Arrow kicks off the New Year by helping ease film lovers into things with just two new releases for the first month of 2021. A lack of quantity, however, does not mean a lack of quality. These January releases are sure to check off your New Year’s resolution to watch more great cinema.
The New Year’s party begins on January 19 with the release of JSA: JOINT SECURITY AREA. This thriller from Park Chan-wook follows a Swiss-Korean Major as she leads an investigation into a shooting incident at the North/South Korean border that results in two Korean soldiers’ death. The film was a smash hit, becoming the highest-grossing Korean film at the time and winning multiple awards for best film. In 2009, director Quentin Tarantino placed JSA amongst his top twenty films since 1992. This release from Arrow presents the film in high-definition and comes loaded with new and archival bonus features.
On January 26, Arrow is proud to release Richard Kelly’s SOUTHLAND TALES. This ambitious story about a conspiracy involving an action film star stricken with amnesia, a porn star with reality TV dreams, and a police officer was panned during its 2006 release. Critics, and some of those involved in the film, weren’t entirely sure what to make of its long, sprawling nature. Yet, over the years, the film has maintained a strong, loyal fanbase that continues to grow, with many admiring the film’s attempt at doing something grand. To this day, Kelly insists it’s the work he’s most proud of, comparing it to “the misunderstood child.” Arrow gives this child a new lease on life with new 2K presentations of the film, approved by Kelly, in both the 145-minute theatrical cut and the 160-minute “Cannes cut.” The release also comes with a wide range of special features, including a brand-new documentary on the film’s making.
JSA: JOINT SECURITY AREA
Gunfire breaks out in the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea, leaving two North Korean soldiers dead while a wounded South Korean soldier flees to safety. With the tenuous peace between the two warring nations on a knife-edge, a neutral team of investigators is dispatched to question both sides to determine what really happened under cover of darkness out in no-man’s land. You can order JSA: JOINT SECURITY AREA here.
Bonus Materials:
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) Presentation
- Original lossless Korean DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and PCM 2.0 stereo soundtracks
- Optional English subtitles
- New audio commentary by writer and critic Simon Ward
- Isolated music and effects track
- Newly recorded video interview with Asian cinema expert Jasper Sharp
- the JSA Story and Making the Film, two archival featurettes on the film’s production
- About JSA, a series of archival introductions to the film by members of the cast
- Behind the scenes montage
- Opening ceremony footage
- Two music videos: Letter from a Private and Take the Power Back
- Theatrical Trailer
- TV Spot
- Image Gallery
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Colin Murdoch
- FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Kieran Fisher
SOUTHLAND TALES
Los Angeles, 2008. As the city stands on the brink of social, economic and environmental chaos, the fates of an eclectic set of characters – including an amnesia-stricken action star, an adult film star developing her own reality TV projects and a police officer whose identity has split in two – intertwine with each other and with the whole of humanity. You can order SOUTHLAND TALES here.
Bonus Materials:
- New 2K restoration by Arrow Films, approved by director Richard Kelly and director of photography Steven Poster
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentations of both versions of the film: the 145 minute theatrical cut and the 160-minute Cannes cut, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2006
- Original lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and PCM 2.0 stereo soundtracks
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Audio commentary on the theatrical cut by Richard Kelly
- It’s a Madcap World: The Making of an Unfinished Film, a new in-depth retrospective documentary on the film, featuring contributions by Richard Kelly and members of the original crew
- USIDent TV: Surveilling the Southland, an archival featurette on the making of the film, featuring interviews with the cast and crew
- This is the Way the World Ends, an archival animated short set in the Southland Tales universe
- Theatrical Trailer
- Image gallery
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Jacey
- Limited edition collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Peter Tonguette and Simon Ward
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