zatoichi – the blind swordsman

i’m a big fan of slashing japanese sword films. since the coming of dvd, it’s been a better world for me, as i’ve been able to explore these films without being repulsed by awful american accents plastered over the top like pepsi ads on the mona lisa.

my favourite series, as you can tell by the title of this particular little rant, is zatoichi. it’s hard to explain why, except i love the quirkiness of his character. you watch many japanese sword films from this era, and heroes are hard – dead hard – and very scowly. often they have an intensity of appearance and style that you get carried away by the breathlessness of it all. yet, zatoichi bucks this trend and presents a flawed, inelegant and rather clownish hero whose dry wit and self-deprecating attitude provide a sense of calm to his character – an almost zenlike acceptance of life.

i’ve always likened zatoichi, as played by the inimitable shintaro katsu, to be something of a potato on stick legs kind of wobbling around aimless and tentative until with the swishing of a sword he suddenly becomes this graceful blur of steel which is simply amazing to watch. it’s almost schitzophrenic of him. to go from this polite, friendly individual into this well-harnessed killing machine. i think that, to me, is the appeal of zatoichi. you see shintaro katsu in other movies, and he’s just nothing like zatoichi. he’s scowly. he’s brooding. he’s intense. but throw him in a zatoichi and he brings a cheeky humour and unrivalled sense of class to the screen.

i’m writing this now because i’ve noticed a new film about to grace my letterbox, called ichi. it’s a female version of the zatoichi movies. i’m looking forward to it, to tell the truth. i’m a bit of a sucker for a girl with a sword and a ruthless swishy way of using it. we need more female ninjas, in my view. but i’m a bit worried about how they’ll handle it. “beat” takeshi, who i am a deep fan of, did the modern version of zatoichi a few years ago, and while i love his film i was a little disappointed by his version. he has a talent for eccentric characters, i kind of hoped for a little of his character from kikujiro to poke through here and there, but he played the whole role with barely a ripple in his stoic facade. sure, it was a brilliant remake, and i loved the dance and the soundtrack was pure genius, but i missed the playfulness from ichi. i realise he wanted to go in a different direction, but just wished for a little more eccentricity from zatoichi and not just those around him.

zatoichi's little sister?

the movies, though format, were always fairly standard. zatoichi didn’t seem to take things too personally. but when he did – badguys look out. he could chop them up faster when he was deeply offended by their refusal to live in the shadows like yakuza lads should. he wasn’t so much an avenging angel as a ruthless uncle, slapping down the nephews and putting them in their place.

my alltime favourite scene is from zatoichi in desperation. out boy has had his hands brutally stabbed with a rather large spear, and he’s been chased out into the dark to be hunted down for the boss’ amusement. the next scene sees zatoichi huddled in the dark of a shack, seemingly binding his wounded hands to stop the blood.

but he’s not.

he’s binding the swords to his wrists.

his rage-fueled killing spree is a highlight to the series and the way he is so patiently determined as he hunts the boss through the swarm of underlings is chilling. he displays less emotion than michael’s mask from hallowe’en, slices and dices, and then shuffles off into the sunset.

it’s a format that’s been done a million times. the wandering hero, from town to town, dispensing justice. clint eastwood, toshiro mifune, and david carradine spring to mind immediately as stars who made a living with just such a role. throw in the hoff, and richard dean “macguyver” anderson, and you’ve got a few more stars. but shintaro katsu, for me, had the most effortless performance to date. an all-round playful character with an intensity of purpose swimming just below the surface and you have a truly unique anti-hero for the world.

what i’m trying to say, i guess, is that if you’ve never seen a japanese sword film and want a place to start, then you just can’t start in any better place than a zatoichi film. it’s guaranteed to arouse your appetite and boggle your mind.

at the very least, it’ll have you in your bedroom with an old cricket bat swinging it around with your eyes closed until you break something you really shouldn’t have…

an interesting link:
http://www.hackwriters.com/zatoichi2.htm

Tags: japanese, nonglish, review, sword drama, zatoichi