What an amazing movie! I got this expecting an action packed samurai movie - what I wasn't expecting is for it to be so intense, so fascinating in its exploration of notions of karma. This is one movie that I'd strongly recommend anyone to read up the discussions here - there are some very interesting contributions about the background to the movie, otherwise much of it will be inexplicable to the casual western viewer.
Kihachi Okamoto is not a director whose movies I'd seen before, but apparently he worked with many of the greats from the 1940's onwards. He certainly had an amazing, if very dark vision. This movie is superbly directed, with great pacing, beautifully filmed settings and some staggeringly good action scenes that rank amongst the very best I've ever seen. The story is in many ways unexpected and confusing - this is at least partly due to it being part of a series that was never (sadly) completed. But also it seems that Okamoto's intention was not to produce a simple good vs. bad movie with a satisfying ending. Instead he is much more interested in Buddhist notions of karma and how bad karma infects all around it, dragging people literally into hell (or at least this is my interpretation of that very puzzling, but also memorable ending).
So long as you don't expect the movie to follow a traditional and predictable story arc, I'd strongly recommend it. The directors vision is dark and violent, but it is brilliantly realised. You will not forget Tatsuya Nakadai's disturbed and evil swordsman in a long time and the action sequences are dazzling.
Kihachi Okamoto is not a director whose movies I'd seen before, but apparently he worked with many of the greats from the 1940's onwards. He certainly had an amazing, if very dark vision. This movie is superbly directed, with great pacing, beautifully filmed settings and some staggeringly good action scenes that rank amongst the very best I've ever seen. The story is in many ways unexpected and confusing - this is at least partly due to it being part of a series that was never (sadly) completed. But also it seems that Okamoto's intention was not to produce a simple good vs. bad movie with a satisfying ending. Instead he is much more interested in Buddhist notions of karma and how bad karma infects all around it, dragging people literally into hell (or at least this is my interpretation of that very puzzling, but also memorable ending).
So long as you don't expect the movie to follow a traditional and predictable story arc, I'd strongly recommend it. The directors vision is dark and violent, but it is brilliantly realised. You will not forget Tatsuya Nakadai's disturbed and evil swordsman in a long time and the action sequences are dazzling.