Customer Reviews

Zatoichi the Blind Swordsman, Vol. 13 - Zatoichi's Vengeance

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

For some reason, Amazon has posted identical reviews for both Vol. 10 and Vol. 13 of this series.

The previous reviewer has indicated that this is misleading, which is correct. However, it is not correct that the reviewers are doing the misleading, since all reviews posted for both Vol. 10 and Vol. 13 are showing up in both places, which is Amazon's error.

Thanks to the previous reviewer for pointing this out.

The review posted March 2005 applies to Vol. 10, and the review posted July 2005 obviously applies to Vol. 13.

As far as the one from 2002, it's anyone's guess.

Both 10 and 13 are terrific movies, but I will need to rewatch them to do a better review. And I would like to do one large review of both since it will end up listed in both places. Meanwhile, I have done reviews for Vols. 1 and 8 of this series, if you would like to know what I think about them.

--Irene Hamilton, big Zatoichi fan

*(This review was posted for Vol. 13, and is meant for Vol. 13, but is also showing up for Vol. 10, as several other reviewers have pointed out.)*

Like the other movies in the Zatoichi series, this story features strong female characters, exciting and well-staged swordplay, tasteful violence (no blood and gore), and our hero only killing when absolutely forced to. While there is nothing new to the basic storyline of this movie - Ichi saving townspeople and merchants from a band of evil men - there are many unique and surprising elements to this tale which set it apart from the others.

First, the ingenuity of Ichi's adversaries in using drums to hinder his hearing is somewhat surprising. Normally, his opponents are not quite that clever.

Also, the swordsmanship (skill and technique) is significantly raised to a much more intricate level when Ichi fights the samurai. This is a noticeable difference from the simplicity he usually employs against more the common/obscure swordsman he generally faces.

Another unexpected surprise is the amount of abuse Ichi is willing to take before acting to defend himself. He is bloodied and bruised when severely beaten; yet, he does not act, seemingly because he does not want to have to kill in front of a child, or risk provoking the evildoers into more extreme action against those he is trying to protect.

The addition of Ichi slipping and falling on the stairs at the end of the movie really showcases his vulnerability, reminding us that even heroes stumble.

One of the female characters, the wife of the innkeeper, demonstrates even more strength than the women in other films of this series: Though they beat and threaten her, she is able to stand up to her harassers.

Many other characters are given a great deal of depth, which allows us to have a better understanding of their motives, adding dimension and accentuating their flaws to make them interesting. For example, the scorn shown by the child (whose previous admiration and emulation bordered on reverence) when Ichi allows himself to be punched, kicked, and humiliated instead of killing his tormentors as he easily could. Another example is the prostitute's judgment of her love in calling him a drunk and her subsequent lapse into drunkenness after his death.

The silhouette scene, which includes fighting and drumming against a dusky sky, is tremendously beautiful.

As in other Ichi films, extremely creative and surprising swordplay is featured such as the tip of a lit candle balanced perfectly on the end of a sword to illuminate the faces of the "animal" bullies, slicing a hilt from its blade while the sword is still in the scabbard at his opponent's waist, taking out several bad guys while protecting the child in his arms, and deftly cutting the bonds of the innkeeper's wife without causing her injury.

Finally, the sadness in our hero's face at the number of people he is forced to kill in this movie is extremely exquisite and touching, and seems to be more intense than similar emotions he expresses in other adventures. We feel Ichi's pain very deeply from what he is forced to do at this stage in his journey, particularly when he kills the samurai.

Though there is sadness in this story, it is one of the most interesting, surprising, and beautifully filmed movies of the Zatoichi series.

J.H. Sweet, author of The Fairy Chronicles, and Zatoichi fan.

With the slew of well known asian films from the likes of Kurosawa, Tsui Hark, ect. it is easy to overlook these precious gems known as the Zatoichi series. Truly incredible, Shintaro Katsu owns this role and plays the part so damned well you'd swear he must have walked around every day of his life carrying a cane sword and pretending to be blind. The swordplay scenes are some of the greatest I have ever witnessed and I've seen it all. They are so realistic and provide a nice counterpoint to the frantic flying wirework approach of the chinese. If you are a fan of Japanese cinema you owe it to yourself to see these films. I guarantee you will be utterly captivated from start to finish.

Movie #13, Zatoichi's Vengeance starts out with a rare found - a town where there are no gamblers! Well, it started out clean but by the time Zatoichi gets there he finds out that the gangsters are moving in, demanding money in return for allowing the businesses to continue to function unharmed. Zatoichi is only in town because he ran into a murder - one of those following the wishes of the dead man plots. Common really. But he gets involved with more than he bargained for - which is also common really. Some of the acting, on the other hand, is not that common. The Samurai character isn't good nor evil, the use of the drums during the final battle was an amazing idea, and the blind priest brings an added view point to the events. Could they have been solved without drawing swords? Is there more than one way to deal with the gangs? Can Zatoichi put down his sword cane and find peace?

ZATOICHI NO UTA GA KIKOERU (1966, dir. Tokuzo Tanaka) is feature film number 13. ("The Blind Swordsman's Vengeance", a.k.a. "Showdown for Zatoichi") I'm not sure what happens here, but I understand episode #10 also shares the same reviews.

Let me encapsulate episode #10 (ZATOICHI NIDAN-GIRI, THE BLIND SWORDSMAN'S REVENGE, which is why it is confused with #13, VENGEANCE): Ichi returns to the little village where he studied massage, to find his old master, Hiko-no-Ichi, murdered, the master's daughter captive in a brothel, and a plot to bring the village under control.

There. Now that is out of the way.

In #13, for the first and only time, Ichi encounters a blind travel companion: a Buddhist priest, who is clearly Ichi from another dimension in another age. The biwa-playing priest correctly surmises (falling a wee bit short) that Ichi must have been able to see until he was at least 5 or 6. After some swordplay, the blind priest concludes that Ichi is a sort of tormented spooky spirit, who is neither blind nor sighted.

At the beginning, Ichi encounters another version of himself, a young man named Tamekichi, cut down on his way home. This man bears a version of Ichi's name. His home village, as Ichi discovers, also bears a form of Ichi's name, and the little boy--the murdered man's son--is named Ta-ichi, "Big Ichi". Yet another parallel-universe character! Incredible that anyone thought of such a plot back then.

Naturally Ichi has to shield the boy and hand over the money destined for the family, which the dying young man had asked Ichi to take to them. Fatefully, the priest and Ichi, having crossed paths, stay close to each other. At one point, the priest scolds Ichi for killing in front of the boy. The heart of a child, once stained, is hard to purify. What a lesson! What a set of lessons!

In this picture, the villains only matter because they show the origins of Ichi's hot temper and lightning sword-draw. During a walk with Ta-Ichi, he holds a candle up to the villains' faces at night and asks the boy, "They ALMOST look human, don't they? But they're not." Ichi is ready to kill but he restrains himself, in order to get Ta-ichi safely back home.

This is my favorite of favorites in the Ichi films, because this shows us Ichi's life reflected in a way--as it also shows us versions of Ichi, what he might have been, had he not been blind; what he was as a child (he too was raised by his grandmother as Ta-ichi will be); what he might still be able to become as an old man (a peaceful Buddhist priest, albeit with a hot temper).

I always encourage this particular film to first-time Zatoichi enthusiasts, so they can see all that cinematic glory at its height. This film dates from the "golden age" of the popularity of the 26-feature-film series. GET THIS and BE SURE it is #13 as I have described it to you. There is no better film to get a fan fully hooked on this amazing, century-ahead-of-its-time character and the genius of 1960s Japanese cinema.

A final note: buy as many of the original film DVDs as you can while they are still in plentiful stock. I have a feeling once they're gone, they're GONE.

This is a good movie , if you like Zatoishi is perfect for your collection.

This film introduces the memorable character of a blind monk who is Zatoichi's better in terms of using his non-sight senses. This offers and interesting glimpse into Zato's world as a blind man and the blind in general during pre-modern Japan.

Zato, as usual, finds himself caught up in some injustice and sorts things out with his sword. This is another beautifully done entrant into Ichi lore.

The 13th entry of Zatoichi starring Shintaro Katsu is a truly excellent film. The title, ZATOICHI'S VENGEANCE, is also an apt title for this wonderful film. Zatoichi meets a travelling, blind priest who questions Zatoichi's life: By telling Ichi to put away his sword. And although the ending is predictable as far a the Zatoichi series goes, this one adds a little more depth to the character Ichi, and the character actors in the film as well.

One of the many highlights of the film is when the villians who take on Zatoichi, do so with more intelligence than one would expect. For example, they beat upon drums to confuse his heightened sense of awareness--knowing that his ears have become his eyes, so to speak. About time someone figured that out. He has definetly become a feared and respected opponent. His reputation has become too well known, and no longer is he some blind masseur who can be easily slain.

Also, when Ichi is being beaten up in the film by the villians, he does not act against his agressors. He is protecting the young boy in his charge with more than just physical abuse by not reacting: Ichi does not want to show violence in front of the child. Maybe to set an example for the young boy? The young boy in the film looks up to Ichi. Is Ichi trying to set an example by turning the other cheek? As with the end of the film, when Ichi leaves the child, he does so for the boys sake. He knows that he is not the example the boy needs in his life. And as such, he shows that he is truly an example of a decent and honorable swordsman, whom others should have emulated. Highly recommended. [Stars: 5+]

NOTICE: VOL.#14, ZATOICHI'S PILGRIMAGE [ZATOCIHI UMI O WATARU] has not been released to my knowledge in the USA. Hopefully it will. I don't know why it has not been released.