Nostalgia Kinky

Unearthed is gearing up to release one of the most controversial Japanese films of the 2000s as a limited-edition special edition Blu-ray. Directed by legendary filmmaker Shinya Tsukamoto, Tetsuo: The Bullet Man (2009) is the third and final chapter in the incredibly influential Tetsuo trilogy. Containing a compelling collection of extras, this Unearthed disc is a quality release for a troubled and troubling production.

The incredibly strange and otherworldly film career of Shinya Tsukamoto began in the seventies. As an actor, he has more credits than a director, but it is his work directing such classics as A Snake in June (2002) and especially the original Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989) that has really cemented his status as one of the great modern nonconformist filmmakers.

The Bullet Man arrived more than fifteen years after the acclaimed Tetsuo II: Body Hammer (1992). It was a long wait, and it shows, as this third film is vastly different in tone and spirit from the first two. Originally designed as an American production (with Pulp Fiction’s creative duo attached at one point), the film underwent an extremely difficult pre-production process, resulting in this much-debated film.

Starring Eric Bossman and the striking Akiko Monou, Tetsuo: The Bullet Man is a shockingly unpleasant film, but unpleasant in a different way than the original two classics. This film has a coldness about it that makes it a difficult watch, and the more modern effects pale in comparison to the originals. Tetsuo: The Bullet Man is a flawed film, not as bad as some of its critics charge and not as good as Tsukamoto biographer Tom Mes considers it, imho.

With its Trent Reznor score and its intensely muted photography, Tetsuo: The Bullet Man is a brutal 71-minute watch. As a piece of agro-punk filmmaking, it remains a fairly interesting picture, making it fairly easy to see why this film remains either hated or loved, with little space in between.

Unearthed has done an excellent job at making a hard-to-swallow film at times more easily digestible with a couple of substantial extras. First off, we get a great new commentary track with Mes and Bossick. This is a fantastic talk that made me appreciate the film more, and learning about everything that went into its making was so interesting. This is a great track. Even more fascinating is the alternate version of the film, made up entirely of behind-the-scenes footage, allowing us to literally watch the entire film being made. This is such a neat thing to view, and it is the highlight of this slipcase-covered colection.
Available from Unearthed and MVD.

-Jeremy Richey, July 2026-