NYC Weekend Watch is our weekly round-up of repertory offerings.
Roxy Cinema
Parajanov’s Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors plays on Friday; “City Dudes” returns on Saturday, while Space Jam screens on 35mm this Sunday.
Film Forum
Le Samouraï screens in a new 4K restoration; Hondo’s West Indies and the Belmondo-led Classe tous risques continue playing in new 4K restorations; Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein plays on Sunday.
Paris Theater
A dual retrospective of Steven Zaillian and Patricia Highsmith brings films by Hitchcock, Fincher, Scorsese, Haynes, Wenders, and more.
Anthology Film Archives
The films of Med Hondo play in a massive retrospective, while The Story of a Three Day Pass plays in “Americans in Paris.”
Film at Lincoln Center
The films of Wojciech Has continue screening.
Museum of the Moving Image
The Last Temptation of Christ screens on Friday and Saturday; Ang Lee’s The Wedding Banquet plays on 35mm...
Roxy Cinema
Parajanov’s Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors plays on Friday; “City Dudes” returns on Saturday, while Space Jam screens on 35mm this Sunday.
Film Forum
Le Samouraï screens in a new 4K restoration; Hondo’s West Indies and the Belmondo-led Classe tous risques continue playing in new 4K restorations; Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein plays on Sunday.
Paris Theater
A dual retrospective of Steven Zaillian and Patricia Highsmith brings films by Hitchcock, Fincher, Scorsese, Haynes, Wenders, and more.
Anthology Film Archives
The films of Med Hondo play in a massive retrospective, while The Story of a Three Day Pass plays in “Americans in Paris.”
Film at Lincoln Center
The films of Wojciech Has continue screening.
Museum of the Moving Image
The Last Temptation of Christ screens on Friday and Saturday; Ang Lee’s The Wedding Banquet plays on 35mm...
- 3/29/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSSian Heder's Coda took home the Best Picture award at the 94th Academy Awards, Ryusuke Hamaguchi's Drive My Car took Best International Feature, and Jane Campion won Best Director for The Power of the Dog. Find more of this year's Oscars winners here. We're saddened by the loss of Japanese filmmaker Shinji Aoyama, who recently died at the age of 57. Most revered for his 2000 film Eureka, about a trio who embark on a road trip after surviving a bus hijacking, Aoyama continued his humanist exploration of violence, family, and generation gaps in films like Desert Moon (2001) and Sad Vacation (2007), the loose sequel to Eureka. He was also a prolific novelist and critic, with his novelization of Eureka awarded the Yukio Mishima prize in 2001. Il Cinema Ritrovato has announced the programs of this year's festivities,...
- 3/30/2022
- MUBI
The Daimajin Trilogy
Blu ray – All Region
Arrow Films
1966
Starring Miwa Takada, Kojiro Hongo, Hideki Ninomiya
Cinematography by Fujio Morita, Shozo Tanaka, Hiroshi Imai
Directed by Kimiyoshi Yasuda, Kenji Misumi, Kazuo Mori
Japanese monsters seem to bring out the best in home video companies—Arrow Films’ The Daimajin Trilogy is the most beautifully wrought Blu ray release since Criterion’s momentous Godzilla set. Though the films themselves don’t match the kaleidoscopic allure of Matt Frank’s cover illustrations, the Daimajin movies remain rousing entertainment for both monster-crazy kids and seasoned movie fans who should appreciate the sky-scraping samurai’s exciting if utterly predictable adventures.
Predictable, because each film in the trilogy is essentially the same movie—same beginning, same middle, same end. Utterly predictable but then so are the Bond films—the lack of any real surprises is fundamental to their comfort food aesthetic. Produced one after another in...
Blu ray – All Region
Arrow Films
1966
Starring Miwa Takada, Kojiro Hongo, Hideki Ninomiya
Cinematography by Fujio Morita, Shozo Tanaka, Hiroshi Imai
Directed by Kimiyoshi Yasuda, Kenji Misumi, Kazuo Mori
Japanese monsters seem to bring out the best in home video companies—Arrow Films’ The Daimajin Trilogy is the most beautifully wrought Blu ray release since Criterion’s momentous Godzilla set. Though the films themselves don’t match the kaleidoscopic allure of Matt Frank’s cover illustrations, the Daimajin movies remain rousing entertainment for both monster-crazy kids and seasoned movie fans who should appreciate the sky-scraping samurai’s exciting if utterly predictable adventures.
Predictable, because each film in the trilogy is essentially the same movie—same beginning, same middle, same end. Utterly predictable but then so are the Bond films—the lack of any real surprises is fundamental to their comfort food aesthetic. Produced one after another in...
- 8/14/2021
- by Charlie Largent
- Trailers from Hell
The overall nineteenth entry into the popular “Zatoichi”-franchise marked also the return of director Kenji Misumi into the series, who had started it back in 1962 with “The Tale of Zatoichi”. It also is a return to form for the story of the blind swordsman, especially after the excellent “Zatoichi and the Fugitives”, which was released in 1968 as well. While this previous feature shed some light into one of the core internal conflicts of the main character, Misumi’s movie not only included the typical ingredients of the series, but also emphasizes the way Zatoichi deals with the repercussions of the code he lives by, which is still the one by the yakuza. It is never truly addressed, for example, why the blind masseur, who has killed and maimed various yakuza bosses and their men for violating these principles, still seems to stick to these codes, which has caused nothing but harm thus far.
- 8/8/2021
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
Hello, everyone! To kick off this month’s horror and sci-fi home media releases, we have an eclectic array of titles coming out this week. In terms of recent genre films, Rlje Films is releasing both Lucky by Natasha Kermani and Simon Barrett’s Seance on Tuesday, and if you’re a fan of the original Transformers movie (like this writer is), Shout! Factory has put together an incredible-looking Steelbook to celebrate the film’s 35th anniversary as well.
Arrow Video is keeping busy with two different sets of genre classics with their Sergio Martino Collection and The Daimajin Trilogy, and Code Red is showing some love to Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker this Tuesday with a special edition Blu-ray release.
Other titles headed home on August 3rd include Night Feeder, Dead Again, It Wants Blood, and Tailgate.
Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker Aka Night Warning: Special Edition
Terror begins when a...
Arrow Video is keeping busy with two different sets of genre classics with their Sergio Martino Collection and The Daimajin Trilogy, and Code Red is showing some love to Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker this Tuesday with a special edition Blu-ray release.
Other titles headed home on August 3rd include Night Feeder, Dead Again, It Wants Blood, and Tailgate.
Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker Aka Night Warning: Special Edition
Terror begins when a...
- 8/2/2021
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
After the sprawling success of the first film, Daiei Studios returned to the fabled stone warrior Daimajin for a second round of feudal-set tokusatsu action. Bringing even more storyline elements from the Jewish fable of the Golem into the picture than the first film, jidaigeki master Kenji Misumi manages to produce a no less entertaining but far less impactful retelling, in a different location in this second entry in the trilogy, available in a Blu-Ray collection from Arrow Video.
After conquering a village, evil warlord Danjo (Takashi Kanda) sets his sights on another one by the lakeside. He kidnaps village local Katsushige Nakoshi (Koichi Uenoyama) and offers an ultimatum to the villagers to hand over one of their protectors, Lord Juro (Kojiro Hongo), in exchange for the release of Katsushige. However, Lord Juro, his sister Sayuri (Shiho Fujimura and the brave people of the village defy the...
After conquering a village, evil warlord Danjo (Takashi Kanda) sets his sights on another one by the lakeside. He kidnaps village local Katsushige Nakoshi (Koichi Uenoyama) and offers an ultimatum to the villagers to hand over one of their protectors, Lord Juro (Kojiro Hongo), in exchange for the release of Katsushige. However, Lord Juro, his sister Sayuri (Shiho Fujimura and the brave people of the village defy the...
- 7/27/2021
- by Don Anelli
- AsianMoviePulse
The Daimajin Trilogy will be available on Blu-ray July 27th from Arrow Video
The Daimajin Trilogy saw Daieis Kyoto studios bringing its own iconic movie monster to life in a unique but short-lived series that transplants the Golem legend to Japans Warring States period of the late-16th century.
In Daimajin, directed by Kimiyoshi Yasuda, the young son and daughter of the benevolent feudal lord Hanabusa flee to the mountains when their parents are slain by the treacherous usurper Odate. Ten years later, when the elderly priestess who has harbored them is also murdered, the rage of the slumbering ancient god that lies beneath the crumbling giant stone idol hidden deep in the forests in the mountains is invoked. In Return of Daimajin, Kenji Misumi brings his usual stylistic flourish, as the wrathful deity is roused from his new home on an island in the middle of a lake by...
The Daimajin Trilogy saw Daieis Kyoto studios bringing its own iconic movie monster to life in a unique but short-lived series that transplants the Golem legend to Japans Warring States period of the late-16th century.
In Daimajin, directed by Kimiyoshi Yasuda, the young son and daughter of the benevolent feudal lord Hanabusa flee to the mountains when their parents are slain by the treacherous usurper Odate. Ten years later, when the elderly priestess who has harbored them is also murdered, the rage of the slumbering ancient god that lies beneath the crumbling giant stone idol hidden deep in the forests in the mountains is invoked. In Return of Daimajin, Kenji Misumi brings his usual stylistic flourish, as the wrathful deity is roused from his new home on an island in the middle of a lake by...
- 6/14/2021
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
With the Zatoichi series running out of steam (there would be only two more of those releasing after 1972), actor/producer/director Shintaro Katsu and his newly formed production house Katsu Productions were looking to kickstart a new series of chanbara films as leading vehicles for the star, as well as to keep the company functioning. For this purpose, they turned their eye towards a gekiga (Japanese version of a graphic novel) by writer Kazuo Koike, an outlandish tale of an Edo-era law enforcer. For the first one, Katsu called upon Kenji Misumi, the director with the most directing credits on the Zatoichi features, and regular cinematographer Chikashi Makiura to lend their vision to this new tale. If, however, you go into the Hanzo films expecting anything similar to Zatoichi, you’re in for a very rude surprise!
This is the story of Hanzo Itami, an incorruptible magistrate...
This is the story of Hanzo Itami, an incorruptible magistrate...
- 3/5/2021
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
After the more serious and political tones of “Zatoichi the Outlaw” the overall seventeenth installment of the popular franchise, “Zatoichi Challenged”, would return the story of the blind swordsman to its formula somewhat. The feature also saw the return of Kenji Misumi in his fourth entry into the series, which, for those familiar with the director’s body of work, could be regarded as a precursor to his famous “Lone Wolf and Cub”-saga. However, despite it being a deviation from the last movie, the audience would nevertheless catch a glimpse into the character of Zatoichi, namely his idea of issues such as responsibility and obligation as he again needs to take care of a child for a large part of the story. Apart from these aspects, “Zatoichi Challenged”, as the title already implies, sees the blind masseur facing an opponent who might be able to match his skills.
Buy...
Buy...
- 3/2/2021
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
After “,The Tale of Zatoichi”, the first story of the now-legendary blind masseuse swordsman, and “Fight, Zatoichi, Fight”, one of the best entries in the whole series, director Kenji Misumi returned for the third time in as many years with another interesting entry, “Zatoichi and the Chess Expert”.
Zatoichi heads to Honshu Island by boat, on which he manages to win a lot of money gambling and also meets and befriends Tadasu Jumonji, an expert Shogi chess player and swordsman. Once he reaches Honshu Island though, a group of swordsmen, who Zatoichi won against in a game of dice on the boat journey, ambush him and a tussle ensues. Ichi ends up kicking a man who falls down a storey and lands near little Miki, severely injuring her foot. Feeling responsible for her pain, Ichi promises her aunt Otane to go to the nearby village and get Miki the medicine she needs,...
Zatoichi heads to Honshu Island by boat, on which he manages to win a lot of money gambling and also meets and befriends Tadasu Jumonji, an expert Shogi chess player and swordsman. Once he reaches Honshu Island though, a group of swordsmen, who Zatoichi won against in a game of dice on the boat journey, ambush him and a tussle ensues. Ichi ends up kicking a man who falls down a storey and lands near little Miki, severely injuring her foot. Feeling responsible for her pain, Ichi promises her aunt Otane to go to the nearby village and get Miki the medicine she needs,...
- 6/22/2020
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
As the immensely successful Zatoichi-franchise enters its ninth installment, there is always the question of what can be done further with a character that was so beloved and popular with a wide audience. Whereas the information about the blind masseur and master swordsman has been sparse for many films in the series, Kenji Misumi’s “Fight, Zatoichi, Fight!”, which was released in the same year as Kimiyoshi Yasuda second film within the overall series, gives more hints as to the story behind the character, played by Shintaro Katsu. Although fans of Katsu’s role might certainly applaud the idea, there is always the danger of giving away too much and making the character banal and rather boring. However, similar to Misumi’s previous film in the franchise, Yasuda’s movie manages tell an entertaining story containing the famous trademarks of the series while also adding a few strokes to...
- 4/8/2020
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
After kickstarting the whole franchise in 1962’s “The Tale of Zatoichi”, director Kenji Misumi wouldn’t return to the series until two years later for the eight film and the third of 1964, “Fight, Zatoichi, Fight”, and in the process ended up creating one of the finest adventures for our blind hero.
Among the many, many people that want to kill Zatoichi for various reasons, is also a group of assassins that see Ichi get into a palanquin and decide to kill him once the palanquin reaches a secluded spot. However, just as he is about to sit inside, the ever-chivalrous Ichi ends up giving his ride to woman who is travelling with a baby in arms. Unaware of this fact, the assassins riddle the palanquin with their swords, killing the woman. When Zatoichi learns of this from the palanquin bearers, he rushes to the scene and, taking the boy in his arms,...
Among the many, many people that want to kill Zatoichi for various reasons, is also a group of assassins that see Ichi get into a palanquin and decide to kill him once the palanquin reaches a secluded spot. However, just as he is about to sit inside, the ever-chivalrous Ichi ends up giving his ride to woman who is travelling with a baby in arms. Unaware of this fact, the assassins riddle the palanquin with their swords, killing the woman. When Zatoichi learns of this from the palanquin bearers, he rushes to the scene and, taking the boy in his arms,...
- 4/6/2020
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
Probably Tom Mes’s biggest trait as a writer is the fact that he manages to combine academic-level analysis with a style of writing that is quite easy to read. This has been exhibited in his previous book about Takashi Miike, Shinya Tsukamoto and Meiko Kaji, but seems to have found its apogee in his latest effort, about the cult-samurai movie series, “Lone Wolf and Cub”.
To begin with, the research is as thorough as possible and spares no detail about not only the movies, but every aspect that surrounds them. In that fashion, the first part of the book begins with the story of the manga and its two creators, Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima, continues with the concept of Bushido and its presentation (and deconstruction) in Japanese cinema, and concludes with the life stories of director Kenji Misumi, who directed the first three entries, and Tomisaburo Wakayama,...
To begin with, the research is as thorough as possible and spares no detail about not only the movies, but every aspect that surrounds them. In that fashion, the first part of the book begins with the story of the manga and its two creators, Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima, continues with the concept of Bushido and its presentation (and deconstruction) in Japanese cinema, and concludes with the life stories of director Kenji Misumi, who directed the first three entries, and Tomisaburo Wakayama,...
- 3/20/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Within the world of sports, when observing athletes competing in a race or training their bodies for the occasion, no one would deny the closeness of concepts such as purity and clarity in these images. Even though the world around us may be mostly chaotic, a mirror at times of our lives, the idea of sports, their clear aims and requirements are often what attracts people to join a sports club or at least go to the gym. At the same time, these images of purity have opened the door for interpretations driven by questionable or controversial ideologies, if we think, for example, of the way director Leni Riefenstahl portrays athletes following a deeply fascist agenda. In a similar way, the idea of perfecting the body and the mind, preparing the body to reach a state of absolute purity can also be found in the writings of author Yukio Mishima,...
- 3/15/2020
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
In an interview with IndieWire back in 1996, one year before the death of the famous Zatoichi actor Shintaro Katsu, Takashi Miike said “I plan to make some sort of jidai-geki. Traditional with kimonos, swords and Samurais, as “Lone Wold and Cub” or “Zatoichi”. Its going to be for all of the family. It will be a mixture of Shakespeare and Samurais.” He intended to cast Takeshi Kitano for the lead, but Kitano wanted to direct the movie himself and so Miike got kicked out of the project that he once started. Kitano continued the production and finally released “Zatoichi – The Blind Swordsman” in 2003.
But Miike, not known for being work-shy, picks up his idea again in 2007 to direct a stage play with Sho Aikawa as Ichi. In addition to crowd-pleasers like “Crows Zero” (2007), “Sukiyaki Western Django” (2007), and “Like a Dragon” (2007), Miike’s turn to the traditional Japanese theatre, Kabuki, proofs...
But Miike, not known for being work-shy, picks up his idea again in 2007 to direct a stage play with Sho Aikawa as Ichi. In addition to crowd-pleasers like “Crows Zero” (2007), “Sukiyaki Western Django” (2007), and “Like a Dragon” (2007), Miike’s turn to the traditional Japanese theatre, Kabuki, proofs...
- 2/28/2020
- by Alexander Knoth
- AsianMoviePulse
From April 10 to April 25 2020 Japan Society will present its new series which follows the topic of sports within the landscape of Japanese cinema.
“Like cinema, sports have been integral to the development of modern Japan since the late 19th century when the country opened its borders to the West. Intersecting these two major cultural forces is the multifaceted and ubiquitous sports film, a fluid genre that offers fascinating insight into issues related to Japanese national identity, gender roles and the clash between tradition and modernity. Organized in anticipation of the Tokyo 2020 Summer Games, this series celebrates the Japanese sports film in its myriad iterations—covering a wide range of athletic disciplines and filmmaking styles, from wartime Japan to the present—including classics, documentaries, anime and commercial crowd-pleasers.”
Screenings:
“Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t” by Masayuki Suo
“Sanshiro Sugata” by Akira Kurosawa
“I Will Buy You” by Masaki Kobayashi
“The Sword...
“Like cinema, sports have been integral to the development of modern Japan since the late 19th century when the country opened its borders to the West. Intersecting these two major cultural forces is the multifaceted and ubiquitous sports film, a fluid genre that offers fascinating insight into issues related to Japanese national identity, gender roles and the clash between tradition and modernity. Organized in anticipation of the Tokyo 2020 Summer Games, this series celebrates the Japanese sports film in its myriad iterations—covering a wide range of athletic disciplines and filmmaking styles, from wartime Japan to the present—including classics, documentaries, anime and commercial crowd-pleasers.”
Screenings:
“Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t” by Masayuki Suo
“Sanshiro Sugata” by Akira Kurosawa
“I Will Buy You” by Masaki Kobayashi
“The Sword...
- 2/14/2020
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
In retrospect, the continuing popularity of a character such as Zatoichi, the blind masseur and skilled swordsman, fits within the overall mood of the 1960s. Much like Akira Kurosawa classic “Yojimbo” (1961) the story of an underdog, a man shunned by society, drawn towards the criminal sideways of Japanese society, but following a certain moral compass, Kenji Misumi’s work would also continue to be celebrated by Japanese and international audiences alike. At the same time, given the film’s story, it becomes obvious Daei studios never imagined the story of this character would resonate within Japanese people. Kenji Misumi, who would also direct some of the most impressive entries within the “Lone Wolf and Cub”-series, together with this main star Shintaro Katsu, had given birth to one of the most iconic characters of Japanese cinema.
Impressed by his skills as a swordsman, yakuza gang leader Sukegoro...
Impressed by his skills as a swordsman, yakuza gang leader Sukegoro...
- 11/27/2019
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
Perhaps it is one of the great ironies in the career of Japanese director Kihachi Okamoto that a film he was forced to do was going to be his most memorable one. In a filmography consisting of titles such as “Samurai Assassin” (1965), “Kill!” (1968) and “The Human Bullet” (1968), the director’s 1966-film “The Sword of Doom” stands out as one of the bleakest jidaigeki movies. Based on the novel “Daibosatsu toge” by Kaizan Nakazato, which had already inspired many adaptations, for example, one by “Lone Wolf and Cub”-director Kenji Misumi, Kihachi Okamoto made a film which reflected the trends of the Japanese film industry of that time but is also one of the most interesting portrayals of a man, a world consumed by violence and madness.
At the center of the film, we have Ryunosuke Tsukue (Tatsuya Nakadai), a master swordsman wandering the country, and his life...
At the center of the film, we have Ryunosuke Tsukue (Tatsuya Nakadai), a master swordsman wandering the country, and his life...
- 10/29/2019
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
Leaff is back this year on the 24th of October until the 3rd of November, with a rich and articulated programme, including more than 60 titles from 11 countries East and Southeast Asia! Check out the titles now.
Opening Gala
Exit
Exit | Lee Sang Geun | Korea | 2019 | 103 mins
_______________________
Leaff Official Selection
Nina Wu
A Girl Missing | Koji Fukada | Japan | 2019 | 111 mins
The Wild Goose Lake | Diao Yinan | China | 2019 | 113 mins
Europe Raiders | Jingle Ma | Hong Kong | 2018 | 100 mins
To the Ends of the Earth | Kiyoshi Kurosawa | Japan | 2019 | 120 mins
Balloon | Pema Tseden | China | 2019 | 102 mins
Rainbow’s Sunset | Joel Lamangan | Philippines | 2019 | 105 mins
Cities of Last Things | Ho Wi-ding | Taiwan | 2019 | 107 mins
Nina Wu | Midi Z | Taiwan | 2019 | 103 mins
The Pool | Ping Lumphapleng | Thailand | 2018 | 91 mins
Long Live the King | Kang Yun-sung | Korea | 2019 | 118 mins
The Science of Fictions | Yosep Anggi Noen | Indonesia, Malaysia | 2019 | 106 mins
_______________________
Competition
Summer of Changsha
All About Ing | Huang Zi | China | 2019 | 110 mins
Another Child | Kim Yoon-seok | Korea | 2019 | 118 min
Deep...
Opening Gala
Exit
Exit | Lee Sang Geun | Korea | 2019 | 103 mins
_______________________
Leaff Official Selection
Nina Wu
A Girl Missing | Koji Fukada | Japan | 2019 | 111 mins
The Wild Goose Lake | Diao Yinan | China | 2019 | 113 mins
Europe Raiders | Jingle Ma | Hong Kong | 2018 | 100 mins
To the Ends of the Earth | Kiyoshi Kurosawa | Japan | 2019 | 120 mins
Balloon | Pema Tseden | China | 2019 | 102 mins
Rainbow’s Sunset | Joel Lamangan | Philippines | 2019 | 105 mins
Cities of Last Things | Ho Wi-ding | Taiwan | 2019 | 107 mins
Nina Wu | Midi Z | Taiwan | 2019 | 103 mins
The Pool | Ping Lumphapleng | Thailand | 2018 | 91 mins
Long Live the King | Kang Yun-sung | Korea | 2019 | 118 mins
The Science of Fictions | Yosep Anggi Noen | Indonesia, Malaysia | 2019 | 106 mins
_______________________
Competition
Summer of Changsha
All About Ing | Huang Zi | China | 2019 | 110 mins
Another Child | Kim Yoon-seok | Korea | 2019 | 118 min
Deep...
- 9/19/2019
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
One doesn’t have to indiscriminately love rogue samurai films to appreciate a well-made entry in the genre, but one does have to be an unabashed Shinya Tsukamoto devotee to find either excitement or pleasure in “Killing.” Less profligately violent than recent works like “Fires on the Plain” or “Kotoko,” the film is a minor entry in the cult director’s hefty oeuvre, set in the 19th century and featuring a skilled lone ronin finding himself unwilling to kill. Most notable for its oddly murky visuals and unimpressive fight sequences, this stripped-down outdoor chamber piece wraps up after 80 minutes and will just as quickly be forgotten.
Reticent ronin Mokunoshin Tsuzuki helps a village of rice farmers with the harvest. To keep nimble, he uses wooden poles to practice his swordsmanship skills with young Ichisuke (Ryusei Maeda), who worships the footloose samurai and dreams of an adventurous life away from the paddies.
Reticent ronin Mokunoshin Tsuzuki helps a village of rice farmers with the harvest. To keep nimble, he uses wooden poles to practice his swordsmanship skills with young Ichisuke (Ryusei Maeda), who worships the footloose samurai and dreams of an adventurous life away from the paddies.
- 9/7/2018
- by Jay Weissberg
- Variety Film + TV
Craig Lines Apr 5, 2017
Marvel? DC? They have their moments, but how about Shogun Assassin, and in turn, the Lone Wolf & Cub movies?
Like most western viewers, I came to the Lone Wolf & Cub series via Shogun Assassin – a recut/mash-up of the first two movies, trimmed to 90 minutes and dubbed into English by a pair of enterprising Andy Warhol acolytes. It was one of the original 'video nasties' in the UK, banned for years, so highly desirable to a kid like me. And it didn’t disappoint. In fact, it was probably the goriest movie on the list.
While it may seem criminal now to butcher a pair of bona fide Japanese classics and completely change their meaning and tone, Shogun Assassin got away with it by being so vibrant and hyperactive. The inappropriate score is a joyful synthesiser meltdown and the spirited dub goes full-pelt, even if what they...
Marvel? DC? They have their moments, but how about Shogun Assassin, and in turn, the Lone Wolf & Cub movies?
Like most western viewers, I came to the Lone Wolf & Cub series via Shogun Assassin – a recut/mash-up of the first two movies, trimmed to 90 minutes and dubbed into English by a pair of enterprising Andy Warhol acolytes. It was one of the original 'video nasties' in the UK, banned for years, so highly desirable to a kid like me. And it didn’t disappoint. In fact, it was probably the goriest movie on the list.
While it may seem criminal now to butcher a pair of bona fide Japanese classics and completely change their meaning and tone, Shogun Assassin got away with it by being so vibrant and hyperactive. The inappropriate score is a joyful synthesiser meltdown and the spirited dub goes full-pelt, even if what they...
- 4/4/2017
- Den of Geek
Stars: Tomisaburo Wakayama, Akihiro Tomikawa, Yunosuke Ito, Go Kato | Written by Kazuo Koike, Tsutomu Nakamura | Directed by Kenji Misumi, Buichi Saito, Yoshiyuki Kuroda
Producing six films across two years (1972-1974) is no mean feat, especially when you consider that they mostly retain their quality throughout. Based on the 28-volume manga series by Kazuo Koike (writer, who adapts for screen) and Goseki Kojima (illustrator), Lone Wolf and Cub is a set of brisk, ultraviolent action-adventure movies, packed with clever ideas, beautiful scenery, and weird characters, set in the Edo period (17th to 19th centuries) of Japan.
Martial arts star Tomisaburo Wakayama plays Itto Ogami (meaning “wolf”), an ex-Shogunate Executioner whose wife is murdered by the fearful Yagyu clan, led by the cruel Retsudo (Yunosuke Ito). Framed and shamed into exile, Ogami takes his son, Daigoro (Akihiro Tomikawa), and hits the road. Not just any road, but the “Demon Way in Hell...
Producing six films across two years (1972-1974) is no mean feat, especially when you consider that they mostly retain their quality throughout. Based on the 28-volume manga series by Kazuo Koike (writer, who adapts for screen) and Goseki Kojima (illustrator), Lone Wolf and Cub is a set of brisk, ultraviolent action-adventure movies, packed with clever ideas, beautiful scenery, and weird characters, set in the Edo period (17th to 19th centuries) of Japan.
Martial arts star Tomisaburo Wakayama plays Itto Ogami (meaning “wolf”), an ex-Shogunate Executioner whose wife is murdered by the fearful Yagyu clan, led by the cruel Retsudo (Yunosuke Ito). Framed and shamed into exile, Ogami takes his son, Daigoro (Akihiro Tomikawa), and hits the road. Not just any road, but the “Demon Way in Hell...
- 3/29/2017
- by Rupert Harvey
- Nerdly
David’s Quick Take for the tl;dr Media Consumer:
Samaritan Zatoichi, the 19th film in the franchise and the fifth of six installments directed by Kenji Misumi (who started off the series with 1962’s original The Tale of Zatoichi) is a solid entry in the series that I can’t say is particularly unique or altogether distinctive from its predecessors. The aspect that stands out the most is that we get to see Zatoichi functioning in a role usually reserved for his backstory, that of a lethal yakuza enforcer, even though his companions in that early scene don’t seem to have any knowledge of his lethal capabilities. To them, he’s just a blind bumbling tagalong who could have just as easily been left behind. But as it turns out, Ichi is the guy who had to deliver the fatal blow to a young hothead who didn’t...
Samaritan Zatoichi, the 19th film in the franchise and the fifth of six installments directed by Kenji Misumi (who started off the series with 1962’s original The Tale of Zatoichi) is a solid entry in the series that I can’t say is particularly unique or altogether distinctive from its predecessors. The aspect that stands out the most is that we get to see Zatoichi functioning in a role usually reserved for his backstory, that of a lethal yakuza enforcer, even though his companions in that early scene don’t seem to have any knowledge of his lethal capabilities. To them, he’s just a blind bumbling tagalong who could have just as easily been left behind. But as it turns out, Ichi is the guy who had to deliver the fatal blow to a young hothead who didn’t...
- 2/5/2017
- by David Blakeslee
- CriterionCast
You'll always be careful with knives after seeing the outrageous, impossibly gory violence of this brain-warping samurai series from the early 1970s. Tomisaburo Wakabayashi rolls his tiny tot Daigoro through feudal Japan, looking for trouble. There's simply been nothing like it: breathtakingly beautiful images aestheticize bloodletting as never before or since. Lone Wolf and Cub Sword of Vengeance, Baby Cart at the River Styx, Baby Cart to Hades, Baby Cart in Peril, Baby Cart in the Land of Demons, White Heaven in Hell + Shogun Assassin Blu-ray The Criterion Collection 841 1972-1974 / Color / 2:40 widescreen / 630 + min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date November 8, 2016 / 99.95 Starring Tomisaburo Wakayama, Akihiro Tomikawa. Written by Kazuo Koike, Goseki Kojima Produced by Shintaro Katsu, Hisaharu Matsubara, Tomisaburo Wakayama Directed by Kenji Misumi, Buichi Saito, Yoshiyuki Kuroda
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
In an unexpected move, Criterion has released one of the most influential Japanese film series of the 1970s,...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
In an unexpected move, Criterion has released one of the most influential Japanese film series of the 1970s,...
- 11/7/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Quentin Tarantino‘s brand of fetishism — the non-foot kind, I mean — is, in some part, an exploration of the cinema on a genre-by-genre basis, and so his filmography has, to my mind, been missing a certain something without a documentary. While he’ll claim there are (maybe) only two features left in him, there’s a chance that one will take that path — or at least have a documentary-like reserve of research behind it.
The subject? 1970. No, not the cinema of the 1970s, a medium-specific topic that’s been covered as much as any, but 1970, a time Quentin Tarantino considers the takeover point for New Hollywood — and it’s fascinated him so much that he’s been poring over and pondering material for four years. So he revealed during a recent masterclass held at Lyon’s Lumière Festival, where the “work in progress” was given this noncommital classification: “Am I going to write a book?...
The subject? 1970. No, not the cinema of the 1970s, a medium-specific topic that’s been covered as much as any, but 1970, a time Quentin Tarantino considers the takeover point for New Hollywood — and it’s fascinated him so much that he’s been poring over and pondering material for four years. So he revealed during a recent masterclass held at Lyon’s Lumière Festival, where the “work in progress” was given this noncommital classification: “Am I going to write a book?...
- 10/14/2016
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
“You are marked for death… wherever you go! You cannot escape the… Shogun!”
Shogun Assassin screens Wednesday, September 7th at Schlafly Bottleworks Restaurant and Bar (7260 Southwest Ave.- at Manchester – Maplewood, Mo 63143) as part of Webster University’s Award-Winning Strange Brew Film Series.
“Send Your Ninjas! I’ll Kill Them All!!! And so he does!! Shogun Assassin (1980) is a bizarre and amazing cult classic samurai film that is apparently pieced together from two longer films in the “Lone Wolf and Cub” Series. From my point of view the viewer would never know this was a composite film and it stands alone as an amazing and strangely hypnotic piece of violent film history. Shogun Assassin has some of the best sword fights ever shot on film. The plot has Lone Wolf (Tomisaburo Wakayama) travelling the countryside, pushing his son, Daigero, ahead of him in a baby cart. The only time he...
Shogun Assassin screens Wednesday, September 7th at Schlafly Bottleworks Restaurant and Bar (7260 Southwest Ave.- at Manchester – Maplewood, Mo 63143) as part of Webster University’s Award-Winning Strange Brew Film Series.
“Send Your Ninjas! I’ll Kill Them All!!! And so he does!! Shogun Assassin (1980) is a bizarre and amazing cult classic samurai film that is apparently pieced together from two longer films in the “Lone Wolf and Cub” Series. From my point of view the viewer would never know this was a composite film and it stands alone as an amazing and strangely hypnotic piece of violent film history. Shogun Assassin has some of the best sword fights ever shot on film. The plot has Lone Wolf (Tomisaburo Wakayama) travelling the countryside, pushing his son, Daigero, ahead of him in a baby cart. The only time he...
- 8/31/2016
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
November tends to be the biggest month of the year for the Criterion Collection, the boutique home video company releasing some of their most exciting releases in time for the holiday shopping season. And, lucky for us, that trend continues in 2016, as Criterion has just revealed this year’s batch of November titles, and the slate includes some absolutely major must-owns. From Paul Thomas Anderson finally joining the Collection (and bringing Adam Sandler along with him!) to a series of samurai films that have never gotten their proper due, these are movies that are worth stampeding for on Black Friday.
Check out Criterion’s full November 2016 slate below, listed in rough order of our excitement for each title. And be sure to visit Criterion’s website for full release info.
1. “Punch-Drunk Love” (dir. Paul Thomas Anderson, 2002). #843
It was only a matter of time before Paul Thomas Anderson finally joined the Criterion Collection,...
Check out Criterion’s full November 2016 slate below, listed in rough order of our excitement for each title. And be sure to visit Criterion’s website for full release info.
1. “Punch-Drunk Love” (dir. Paul Thomas Anderson, 2002). #843
It was only a matter of time before Paul Thomas Anderson finally joined the Criterion Collection,...
- 8/15/2016
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
John Kreng is one of the most hard working actors/stuntman/fight and stunt corrdinators working in the industry today. Through his time working in the movie industry, John has worked with some of the very best which includes Jet Li, Yuen Wah, Tsui Hark, David Carradine, Steven Spielburg and many more outstanding talents.
John Kreng is also the author of the in depth book on screen fighting called Fight Choreography: The Art Of Non Verbal Dialogue, he was a cast member of The Jade Trader which went on to win the most outstanding cast performance award at the 10th Action on film, International film festival. John, also has years of Martial Arts experience behind him, dedicating his time learning many different styles and been taught by some of the very best masters from around the world (Which he will speak about in this interview).
John also worked on the...
John Kreng is also the author of the in depth book on screen fighting called Fight Choreography: The Art Of Non Verbal Dialogue, he was a cast member of The Jade Trader which went on to win the most outstanding cast performance award at the 10th Action on film, International film festival. John, also has years of Martial Arts experience behind him, dedicating his time learning many different styles and been taught by some of the very best masters from around the world (Which he will speak about in this interview).
John also worked on the...
- 12/3/2015
- by kingofkungfu
- AsianMoviePulse
40. Road to Perdition
One of the more surprising and lesser-known facts about Sam Mendes’ second film, Road to Perdition, is that it’s actually adapted from a graphic novel of the same name by Max Allan Collins. The plot follows Michael Sullivan (Tom Hanks), an Irish mob enforcer as he goes on the run with his son Michael Jr. after Jr. witnesses a murder and their family is killed in an effort to cover up any witnesses. There’s many great things in this film that standout, such as Jude Law’s creepy performance as assassin Harlen Maguire, one of Paul Newman’s final and finest performances as mob boss John Rooney, and Hollywood got an early look at the talent of Daniel Craig as the unstable Connor Rooney. However, it’s the climax that remains the most memorable thing in it, featuring some of the most iconic work from...
One of the more surprising and lesser-known facts about Sam Mendes’ second film, Road to Perdition, is that it’s actually adapted from a graphic novel of the same name by Max Allan Collins. The plot follows Michael Sullivan (Tom Hanks), an Irish mob enforcer as he goes on the run with his son Michael Jr. after Jr. witnesses a murder and their family is killed in an effort to cover up any witnesses. There’s many great things in this film that standout, such as Jude Law’s creepy performance as assassin Harlen Maguire, one of Paul Newman’s final and finest performances as mob boss John Rooney, and Hollywood got an early look at the talent of Daniel Craig as the unstable Connor Rooney. However, it’s the climax that remains the most memorable thing in it, featuring some of the most iconic work from...
- 9/2/2015
- by Staff
- SoundOnSight
Cinema is a kind of uber-art form that’s made up of a multitude of other forms of art including writing, directing, acting, drawing, design, photography and fashion. As such, film is, as all cinema aficionados know, a highly collaborative venture.
One of the most consistently fascinating collaborations in cinema is that of the director and actor.
This article will examine some of the great director & actor teams. It’s important to note that this piece is not intended as a film history survey detailing all the generally revered collaborations.
There is a wealth of information and study available on such duos as John Ford & John Wayne, Howard Hawks & John Wayne, Elia Kazan & Marlon Brando, Akira Kurosawa & Toshiro Mifune, Alfred Hitchcock & James Stewart, Ingmar Bergman & Max Von Sydow, Federico Fellini & Giulietta Masina/Marcello Mastroianni, Billy Wilder & Jack Lemmon, Francis Ford Coppola & Al Pacino, Woody Allen & Diane Keaton, Martin Scorsese & Robert DeNiro...
One of the most consistently fascinating collaborations in cinema is that of the director and actor.
This article will examine some of the great director & actor teams. It’s important to note that this piece is not intended as a film history survey detailing all the generally revered collaborations.
There is a wealth of information and study available on such duos as John Ford & John Wayne, Howard Hawks & John Wayne, Elia Kazan & Marlon Brando, Akira Kurosawa & Toshiro Mifune, Alfred Hitchcock & James Stewart, Ingmar Bergman & Max Von Sydow, Federico Fellini & Giulietta Masina/Marcello Mastroianni, Billy Wilder & Jack Lemmon, Francis Ford Coppola & Al Pacino, Woody Allen & Diane Keaton, Martin Scorsese & Robert DeNiro...
- 7/11/2013
- by Terek Puckett
- SoundOnSight
Recent hot cinema topics such as the portrayal of the Mandarin character in Shane Black’s Iron Man 3 and speculations about what classic Star Trek villain Benedict Cumberbatch’s character in J.J Abrams’ Star Trek: Into Darkness was modeled after leading up to the film’s release, among others, underline the importance of great villains in genre cinema.
Creating a great cinematic villain is a difficult goal that makes for an incredibly rewarding and memorable viewer experience when it is achieved.
We’ll now take a look at the greatest film villains. Other writing on this subject tends to be a bit unfocused, as “greatest villain” articles tend to mix live-action human villains with animated characters and even animals. Many of these articles also lack a cohesive quality as they attempt to cover too much ground at once by spanning all of film history.
This article focuses on the 1970’s,...
Creating a great cinematic villain is a difficult goal that makes for an incredibly rewarding and memorable viewer experience when it is achieved.
We’ll now take a look at the greatest film villains. Other writing on this subject tends to be a bit unfocused, as “greatest villain” articles tend to mix live-action human villains with animated characters and even animals. Many of these articles also lack a cohesive quality as they attempt to cover too much ground at once by spanning all of film history.
This article focuses on the 1970’s,...
- 5/19/2013
- by Terek Puckett
- SoundOnSight
In a world that is getting more and more used to streaming their TV shows, their movies and even their lives, one company is known as the king of it all, and that’s Netflix. But Hulu, being around since 2007, has started to gain some steam this past year alone. Then Hulu Plus came along officially in November 2010, and as a monthly paid subscription promised subscribers full seasons of television shows, more episodes of series that were already on the site. When Criterion announced they were partnering with Hulu to showcase their films on the site, we here at CriterionCast were a bit skeptical.
A bit might be treading lightly. As fans, we first thought it was the biggest mistake they could have made. It was from the mindset that the ‘only’ streaming sight out there was Netflix and any other choice was a poor one. Myself being one that...
A bit might be treading lightly. As fans, we first thought it was the biggest mistake they could have made. It was from the mindset that the ‘only’ streaming sight out there was Netflix and any other choice was a poor one. Myself being one that...
- 4/29/2011
- by James McCormick
- CriterionCast
By Spencer Lloyd Peet (www.slpeet.com)
Eureka! Entertainment Ltd has released a Blu-ray and DVD combined two-disc limited edition dual format steelbook of the cult classic blood-spurting Japanese/American film Shogun Assassin. Hailed in the West as one of the most popular samurai films ever, it is a spectacular representation of violence in film as an art form.
The film depicts the story of ronin Itto Ogami (Tomisaburo Wakayama) and his son Daigoro (Akihiro Tomikawa). After the deranged Shogun has Ogami’s wife murdered in an exercise to test the samurai’s loyalty, Ogami abandons his role as official decapitator and, with son in tow who now travels in a wooden cart affixed with hidden lethal weapons, takes up the life of a paid assassin. Lone Wolf and Cub now wander among the wilderness of ancient Japan constantly fending off attacks by ninja spies hired by the Shogun. The...
Eureka! Entertainment Ltd has released a Blu-ray and DVD combined two-disc limited edition dual format steelbook of the cult classic blood-spurting Japanese/American film Shogun Assassin. Hailed in the West as one of the most popular samurai films ever, it is a spectacular representation of violence in film as an art form.
The film depicts the story of ronin Itto Ogami (Tomisaburo Wakayama) and his son Daigoro (Akihiro Tomikawa). After the deranged Shogun has Ogami’s wife murdered in an exercise to test the samurai’s loyalty, Ogami abandons his role as official decapitator and, with son in tow who now travels in a wooden cart affixed with hidden lethal weapons, takes up the life of a paid assassin. Lone Wolf and Cub now wander among the wilderness of ancient Japan constantly fending off attacks by ninja spies hired by the Shogun. The...
- 12/10/2010
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
The production concept behind Shogun Assassin is one that would often immediately put film fan’s noses out of joint but Shogun Assassin is a much loved film and with good reason. Essentially a re-edit and re-dubbing of the first two feature film instalments in the Lone Wolf & Cub series Shogun Assassin was produced as a ‘brand new’ feature for the Us market in 1980.
The film contains approximately twelve minutes of the first Lone Wolf film, Sword of Vengeance, and approximately seventy-five minutes from the second film, Baby Cart at the River Styx (both directed by Kenji Misumi). Director Robert Houston splices various sequences from these films together to create one film that obviously bears a lot of similarities but simplifies and removes plot points in places and drastically alters dialogue. Hiring deaf people to guess at what the characters could be saying Houston then took these approximations and rewrote the script,...
The film contains approximately twelve minutes of the first Lone Wolf film, Sword of Vengeance, and approximately seventy-five minutes from the second film, Baby Cart at the River Styx (both directed by Kenji Misumi). Director Robert Houston splices various sequences from these films together to create one film that obviously bears a lot of similarities but simplifies and removes plot points in places and drastically alters dialogue. Hiring deaf people to guess at what the characters could be saying Houston then took these approximations and rewrote the script,...
- 12/2/2010
- by Craig Skinner
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
New York inhabitants seeking to extend their filmic Japanorama need look no further than the Japan Society's upcoming screening of Kenji Misumi's 1962 breakthrough film, Destiny's Son (Kiru.)
Forming part of their Monthly Classic Series, The Double-Edged Sword: The Chambara Films of Shintaro Katsu and Ichikawa Raizo, Destiny's Son sees Misumi (Zatoichi, Lone Wolf and Cub) set the formidable Raizo Ichikawa on a visually stylistic journey of revenge and redemption.
Destiny's Son screens Friday Feb. 19th at 7.30pm.
See Japan Society for tickets and more info. on current and upcoming events.
Fiona...
Forming part of their Monthly Classic Series, The Double-Edged Sword: The Chambara Films of Shintaro Katsu and Ichikawa Raizo, Destiny's Son sees Misumi (Zatoichi, Lone Wolf and Cub) set the formidable Raizo Ichikawa on a visually stylistic journey of revenge and redemption.
Destiny's Son screens Friday Feb. 19th at 7.30pm.
See Japan Society for tickets and more info. on current and upcoming events.
Fiona...
- 2/3/2010
- by Fiona
- Latemag.com/film
The Shogun's former decapitator-in-chief turns Lone Wolf with his young son as they wander the dusty tracks as masterless samurai, always keeping an eye out for the Shogun's nasty ninja’s.
Shogun Assassin must surely be one of the most infamous video nasties, a product of an age not so long ago but which now seems curiously nostalgic to our desensitised modern eyes. “Blood gushes out all over the screen – as if being hosed into the camera!!” Vipco proudly announces on the cover of it’s previously banned 1980 rehash of the first two instalments of the Baby Cart series, itself a version of the original Lone Wolf and Cub manga comics.
Shogun Assassin is basically a violent repackaging of the Sword of Vengeance and Baby Cart at the River Styx films, edited together to maximise the violence and minimise the story for we bloodthirsty Westerners who, in the golden age of gore,...
Shogun Assassin must surely be one of the most infamous video nasties, a product of an age not so long ago but which now seems curiously nostalgic to our desensitised modern eyes. “Blood gushes out all over the screen – as if being hosed into the camera!!” Vipco proudly announces on the cover of it’s previously banned 1980 rehash of the first two instalments of the Baby Cart series, itself a version of the original Lone Wolf and Cub manga comics.
Shogun Assassin is basically a violent repackaging of the Sword of Vengeance and Baby Cart at the River Styx films, edited together to maximise the violence and minimise the story for we bloodthirsty Westerners who, in the golden age of gore,...
- 8/9/2008
- by Fiona
- Latemag.com/film
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