Blu-ray release: 'Underworld Chronicles'

Radiance Films will release the three-film Takashi Miike yakuza collection ‘Underworld Chronicles’ on UK Blu-ray on March 23, 2026.

The late nineties and early 00s saw Takashi Miike transition from his origins in direct-to-video ‘V-cinema’ to becoming one of the most internationally recognised Japanese directors. A prolific filmmaker who would go on to work across almost every genre, it was his outrageous takes on the gangster film that first brought him attention outside Japan. Three of his most notable yakuza films from this period are collected here in a landmark new box set.

Fudoh: The New Generation (極道戦国志不動)

Riki Fudoh (Shosuke Tanihara) is a high school student juggling academic work with a secret life as an underworld boss. As the leader of a group of larger-than-life school-age assassins, Fudoh wages a campaign of violence against the entire criminal underworld as part of a revenge plot against his own father (Toru Minegishi), a high-ranking yakuza who was forced to murder Fudoh’s brother. Originally planned for release as a direct-to-video V-cinema title, ‘Fudoh’ was granted a theatrical release after producers viewed the finished film, leading to it becoming a festival favourite around the world and establishing Miike as one of cinema’s great provocateurs and a key figure in ‘extreme’ cinema.

Agitator (荒ぶる魂たち)

A yakuza (played by Miike himself in a cameo) is murdered after violently assaulting a hostess on rival turf, providing the catalyst for a gang war between several factions seeking a redistribution of power. In this densely layered gangland drama, the backroom manoeuvring of the senior figures in the yakuza, overseen by Mr. Kaito, known as the “Rapacious Jailbreaker”, is juxtaposed against the actions of the street-level mobsters as the two sides head towards an inevitable collision. Written by ‘Graveyard of Honor’ screenwriter Shigenori Takechi, Miike directed Agitator in arguably the most productive year of his career in 2001, alongside ‘Ichi the Killer’, ‘Visitor Q’, and ‘The Happiness of the Katakuris’. Epic in scope, the film is presented here in its original theatrical version and in a two-part 200-minute extended version, until now only available on Japanese VHS.

Deadly Outlaw: Rekka (実録・安藤昇侠道伝烈火)

Kunisada (played by V-cinema legend Riki Takeuchi) has his world turned upside down after learning of the death of his mentor Sanada (Yuya Uchida, lead singer of the Flower Travellin’ Band, who also provide the film’s hard-rocking psychedelic soundtrack). Pairing up with his best friend Shimatani (Kenichi Endo), Kunisada embarks on a rampaging road trip to avenge his fallen father figure, leaving a trail of bullets, blood and bazooka fire in his wake. A typically bizarre and extreme take on the yakuza genre, ‘Deadly Outlaw: Rekka’ is Miike at his most deliriously entertaining.

Features:

High-definition transfers of all three films on Blu-ray (first time on Blu-ray)
Multiformat 4K UHD and Blu-ray presentation of Fudoh: The New Generation
200-minute extended version of Agitator, presented in its original two-part form for the first time outside Japan
Uncompressed PCM mono audio
Newly improved English subtitles
New interviews with Takashi Miike on all three films
Audio commentary on Agitator and Deadly Outlaw: Rekka by Tom Mes
Audio commentary on Fudoh: The New Generation with Takashi Miike and Shosuke Tanihara
Electric Yakuza, Go to Hell! — documentary on Takashi Miike (Yves Montmayeur, 2009)
Archival interviews with Shosuke Tanihara and Yoshinori Chiba
Trailers
Reversible sleeves with original and new artwork by Time Tomorrow
Limited edition 80-page book featuring writing by Tom Mes, Colin Geddes and Tony Rayns
Limited edition of 5000 copies in rigid box with removable OBI strip