Zatōichi (2003 film)
| Zatōichi | |
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 Japanese theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Takeshi Kitano |
| Produced by | Masayuki Mori Tsunehisa Saitō |
| Screenplay by | Takeshi Kitano |
| Story by | Kan Shimozawa (novel) |
| Starring | Beat Takeshi Tadanobu Asano Michiyo Okusu Yui Natsukawa Guadalcanal Taka Daigoro Tachibana Yuko Daike Ittoku Kishibe Saburo Ishikura Akira Emoto |
| Music by | Keiichi Suzuki |
| Cinematography | Katsumi Yanagishima |
| Editing by | Takeshi Kitano Yoshinori Ōta |
| Studio | Bandai Visual Tokyo FM Dentsu TV Asahi Saitō Entertainment Office Kitano |
| Distributed by | Shochiku Office Kitano |
| Release date(s) | September 2, 2003 (Venice) September 6, 2003 (Japan) |
| Running time | 116 minutes |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
| Box office | $32,285,593 [1] |
Zatōichi (座頭市) is a 2003 Japanese samurai drama and action film, directed, written, co-edited, and starring Takeshi Kitano ("Beat" Takeshi) as his eleventh film.[2] Kitano plays the role of the blind swordsman.
The film is a revival of the classic Zatōichi series of samurai film and television dramas. It premiered on September 3, 2003 at the Venice Film Festival, where it won the prestigious Silver Lion for Best Director award, and went on to numerous other awards both at home and abroad. It also stars Tadanobu Asano, Michiyo Okusu, Yui Natsukawa, Guadalcanal Taka, Daigorō Tachibana, Yuko Daike, Ittoku Kishibe, Saburo Ishikura, and Akira Emoto.
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[edit] Plot
The film's plot follows a traditional theme, with Zatōichi coming to the defense of townspeople caught up in a local Yakuza gang war and being forced to pay excessive amounts of protection money. Meanwhile, Zatōichi befriends a local farmer and her gambler nephew and eventually offers his assistance to two geisha siblings (one of whom is actually a man) who are seeking revenge for the murder of their parents. The siblings are the only survivors of a massacre that was carried out on their family estate in order to obtain large sums of money ten years ago. They soon discover the people responsible for the murders are the same Yakuza wreaking havoc on the small town.
After slicing his way through an army of henchmen with his shikomizue, Zatōichi defeats the Yakuzas' bodyguard, a powerful ronin, in a duel. Zatōichi later wanders into town and confronts the Yakuza bosses, killing the second-in-command and blinding the elderly Yakuza boss (who had been masquerading as a bumbling old waiter up until this point) after opening his eyes for the first time and giving the boss the impression that he has been able to see the entire time. The film ends with a dance number led by noted Japanese tap dance troupe The Stripes, and Zatōichi walking down a trail and tripping over a rock, saying "Even with my eyes wide open, I can't see anything."
[edit] Cast
- Beat Takeshi as Zatōichi
- Tadanobu Asano as the ronin Hattori Gennosuke
- Michiyo Okusu as O-Ume, the farmer
- Yui Natsukawa as O-Shino, Hattori's wife
- Daigorō Tachibana as O-Sei
- Taichi Saotome as young O-Sei
- Yuuko Daike as O-Kinu
- Guadalcanal Taka as Shinkichi
[edit] Awards
- 2003, September 6, Venice Film Festival, Silver Lion for Best Direction, Venice [2][3]
- 2003, Audience Award Leone Del Pubblico, Venice [2]
- 2003, September 14, 28th International Toronto Film Festival, Audience Award AGF People's Choice Award, Toronto [2][3]
- 2003, London Film Festival [2]
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Official website
- Zatoichi at the Internet Movie Database
- Zatōichi at AllRovi
- Zatoichi at Rotten Tomatoes
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