Sometimes I come across a movie I never heard of but become enticed to view it due to an alluring title. Into this category falls 1966’s Black Tight Killers.

When military photographer Daisuke Honda (Akira Kobayashi) meets flight attendant Yoriko Sawanouchi (Chieko Matsubara) on a trip into Tokyo, the pair connect and he asks her out on a date. However, along the way Yoriko ends up kidnapped by a squad of female assassins who utilize vinyl records as tools of their violent trade.

Honda investigates to rescue Yoriko. As this proceeds, he winds up embroiled in a conspiracy to loot a cache of WWII-era gold, one also tied to Yoriko’s disappearance.

Just based on the title, I went into Killers with the expectation I’d find a lurid thriller. Instead, I got something… different.

I figured out that Killers would defy my expectations during the opening credits. There we get a wild Swingin’ 60s tune accompanied by go-go dancing masked women.

In other words, Killers embraces the 1966-specific styles in vogue back then. While not completely indebted to this format, the movie nonetheless feels very much a product of its time.

Actually, I probably shouldn’t describe Killers as being so 1966-based, for it shows other influences as well. Parts of the movie offer a West Side Story vibe, and the film can go a bit Rat Pack as well.

Whatever the style, Killers offers an intriguing visual piece. Too bad it lacks a particularly coherent story to go along with these stylistic choices.

At its heart, Killers comes with a pretty simple plot. However, it persistently muddies the waters to become far less cohesive than it needs to be.

This doesn’t reflect the occasional dream/fantasy scenes we get. I don’t think those take the narrative off-track.

Instead, Killers just feels more preoccupied with gimmicks and stylistic choices than a strong story. I get the impression the filmmakers figure the flash and sparkle will become enough to carry the viewer.

And at times, these tactics do involve us. We get enough interesting oddness to carry the day.

For a while, at least, as Killers comes with too many peaks and valleys. For every delightfully warped scene we find, we get another that drags and feels unnecessary or too long.

I get the impression the filmmakers intend Killers as a spoof of the era’s spy flicks, but they fail to make these tone-related choices clear. Again, we discover a movie that alternates wacky cleverness with pedantic blandness.

As such, it becomes tough to tell if those involved with Killers want to deliver a spirited romp or a more serious crime story – or both, perhaps. The inconsistencies create an end product that doesn’t quite gel.

I must imagine Quentin Tarantino saw Killers, as it seems like something that would’ve influenced his first Kill Bill. Tarantino could probably direct a lively remake of Killers, but the original needs more spirit than the film ultimately provides.

Black Tight Killers appears in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. Nothing here excelled, but the image felt fine overall.

For the most part, sharpness seemed appealing. At times the movie seemed a bit on the soft side, but these instances didn’t dominate and they caused only minor distractions at worst.

I witnessed no issues with jagged edges or shimmer, and the movie lacked edge haloes. We got a moderate layer and grain and the print suffered from no obvious defects.

Despite a broad palette, colors could seem a bit subdued, though they varied. This meant the hues veered from fairly lively to a little flat. Nonetheless, they usually appeared reasonably vibrant.

Blacks seemed largely deep and dense, while shadows felt smooth. I nearly went with a “B-“ but thought the presentation held up well enough to go for a “B”.

I felt the DTS-HD MA monaural audio of Killers seemed lackluster but decent given the movie’s age and origins. I couldn’t easily judge intelligibility since I don’t speak Japanese. The lines felt a bit edgy and sharp much of the time.

Music was generally adequate. The score could sound somewhat shrill at times, but it usually appeared acceptably full.

The same went for effects. While these occasionally came across as distorted and metallic, they still provided acceptable clarity. Nothing here was memorable, but the mix was acceptable for its period.

A few extras round out the disc, and we get an audio commentary from film historian Jasper Sharp. He provides a running, screen-specific look at cast and crew, genre domains, reflections of the era, and connected topics.

From start to finish, Sharp makes this an engaging and active chat. Though we don’t get a lot about the movie’s production, Sharp still brings us a lot of good info.

In addition to the film’s trailer, we get a circa 2000 Interview with Director Yasuharu Hasebe. This reel lasts eight minutes, 33 seconds.

Hasebe tells us about his career and some Killers-related specifics. The chat seems too short to relate many insights, but we get a generally informative piece.

A mix of spoof and serious, Black Tight Killers offers a proto-Tarantino romp that occasionally connects. However, its inconsistencies make it less successful than I would prefer. The Blu-ray comes with generally positive picture, passable audio and a few bonus features. Killers comes with enough spark to keep us involved but it doesn’t spark as often as it should.