SYNOPSICS
Zatôichi (2003) is a Japanese movie. Takeshi Kitano has directed this movie. Takeshi Kitano,Tadanobu Asano,Yui Natsukawa,Michiyo Yasuda are the starring of this movie. It was released in 2003. Zatôichi (2003) is considered one of the best Action,Comedy,Crime,Drama,Thriller movie in India and around the world.
Blind Zatoichi makes his living by gambling and giving massages. But behind his humble facade, Zatoichi is a master swordsman, gifted with lightning-fast draw and strokes of breathtaking precision. Zatoichi wanders into a town run by sinister gangs and a powerful samurai. He's destined for violent showdowns when he stumbles on two beautiful geishas avenging their parents' murder... Duels, wit and a touch of zen! Cult anti-hero Zatoichi is back in a sword-fighting adventure written, directed and starring Takeshi Kitano.
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Zatôichi (2003) Reviews
Beautiful
The story of the blind swordsman Zatoichi should be well known to most aficionados of Japanese cinema. I was thrilled when i heard that Takeshi Kitano (of all people) would be making a re-make of the classic series. And i was not disappointed. The blind masseur/swordsman Zatoichi stumbles upon a lone widow when he comes walking in the countryside. He helps her carry a basket and she tells him of her problems while he is invited to stay with her. The local town is plagued by a war between different criminal factions and the protection rates are constantly going up. Soon two geishas also arrive in town with their own agenda, linked to one of the warring gangs. Zatoichi is a beautiful film in my opinion. Everything from photography and scenery to music is exceptionally well tuned to the mood of the film. Also the action sequences are very well made, the fencing well choreographed and nicely shot. What distracted me somewhat though is the use of liquid animation for the blood. There is almost no usual fake blood in this movie, rather it's liquid animation-blood spraying when people are stabbed. This looks odd, but it's still a minor distraction. Zatoichi feels both like a nice tribute to 60's and 70's samurai-films as well as a fresh take on the genre. Both modern and classic, which is one of the finest compliments i feel you can give a movie like this one. I enjoyed it very much and i rate it 7/10.
A absolutely enchanting film!
Zatoichi is the updated version of cult Japanese show some decades back.Here a blind swordsman goes to a small town controlled by a ruthless gang and abuses the people there. There he meets many characters like the siblings on a mission, a samurai who is hired by the gang, as well as an unlucky gambler who befriends the blind swordsman. This is the first ever Takeshi Kitano film I have ever seen and I got to say it turned out to be a rather pleasant surprise. Prior to this I have heard so much about Kitano's work and was really expecting to see a really good film. Add to that every samurai film I see normally gets compared to Kurosawa's works like Rashomon, and Ran which of course are tough acts to follow. I thought the film was well made in many aspects. The cinematography was really beautiful and well made. The costumes like most period films were finely crafted and were beautiful. The scoring was also very good. I always find it rather hard to laugh in a film that is non-English. I guess I always believed that humour doesn't always transcend different cultures. What may be funny for one may seem rather dull in another. This film however debunks that thought. I found myself laughing over a lot of scenes in the film. Even in scenes where you do not think there could be a funny moment Kitano is able to deliver one just to break the tension a little. The fight scenes in this film were also well planned and I though it was done realistically but not necessarily done to shock the audiences with bucket loads of blood and mangled body parts. It was effective but not too disturbing. I also thought that the overall story of the film was good. I was particularly interested with the story of the siblings and it's eventual resolution at the end of the movie. Takeshi Kitano's Zatoichi is a great film which now ranks as one of my and hopefully it will be to other people. I'm already anticipating the next film from this great film and will also look for some of his earlier works.
With tap dancing, mundane superpowers, and an attractive albeit gender-confused cross-dresser, Zatoichi truly offers 'something for everybody'.
This is a strange one, a drama/comedy/action film with absurdist overtones. In Japan, Zatoichi is a cult character who was the subject of 26 feature films between 1963 and 1989. Now director "Beat" Takeshi best known for Hana Bi introduces Zatoichi to a new generation. Takeshi also stars as Zatoichi, the elderly masseur and dice gambler whose hearing is so acute he can detect which side a die has fallen. He's a master swordsman, too one slice and you're diced. Supporting characters include two beautiful geishas avenging their parents' death, a farmer and her drunkard nephew, the gangsters running the town and a masterless samurai (an impressive performance from Tadanobu Asano). The Blind Swordsman is great fun, although it could do with a tighter structure. And I was shocked by the spectacular tap-dancing finale in traditional Japanese dress and shoes! ***½/***** stars.
Delightfully perfect
What a fantastic return to form for Japanese director and creative renaissance man, Takeshi Kitano. Zatoichi excels because of its break with conventions, mixing humour, dance, slapstick, and theatre with an otherwise tense and violent plot. This film breaks the art-house tradition by going for the jugular with its entertainment value, yet it never stoops to the level of Hollywood triteness. Some may complain about how this Zatoichi isn't consistent with the original Zatoichi, but that was done by design. Kitano set out to create his own story, his own character, and his own version - simply using the legend of Zatoichi as the most basic blueprint from which to start. He deserves credit for creating something new and innovative, even when working with an old story. The dance scene at the end is phenomenal and very directly (and intentionally) reminds movie goers that you are there to be entertained. The best film I've seen this year and among Kitano's best, and that's saying a lot.
Breaking all the Rules
It's a kind of "what the hell" type of movie, as in "what the hell, let's throw in a dance scene," as in "what the hell, let's play with 50 years of mythology' as in 'what the hell is an action movie really?" I liked it. It had a desert dry humor about it, the action scenes were amazing (yes, the blood is supposed to look fake!) and I just liked the shear audacity of it all. Kitano made a crowd pleasing action film with out sacrificing his art. It isn't the plot that makes this one go, it's Kitano's refusal to play to anyones expectations. It's not a perfect movie, but it's amazing to watch a film maker at the top of his game just showing off for his own selfish pleasure.