I'm withholding final judgment on StudioCanal/Lionsgate's Ran blu-grade until I've put it through the proper paces, but I've looked into it enough that I can do one of these comparing the raw content relative to Criterion's DVD edition. It was to have been blu-graded last year in the slot that became occupied by Kagemusha. The paper slipcase on the Blu-ray has the visual appearance of being textured paper, but is in fact your standard coated (non-gloss) job.
The back covers reveal the extras on each. The only item that appears on both releases is A.K., a 74-minute doc by Chris Marker. What I have yet to do is make sure none of the features overlap content or are simply the same thing by a different name, so this post may be edited after I've gone all the way through both. [Nothing else overlaps. 9 Feb, 9am]
The new edition adds three features not on the Criterion set. Art of the Samurai is an interview with a Japanese art-of-war expert. Akira Kurosawa: The Epic and the Intimate is another documentary about the director, billed above A.K. in the listing on the back cover. The Samurai delves into samurai art, costume, and weaponry. It also features sections of the film dubbed in French.
The Criterion extra that leaves the biggest hole for me is the 2005-vintage interview with star Tatsuya Nakadai, Kurosawa's latter-day Mifune. Also gone are the Stephen Prince commentary, Sidney Lumet "appreciation", and 35-minute video reconstruction of Kurosawa's sketches and paintings. The one thing that I suspect appears under a different name on the blu-grade is Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create, a 30-minute excerpt from the Toho Masterworks series.
The disparity in the included booklets and essays is miles apart. Time Out London's David Jenkins has put together a well-pondered and informative essay. Nothing against him, but...
...I sincerely feel the absence of an 8-page excerpt of an interview with Kurosawa, a full interview with composer Toru Takemitsu, and a bang-up essay from the Chicago Tribune's Michael Wilmington. Post-OOP scalpers will love me for saying this, but: Kurosawa completists and Ran fans should bite the bullet and find a copy of the Criterion edition whilst they can.