doesn't most of the time look it.a great addition to the pantheon of H.P. Lovecraft made films.the only true problem is it ends too soon and the dubbing.where is the french language version w/eng.subtitles?
3281291
This is such a great movie. I have been looking for the long four hour version for some time.  I recently purchased what I thought was just that, from this web-page (although the seller was someone who is no longer listed), but when it came in the mail, I was a little disappointed to find out I had only gotten the regular three hour version.  I was impressed with how quickly my order was processed and delivered, but I found the description of the merchandise to be a little misleading.  It had been described as the 1994 edition with two casettes.  It also had reviews that talked about the four hour version and how much better it was.  By ordering from that page, I guess I assumed I would be getting the video that was described.  Oh well,... I know this is supposed to be for reviewing the movie itself and let me say again that it is one of the best movies I've ever seen; but maybe this can help people who are thinking of ordering--so they'll be really careful to check out all the details.  And for those posting movies they want to sell, this can be a reminder for them to make sure to describe all of the necessary information so that customers can see exactly what they are getting.
3553722
The BD version takes the SD version to a whole new level!  The colors are brighter, the clarity even better and the audio is fantastic - just as you would expect with a great movie in a full HD format.  The only flaw is that this disk starts up rrrreeeeaaallllyyyy slow - so slow that I was all ready to send it back to Amazon for a replacement when I tossed it into our player (Samsung BD-P1400, firmware dated 09/08) one last time and then got distracted by a phone call; when I returned, the movie was up and running like normal. Our family estimates that it takes about 3 minutes to bring up the main menu... Outside of this flaw, everything else is great.