Stray Dog (DVD)

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Video:
"Stray Dog" was made during the late-1940s, so it was probably inescapable that the 1.33:1 (full-frame on 4:3 monitors) image isn´t very good. The source print has numerous scratches, and there are times when grain and contrast prevent one from seeing things clearly. Several shots are rather soft as well. However, you can see that the print is "clean" in terms of how well you can see the aforementioned imperfections. Obviously, a lot of effort was made to ensure that "Stray Dog" look as good as possible.

Audio:
The Dolby Digital 1.0 Japanese reproduces the actors´ voices very well. In fact, the dialogue sounds like it was recorded for a movie made within the past ten years. However, everything else sounds substandard. There´s a great deal of hiss, sound effects are thin and weak, and the music is wobbly. All of these problems have to do with the recording technologies available at the time, though, so the track isn´t "bad" so much as it is outdated.

Optional English subtitles support the audio.

Extras:
A cursory glance reveals that there aren´t that many extras on the DVD. However, they´re both substantive in nature, so you don´t get any fluff about how everyone was great and had a great time. Rather, you learn about themes, structures, visual style, and professional histories. There´s a comprehensive audio commentary by Stephen Prince, author of "The Warrior´s Camera: The Cinema of Akira Kurosawa". There´s also a thirty-two-minute documentary on "Stray Dog" from the series "Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create". These are the kinds of extras that can be enjoyed with repeat viewings because it takes several stabs at the material before you can fully digest what they offer.

--Miscellaneous--
A mini-booklet provides chapter listings, movie production credits, DVD production notes, essays about the movie, and DVD production credits

Film Value:
There are a lot of things in "Stray Dog" to admire, especially Toshiro Mifune´s commanding performance and presence as well as Akira Kurosawa´s framing and mise-en-scene compositions of actors and objects. However, Kurosawa´s skills as a writer as well as an editor were not impressive in 1949. At 122 minutes, the movie is too long by about half an hour, and matters pertaining to police procedures are not as well-planned as seen in "High and Low". "Stray Dog" is an interesting look at Kurosawa and Mifune´s early years; it´s amazing to see how far they would eventually progress together.

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