Ask John: What Exactly Does “Director’s Cut” Mean?

Question:
I was wondering what do they mean when they say “director’s cut” on the video you bought?

Answer:
In the case of American movies, the title “director’s cut” refers to a version of a film specifically director approved. In regard to American anime releases, the term can’t be taken so literally. In the case of the “MD Geist Director’s Cut,” Koichi Ohata actually produced new animation to extend the original OAV, so the director’s cut is a longer version, more true to what he, the original Japanese director, wanted. In the case of the Kite Director’s Cut, the name “director’s cut” is merely an American subtitle tacked onto the anime to distinguish it from the more heavily edited version released earlier. The American “Kite Director’s Cut” is not actually the version of Kite that director Yasuomi Umetsu presumably most approves of. The true “director’s cut” of Kite would be the original, uncut Japanese version which is not available in America. Some critics have tried to claim that Umetsu did not actually want to include sex in Kite, but was forced to do so by studio or distributor pressure. This argument seems partially unlikely as Kite was produced by Umetsu’s own personal production studio, Studio Arms. Furthermore Umetsu worked on pornographic anime before Kite (Yellow Star), and included graphic sex in Mezzo Forte, which he wrote and directed after Kite. His production company has also produced hentai anime series including Wordsworth, under his supervision. Therefore it seems unlikely that Umetsu didn’t want sex in Kite after he so clearly does prefer to include graphic sex in many of his works.

Essentially, the only way to distinguish what is a genuine “director’s cut” and what isn’t with regard to American anime releases is to keep up to date with anime news sources such as AnimeNation, Anime on DVD, Anime News Network and Anime News Service, which make a point of promoting news about upcoming anime releases.