#679t: OKAMOTO, Kihachi: Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo (1970)

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OKAMOTO, Kihachi (Japan)
Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo [1970]
Spine #679t
Blu-ray


After a two-year absence from screens, the blind swordsman returns in one of his best adventures. Zatoichi treks to a village that has always been a favorite spot of his, only to discover that it's become a living hell, plagued by feuding father and son yakuza as well as the younger crime boss's bodyguard — Toshiro Mifune's scruffy, smart-mouthed, cash-hungry Yojimbo of legend. This is the sole Zatoichi effort from celebrated director Kihachi Okamoto, who supplies satirical vision and stylistic panache worthy of the two iconic characters at the film's center.

115 minutes
Color
Monaural
in Japanese
2:35:1 aspect ratio
Criterion Release 2013
Director/Writers


Original story by Kan Shimozawa.
Screenplay by Kihachi Okamoto and Tetsuro Yoshida.
Okamoto was 47 when he directed Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo.

Other Okamoto films in the Collection:

#280: Sword Of Doom (1966)
#313: Kill! (1968)

The Film

Film Rating (0-60):

60

The Extras

The Booklet

100-page booklet featuring an essay by Geoffrey O’Brien and the original story, The Tale of Zatoichi by Shimozawa.

Commentary

None.

Extras Rating (0-40):

39

60 + 39 =

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