Nostalgia Kinky

Visual Vengeance chooses to let the new flesh live by releasing the crazed Japanese V-Cinema classic Cyclops (1987) as a special-edition Blu-ray. With a solid array of extras and a nice, cinematic-looking new 2K transfer from original 16mm film elements, Cyclops on Blu-ray is a real gooey winner.
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Running just over 50 minutes, Cyclops is a real wrecking machine of Cronenberg-like cinema by way of Cinema-du-look. This very blue and bloody production is chilling and inventive, climaxing in a triumphant display of practical gore effects. Does it make much sense? No, but Cyclops is all about mood and style, and as a visual exercise it is extremely well done.

Cyclops is the first feature film from cult filmmaker Joji “George” Iida, and while it may run shorter than your average film, make no mistake: this is a fully-formed if abstract work. The script by Iida and Hisashi Saito is a bit convoluted but fascinating, a bit like a fragmented nightmare that refuses to fade even after waking.

Cyclops is strong enough that it could have been stretched to a more traditional feature-length, and it’d still work. That said, I find its fifty-minute length pretty perfect, ensuring the film never overstays its welcome and is never less than compulsively watchable. It also ensures that the film’s insane climax arrives quicker. I really dug Cyclops and the entire aura around it.

Cyclops contains the following set of extras, all of which add to the film’s power:

Commentary with Justin Decloux of The important Cinema Club and Patrick Macias, author of Tokyoscope: the Japanese Cult Film Companion
No Compliance: New Interview with director Joji “George” Iida
Not In The Way Your Expect: The Films of Joji “George” Iida – Video Essay
All the Monsters Are Here: The Japanese DTV Market of the Mid-80s – Video Essay
Image gallery
Koji Yamamura Sketch Gallery

Of these, the most essential is the near hour-long archival interview with Iida. The featurette on the mid-eighties DTV market from Japan is especially great and enlightening as well. Aesthetically, this is a gorgeous package from Visual Vengeance and a highly recommended release.

-Jeremy Richey, September 2026-