Zatoichi Movie Review:


Akira Kurosawa’s visions of feudal Japan were some of the first to show western audiences Japan’s history through their eyes. Kurosawa was an amazing director and each frame housed so much passion. His brilliant films like “Yojimbo” and “The Seven Samurai” not only had strength of cinematography but of swordsmanship, humor and detailed characters. It is no wonder that these films have inspired upcoming directors for decades.

One of those influenced directors has to be fellow Japanese director Takeshi Kitano and in his latest film “Zatoichi” there is a lot of Kurosawa.

In Japan there have been more than 20 films made about Zatoichi, who is a blind, gambling masseur who also happens to an elite swordsman who can rival the very best samurai. He is a hero in a world gone mad as he tries to help the innocent and weak.

In the Kitano version, Zatoichi comes upon a village swarming with ruthless gangs, corrupt samurai and a mysterious leader. He also comes upon two geishas who are trying to avenge the slaughter of their parents almost ten years previous. It all comes down to a series of showdowns as Zatoichi makes friends, even more enemies and helps the townspeople and the avenging geishas.

I can’t say that I am an aficionado of samurai films but as a film Zatoichi is wonderfully directed, full of razor sharp wit and swordplay and has some really impressive performances. I really enjoyed that Kitano was not only the director but the star of the film. That stunt casting adds more passion and depth to the project. It helps foreign audiences relate to this legendary Japanese hero.

The style, screenplay and depth of passion for the character should make the film appeal to more than just samurai fans. The screenplay itself has so many twists and turns that it is sometimes hard to uncover how many layers the film has. I really loved how Kitano uses slight of hand or distraction to bring the audience away from where his film is going. It can be a little confusing but adds to the surprise of the outcome. It is an amazing style.

I hope that Kitano’s Zatoichi paves the way for more samurai films to be released theatrically in North America kind of like the way Miyazaki’s Spirited Away has paved the way for a more mainstream approach to Japanese animation.

(4 out of 5) So Says the Soothsayer

Dean Kish

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Some 30 films have been made since 1962 about the blind swordsman Zatoichi, and it proves to be a terrific new step for actor-director Kitano, who usually specialises in modern crime (such as Boiling Point and Hanna-Bi).

Here he plays Zatoichi himself, a grey-haired blind masseur wandering the streets of 19th century Japan catching people off guard with his expert sword skills. In this story he stumbles into the middle of a massive gang war in which two mob bosses (Ishikura and Kishibe) laywaste to the competition with the help of the efficient ronin Hattori (Asano).

Meanwhile two children, who a decade earlier escaped one of their bloody assaults, are now grown up, disguised as geishas (Tachibana and Daike) and out for revenge. They team up with Zatoichi and a bumbling local (Taka)--a rather motley bunch!--to take on the bad guys.

Filming in the style of a 1960s Japanese samurai epic, Kitano gets the look and feel just right, augmenting the fight scenes with computer effects that heighten the grisliness (and blood spray). Colours and emotions are muted, as is the film's pace, while the characters are vivid and intriguing. And often very funny!

Kitano adds very witty touches, from hilarious sight gags and slapstick to choreographing onscreen action with the background music (including a muddy tap dance that, much later, becomes a full-on musical showstopper!).

But this is a story about deceptive appearances, and it works beautifully, giving us flashback histories and clever insight into each character. All of this adds up to a layered and moving action movie. Kitano is very good in the title role of the mythical hero everyone underestimates; and as a writer-director he builds the film skilfully to the climactic showdown between Zatoichi and Hattori, then continues on to tie up the story's hidden loose ends.

It's perhaps a bit choppy and slowly paced for modern audiences more used to mindless Michael Bay-style action. But give it a chance--it'll win you over.

Rich Cline

Wandering blind, masseur Zatoichi (Kitano) arrives in a feudal Japanese town that is gripped by clan wars. It is the people who are suffering however as they are been exploited for their money and their produce by the rival clans. Ichi decides to intervene and investigate the true motivations behind the war.

Imagine a movie that mixes martial arts, comedy and dance all into a historical drama and you have Zatoichi.

Based on a series of twenty-six movies that started way back in 1962 and starred legendary Japanese actor Shintarô Katsu, Zatoichi is a reinvention of the franchise that takes all the best elements of the previous films and combines them with modern filmmaking techniques. Writer, director and star Takeshi Kitano fuses the traditions of period drama filmmaking with slapstick comedy and a hit of Bollywood to produce a very unique take on the blind samurai legend. It’s hard to imagine a movie that blends the revelations of the finale with the rest of the cast performing a dance routine.

The performances are very good. Kitano himself is excellent as Ichi. This is a very subdued performance that suddenly and energetically sparks into life when danger rears its ugly head. He is a man that on first impression wouldn’t say boo to a goose but he is the epitome of the saying “looks can be deceiving”. Gadarukanaru Taka is also good as the hapless gambler Shinkichi. He is the comic relief of the piece with his sword fighting training school been the comedic highlight of the piece. Tadanobu Asano as the travelling ronin Gennosuke Hattori provides the real drama to the film. This is a samurai without a master whose ill wife cannot cope with him hiring his sword out for money.

The look of the movie is superb. Kitano and his crew really capture the impression of feudal Japan with excellent set and costume designs. The fight choreography is also first rate, with speed and accuracy tantamount to each set piece. The inclusion of CG blood wasn’t the best idea however as it does look blatantly obvious that it isn’t real.

Combining differing styles and approaches makes Zatoichi hard to pigeonhole into a specific genre type. It isn’t an historical epic, all-out martial arts movie, dance spectacular or comedic folly but a combination of all four, making it distinctly Japanese. Strange but inventive, the new Zatoichi could be the start of another great franchise.

Star Rating = * * *

Jamie Kelwick

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