This movie has absolutely nothing to do with the 26 movie series of the great blind character Zatoichi, played by the fantastic Shintaro Katsu, who also plays a blind masseuse in this story. However, the director of this production, Kazuo Mori, later directed 3 Zatoichi films: ''The Tale of Zatoichi Continues'' (the second film in the series), ''Zatoichi and the Doomed Man'' (the eleventh in the series), and ''Zatoichi at Large'' (the twenty-third film from the series).
"The Blind Menace'', made two years before the character Zatoichi's first movie, is a very simple story about a blind man named Suginoichi who has only three goals in his life: to have lots of money, betray and kill everyone around him, and rape as many women as possible.
The first scenes of the film show the character as a child, doing something absolutely silly but disgusting, which made me lose the desire to drink the coffee I was having at that moment. And it is clear to viewers that that child has nothing good being developed inside of him, he is a disgusting, lying, thief, and absolutely mean child. When he becomes an adult, the character progresses in his crimes. In addition to continuing to steal money from others, he also performs a pseudo-massage that leads his victims to death. Now, in addition to being an uncontrollable serial killer, he's also a relentless rapist. As I said before, there is no woman in the movie who is free from being raped by Suginoichi. Lying, betraying, stealing, killing and raping is his life, apart from these ''sports'' of an authentic psychotic, life has no meaning for him. He just doesn't betray his own shadow because that's impossible.
There is a very interesting moment in the story when one of three thieves (not murderers, I must say, just steal), are horrified by the extreme meanness and cowardice that lies within Suginoichi, and then, as they walk away from him, one comments to the another that they should kill him: ''Eliminating a guy like that would be a public service''. Lol...And it's really true, I think it's the perfect phrase, and it sums up what Suginoichi is and deserves: a weed that deserves to be eliminated!
In the final 5 minutes of the film, finally a detective and authorities overpower the serial killer, and he is partially lynched in the street by a maddened and angry mob, and finally, the authorities take him to prison, and the film ends.
Aesthetically the film is very beautiful, I think Kazuo Mori made a very artistic work through the radical movements of his cameras, in some scenes, especially the scenes with the crowd. The photography is beautiful, a wonderful black and white and very well used. Ichiro Saito's music is also very convincing and in the moments of impact of the scenes.
Perhaps what disappoints in this film is the very character of Shintaro Katsu, who two years later would play Zatoichi, a character with a totally opposite nature from the serial killer Suginoichi. So, for those who have never seen "The Blind Menace" and seen the films of the "Zatoichi" series before, they are shocked by the cruelty of the Suginoichi character, after all, Katsu was marked as the figure of understanding, kindness and honesty, through the character Zatoichi. But we have to keep in mind that "The Blind Menace'' was made two years before ''Zatoichi''!
That's it, if you, like me, love the work of the fantastic Shintaro Katsu, you have to see this movie because it reveals that Katsu was an excellent artist and totally versatile. My only advice is don't drink anything during the first 10 minutes of the movie!
"The Blind Menace'', made two years before the character Zatoichi's first movie, is a very simple story about a blind man named Suginoichi who has only three goals in his life: to have lots of money, betray and kill everyone around him, and rape as many women as possible.
The first scenes of the film show the character as a child, doing something absolutely silly but disgusting, which made me lose the desire to drink the coffee I was having at that moment. And it is clear to viewers that that child has nothing good being developed inside of him, he is a disgusting, lying, thief, and absolutely mean child. When he becomes an adult, the character progresses in his crimes. In addition to continuing to steal money from others, he also performs a pseudo-massage that leads his victims to death. Now, in addition to being an uncontrollable serial killer, he's also a relentless rapist. As I said before, there is no woman in the movie who is free from being raped by Suginoichi. Lying, betraying, stealing, killing and raping is his life, apart from these ''sports'' of an authentic psychotic, life has no meaning for him. He just doesn't betray his own shadow because that's impossible.
There is a very interesting moment in the story when one of three thieves (not murderers, I must say, just steal), are horrified by the extreme meanness and cowardice that lies within Suginoichi, and then, as they walk away from him, one comments to the another that they should kill him: ''Eliminating a guy like that would be a public service''. Lol...And it's really true, I think it's the perfect phrase, and it sums up what Suginoichi is and deserves: a weed that deserves to be eliminated!
In the final 5 minutes of the film, finally a detective and authorities overpower the serial killer, and he is partially lynched in the street by a maddened and angry mob, and finally, the authorities take him to prison, and the film ends.
Aesthetically the film is very beautiful, I think Kazuo Mori made a very artistic work through the radical movements of his cameras, in some scenes, especially the scenes with the crowd. The photography is beautiful, a wonderful black and white and very well used. Ichiro Saito's music is also very convincing and in the moments of impact of the scenes.
Perhaps what disappoints in this film is the very character of Shintaro Katsu, who two years later would play Zatoichi, a character with a totally opposite nature from the serial killer Suginoichi. So, for those who have never seen "The Blind Menace" and seen the films of the "Zatoichi" series before, they are shocked by the cruelty of the Suginoichi character, after all, Katsu was marked as the figure of understanding, kindness and honesty, through the character Zatoichi. But we have to keep in mind that "The Blind Menace'' was made two years before ''Zatoichi''!
That's it, if you, like me, love the work of the fantastic Shintaro Katsu, you have to see this movie because it reveals that Katsu was an excellent artist and totally versatile. My only advice is don't drink anything during the first 10 minutes of the movie!