Audition: Limited Edition – Arrow Video (4K UHD)

Theatrical Release Date: Japan, 1999
Director: Takashi Miike
Writer: Daisuke Tengan
Cast: Ryô Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina, Tetsu Sawaki, Jun Kunimura, Renji Ishibashi, Miyuki Matsuda, Toshie Negishi, Ren Ôsugi 

Release Date: June 15th, 2026 (UK), June 16th, 2026 (USA)
Approximate Running Time: 115 Minutes 40 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / Dolby Vision HDR10
Rating: 18 (UK), R (USA)
Sound: DTS-HD Stereo Japanese, DTS-HD 4.0 Stereo Japanese, DTS-HD 5.1 Japanese
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: £29.99 (UK), $49.95 (USA)

"When recent widower Shigeharu Aoyama (Ryo Ishibashi, American Yakuza) is advised by his son to find a new wife, he seeks the advice of a colleague having been out of the dating scene for many years. The two men decide to take advantage of their position working at a film company to stage an audition to find the perfect partner. Interviewing a series of women, Shigeharu soon becomes enchanted by Asami (Eihi Shiina), a quiet, 24-year-old woman, who is immediately responsive to his charms. However, events quickly take a very dark and twisted turn as we find that Asami isn't what she seems to be..." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, “The film is presented in 4K resolution in HDR10 and Dolby Vision.

The original Super 16mm camera negative was scanned at 4K/16 bit at Imagica, Japan. The film was restored in 4K and color graded by Dragon Post Production, Wales.” 

Audition comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 92.1 GB

Feature: 74 GB

The source looks excellent; it is easily the best Audion has ever looked on home media. Flesh tones look correct, colors are nicely saturated, image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image always retains an organic appearance.

Audio: 5/5 (DTS-HD Stereo Japanese), 0/5 (DTS-HD 4.0 Stereo Japanese, DTS-HD 5.1 Japanese)

This release comes with three audio options, a DTS-HD stereo mix in Japanese, a DTS-HD 4.0 stereo mix in Japanese, and a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in Japanese. The stereo mix is in excellent shape; dialogue comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, and ambient sounds are well-represented. The other two tracks have issues; the 4.0 stereo track goes out of sync and the 5.1 track is wrongly pitched. Included are removable English subtitles.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a stills gallery (30 images), a Japanese theatrical trailer (1 minute 38 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an international theatrical trailer (1 minute 16 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an audio essay by author and critic Alexandra Heller-Nicholas titled Deeper Deeper Into Audition (11 minutes 18 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an appreciation by Japanese cinema historian Tony Rayns titled Damaged Romance (35 minutes 20 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival interview with actor Ryo Ishibashi titled Tokyo Hollywood (16 minutes 13 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an archival interview with actress Eihi Shiina titled From Audition to Vampire Girl (20 minutes 9 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an archival interview with actor Renji Ishibashi titled Miike’s Troy (20 minutes 55 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an archival interview with actor Ren Osugi titled The Man in the Body Bag Speaks (16 minutes 25 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an interview with director Takashi Miike titled Ties That Bind (30 minutes 5 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an introduction by Takashi Miike (1 minute 15 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an interview with Ryo Ishibashi titled Callback (8 minutes, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an archival audio commentary with Takashi Miike and screenwriter Daisuke Tengan in Japanese with removable English subtitles, an audio commentary with Takashi Miike biographer Tom Mes, reversible cover art, a slipcover (limited to the first pressing), and a 44-page booklet (limited to the first pressing) with cast & crew information, an essay titled Everyone in Japan is Lonely: Audition as a Breakdown of Communication written by Jennie Kermode, an essay titled Deeper, Deeper, Deeper: How Audition’s Wounds Have Grown More Severe written by Jamie Graham, an essay titled Guilty of Romance: Love, Loneliness and Loss in Takashi Miike’s Audition written by Anton Bitel, and information about the transfer.

Summary:

Takashi Miike directed Audition. His filmography stretches over 45 years and encompasses over 120 entries, including notable films like The Bird People of China, Agitator, Visitor Q, Ichi the Killer, The Happiness of the Katakuris, Gozu, and Lesson of the Evil.

Seven years after the death of his wife, a widower’s son convinces his father that it is time to find a new wife. With the help of a colleague, the father holds auditions under the pretense that they are producers casting for a film. From there, he connects with one woman in particular, whose grief mirrors his pain. Has he found the person who will bring joy back into his life, or will the trauma from her past return to haunt him?

When one thinks of horror cinema, what often springs to mind are themes about psychopaths who go on a killing spree and the body count that they amass. Another common plot device exploited in horror cinema is supernatural entities. Despite these tried and true examples of the genre, it is always exhilarating when a filmmaker brings something new to the table. Case in point: Takashi Miike’s tour de force exercise in psychological horror, Audition.

While it is not immediately clear where things are building to, once the shift occurs, the result is unlike anything you have seen before. Where the first half of the film could be called a romantic comedy where a widower looks for a woman for the first time since his wife's death, the latter half nosedives into darker territory when more is revealed about the woman he’s chosen's past. That said, despite the two halves being distinctly different, they perfectly intersect, creating an unforgettable climax.

The most surprising aspect of Audition is its visuals, which do a phenomenal job creating an unsettling mood. Where the first half of the film lets the performances take center stage, things become more stylized in the latter half when the focus shifts to Asami’s past. Without giving away too much about these moments, they push the envelope when it comes to violence, especially the finale, which is arguably the most disturbing scene in Takashi Miike’s filmography.

When it comes to the performances, the entire cast gives their all and then some, especially the two leads, Ryô Ishibashi (Suicide Club) and Eihi Shiina (Tokyo Gore Police). While most films have a central protagonist, Audition is just as much Asami’s story as it is Shigeharu's story. Another performance of note is Renji Ishibashi (Deadly Outlaw: Rekka), who portrays Asami’s tormentor and source of her childhood trauma.

From the moment that Audition was unleashed upon unsuspecting audiences, it is a film that divides those who watch it. There seems to be no middle ground with Audition; either you embrace this film or you loathe it. That said, Audition is a film that is rich with subtext, and those who dig deeper than what is on the surface are sure to get more out of it. Going so drastically against what the audience expects could backfire and yet the result is an extraordinary film with one of the most potent payoffs in the history of horror cinema.

While the issues with the two audio tracks are disappointing, Audition’s original stereo track is fortunately unscathed. Audition makes its way to 4K UHD via a first-rate release from Arrow Video that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and a wealth of insightful extras. Recommended.

Note about the 4K screenshots: It is not possible to make Dolby Vision or HDR10 screenshots that faithfully match the experience of watching a film in motion on a TV. Instead of not having any screenshots, all of the 4K screenshots are m2ts taken with a MPC-HC player and lossless PNGs.

 

Written by Michael Den Boer