06 Sep 2003
Zatoichi
Blind traveler Zatoichi is a master swordsman and a masseur with a fondness for gambling on dice games. When he arrives in a village torn apart by warring gangs, he sets out to protect the townspeople.
While Traveling
In this film, Hibari plays a dual role as brother and sister. The story involves a journey to Hanagasa for an incognito Lord (Kotaro Satomi) to overthrow an attempted usurpation of his domain, while being harassed by vassals of the usurper (Kensaku Hara). There's also a mysterious ronin played by Jushiro Konoe. The songs are seamlessly woven into the narrative and don't overwhelm the action. While the plot is derivative it is good example of its type and quite enjoyable. Note that there are some flashback sequences in black and white.
Top Billed Cast
北竜二 
近衛十四郎 
美空ひばり 
里見浩太朗 香山武彦 Michiko Nishizaki Keiko Kuga Hizuru Murasaki 富士薫 Akatsuki Saeko Mayumi Katsuyama 坂口祐三郎 
原健策 原田甲子郎 Kazutarō Kuni 
有川正治 Yoshimi Kaneda 
阿波地大輔 Reiji Tsumura Yasushi Ōshiro
Similar movies
Zatoichi Zatoichi Seven Samurai 
Seven Samurai 26 Apr 1954
Seven Samurai
A samurai answers a village's request for protection after he falls on hard times. The town needs protection from bandits, so the samurai gathers six others to help him teach the people how to defend themselves, and the villagers provide the soldiers with food.
Snow on The Blades 
Snow on The Blades 20 Sep 2014
Snow on The Blades
At Sakurada Gate in 1860, the shogun’s chief minister and his retinue of bodyguards are ambushed and annihilated. Bearing the responsibility and shame for this failure is Shimura Kingo, master swordsman and chief of the guard. Forbidden to take his own life in atonement, he is instead tasked with hunting down the remaining assassins; however, fate intervenes and now only one is left. Devoted to his late lord and his duty, he relentlessly pursues the sole remaining assassin for the next thirteen years. But times are changing in Japan and the way of the sword has become outlawed. What does this mean for Kingo?
Shogun's Holiday 
Shogun's Holiday 12 Feb 1958
Shogun's Holiday
During the reign of Hidetada, the second shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty, the advisor Okubo Hikozaemon (Ganjiro Nakamura) entrusts the young Takechiyo (Hiroshi Kawaguchi) to the fishmonger Isshin Tasuke (Kazuo Hasegawa) to help him understand the world. Tasuke, who does not know that Takechiyo is the shogun's heir, trains him harshly. Tasuke's wife Naka (Michiko Ai) is concerned about his harsh teaching style, but Takechiyo gains strength day by day and adapts to his new life. Soon, Takechiyo begins secretly talking about love with a city girl named Otoyo (Hitomi Nozoe), but...
Taikoki - The Saga of Hideyoshi 
Taikoki - The Saga of Hideyoshi 10 Aug 1958
Taikoki - The Saga of Hideyoshi
From birth Hideyoshi was a restless, defiant spirit--a child of the poorest of the poor. Cast out of his peasant cottage, he would live by his wits, driven by his burning ambition to become a samurai and to find a warlord worth pledging his sword to. This is the story of his rise, and the thunderous battle he pinned his hopes on. The challenge that had already ruined and bloodied the armies of higher-ranking samurai than Hiyoshi. The battle that brought him rank, fame and fortune and transformed him into Hashiba Hideyoshi, right-hand man to the ruthless Lord Oda Nobunaga, and would drive him on to conquer Japan.
Kamui 
Kamui 19 Sep 2009
Kamui
A rebellious ninja in 17th century Japan takes refuge with a fisherman and his family.
Minamoto Yoshitsune 
Minamoto Yoshitsune 30 Jul 1955
Minamoto Yoshitsune
A historical scroll depicting the story of the tragic fate of the young samurai Minamoto Yoshitsune, based on the novel by Genzo Murakami. The action of the first part takes place in the late Heian period, when the Taira clan came to power, and Genji was oppressed. The great dream and ambitions of Genkuro Yoshitsune in his youth are depicted, he joins forces with his older brother Yoritomo to raise an army to defeat the Taira clan, and the second part depicts the fall of the clan, persecution and murder.
The Crucified Lovers 
The Crucified Lovers 23 Nov 1954
The Crucified Lovers
When the wife of a 17th century Kyoto scroll-maker is falsely accused of having an affair with his best employee, the pair flee the city and find themselves falling for one another.
Onihei Crime Files: Sutegoro Takahagi 
Onihei Crime Files: Sutegoro Takahagi 18 Jun 2010
Onihei Crime Files: Sutegoro Takahagi
Takahagi Sutegoro is highly skilled at casing locations for thieves so that he can sell detailed floor plans to them. He suffers an injury to his leg while trying to help a parent and a child being threatened by samurai. Heizo jumps in and chases the samurai away. Feeling indebted to Heizo, Sutegoro decides to become his spy. Now, together they will try to stop scheming Myogi Danemon’s gang of merciless thieves...
Iemitsu, Hikoza and Isshin Tasuke - A National Crisis: Edo Castle in Danger 
Iemitsu, Hikoza and Isshin Tasuke - A National Crisis: Edo Castle in Danger 03 Jan 1989
Iemitsu, Hikoza and Isshin Tasuke - A National Crisis: Edo Castle in Danger
Yagyu Jubei, the finest swordsman in the land, is called upon to bare his blade to help Iemitsu keep his post. Meanwhile a fishmonger named Isshin Tasuke who bears an amazing resemblance to Shogun Iemitsu may be called upon to put his life on the line by acting as the Shogun's double. At the same time, the tragic story of Banzuiin Chobei and Mizuno Jurozaemon is unfolding.
Somersault on the Way 
Somersault on the Way 31 Dec 1950
Somersault on the Way
A young boy named Chomatsu (Misora Hibari) lives with an old man Denbei near the grounds of Asakusa temple as bell ringers. In their house is an Echigo lion mask, a memento of Chomatsu's deceased father. After several incidents of Echigo lion masks being destroyed in the area, a local kingpin Saheiji shows up at Denbei's demanded he hand over the mask, a request Denbei rejects out of pity for Chomatsu. However, after it is accidentally revealed that the mask contains an important map, Saheiji plots to steal the mask. Chomatsu gets involved after his mother makes a sudden reappearance that sends the boy on a roundabout journey that will reveal the truth about his family.
History of Jirocho Shimizu 
History of Jirocho Shimizu 03 Mar 1995
History of Jirocho Shimizu
A historical chivalric drama with tears and laughter, telling the story of Jirocho Shimizu's family, his confrontation with Katsuzo Kurokoma's family, right up to the final battle on the Tenryu River to avenge Ishimatsu Mori.
Yojimbo 
Yojimbo 25 Apr 1961
Yojimbo
A nameless ronin, or samurai with no master, enters a small village in feudal Japan where two rival businessmen are struggling for control of the local gambling trade. Taking the name Sanjuro Kuwabatake, the ronin convinces both silk merchant Tazaemon and sake merchant Tokuemon to hire him as a personal bodyguard, then artfully sets in motion a full-scale gang war between the two ambitious and unscrupulous men.
Warau Iemon 
Warau Iemon 07 Feb 2004
Warau Iemon
Having put down his sword and given up the will to fight, the masterless samurai Iemon lives in solitude while being haunted by his violent enigmatic past...
Two Portraits of MIYAGINO 
Two Portraits of MIYAGINO 29 May 2010
Two Portraits of MIYAGINO
In Edo-era Japan, a ukiyo-e artist languishes in his master’s shadow. Creatively stifled, he finds consolation in the company of a prostitute, and becomes entangled in a love triangle. A mystery emerges involving two portraits and the sudden disappearance of the artist Sharaku. Helmed by Cannes-selected director Tatsuji Yamazaki, the film employs kabuki-inspired sequences and stylised sets.
Blizzard Ronin 
Blizzard Ronin 11 Jan 1939
Blizzard Ronin
The film tells about the life of the former vassal of the Ako clan - Fuwa Katsuemon Masatane.
Isshin Tasuke: A Man Among Men 
Isshin Tasuke: A Man Among Men 29 Nov 1959
Isshin Tasuke: A Man Among Men
In the third entry into this mega-hit series, Isshin Tasuke, a spirited fishmonger in Edo who looks just like Shogun Iemitsu undergoes a series of unforeseen troubles in his newly wedded life.
Ugetsu 
Ugetsu 26 Mar 1953
Ugetsu
In 16th century Japan, peasants Genjuro and Tobei sell their earthenware pots to a group of soldiers in a nearby village, in defiance of a local sage's warning against seeking to profit from warfare. Genjuro's pursuit of both riches and the mysterious Lady Wakasa, as well as Tobei's desire to become a samurai, run the risk of destroying both themselves and their wives, Miyagi and Ohama.
When the Last Sword Is Drawn 
When the Last Sword Is Drawn 18 Jan 2003
When the Last Sword Is Drawn
Kanichiro Yoshimura is a Samurai and Family man who can no longer support his wife and children on the the low pay he receives from his small town clan, he is forced by the love for his family to leave for the city in search of higher pay to support them.
Harakiri 
Harakiri 15 Sep 1962
Harakiri
Down-on-his-luck veteran Tsugumo Hanshirō enters the courtyard of the prosperous House of Iyi. Unemployed, and with no family, he hopes to find a place to commit seppuku—and a worthy second to deliver the coup de grâce in his suicide ritual. The senior counselor for the Iyi clan questions the ronin’s resolve and integrity, suspecting Hanshirō of seeking charity rather than an honorable end. What follows is a pair of interlocking stories which lay bare the difference between honor and respect, and promises to examine the legendary foundations of the Samurai code.