Zatoichi (1989)

Original title

座頭市

Directed by

Shintarō Katsu

Genre

yakuza film

Country

Japan

Runtime

1h 56m

Rating

6.4 of 10 from 49 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A blind masseur who is also a master swordsman gets caught up in conflicts with yakuza gangs during the late Edo period. He uses his sharp senses and quick blade to defend himself and protect others.

slow-burntensemelancholicstylizedgroundeddramaticnostalgicaction-driven

What happens

Zatôichi (Japanese: 座頭市), also known as Zatoichi: Darkness Is His Ally, Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman and Shintaro Katsu's Zatoichi, is a 1989 Japanese Chambara film directed by and starring Shintaro Katsu, who also produced and co-wrote the screenplay. It is the twenty-sixth entry in a series of films featuring the blind swordsman Zatoichi, released 16 years after the twenty-fifth film in the series Zatoichi's Conspiracy (1973). The main character is based on a fictional character, a blind masseur and swordmaster created by novelist Kan Shimozawa and set during the late Edo period. Zatoichi is the last film in the original classic saga of Zatoichi (1962–1989). It is also the second time Shintaro Katsu directed a Zatoichi film, and the last time Katsu played the title character on screen. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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