Zatoichi the Blind Swordsman, Vol. 6 - Zatoichi and the Chest of Gold

Starring:ShintarÃ´ Katsu, Shogo Shimada, Mikiko Tsubouchi, Machiko Hasegawa, Tomisaburo Wakayama, Tatsuya Ishiguro, ShinjirÃ´ Asano, Saburo Date, Hikosaburo Kataoka, Matasaburo Tamba, Toranosuke Tennoji, Koichi Mizuhara, Hiroshi Hayashi, YÃ»saku Terajima, IchirÃ´ Takakura
Director: Kazuo Ikehiro
Studio: Home Vision Entertainment
Product Type: DVD

Description

Accused of stealing, Zatoichi is pursued by friend and foe alike. In this installment of The Blind Swordsman series, Ichi must prove his innocence, expose the real culprits, retrieve the
gold and reconcile his accusers' anger. And if the odds were not stacked high enough, Ichi is hounded and challenged by a maniacal, bullwhip yielding Ronin who finds Ichi's status as a low ranking blind masseur and master swordsman as an affront to his class and profession.

Customer Reviews:

#6: A CASE OF MISTAKEN IDENTITY.......2006-09-04

This 6th entry of Zatoichi finds the anti-hero Ichi paying his repects at the grave of a samurai he killed by mistake three years prior. It was self-defense, nonetheless, he feels remorse. A young girl hiding behind the trees overhears this self-confession: She was the samurai's sister. Jump ahead in the film, and we come to the villagers who have saved up 1000 Ryo in tax money. After 3 years of bad harvest they have finally been able to scrape enough together to satisfy the intendant. Or have they?

Enter a sadistic bullwhip weilding Ronin named Jushiro [Tomisaburo Wakayama] the main antagonist in the film. (The real life brother of Shintaro Katsu--who also appeared in Zatoichi episode #2.) And he's pretty darn sadistic as Jushiro; and with a pretty unhealthy hatred of Zatoichi. However, he sure plays the sadistic role to the hilt. He does not care about the 1000 ryo, even when offered to him. He wants Zatoichi. Jushiro's hatred for Ichi is because he looks down on him as a low-life masquerading as a swordsman. How many other arrogant villians have we seen like this already? Ah, when will they ever learn?

Ichi is blamed for taking the missing 1000 ryo's, and he resolves to clear his name. The intendant, with the help of Jushiro are already at work however scheming to take the money, tax the people again, and do away with Zatoichi. This always sounds easy over those drinks of saki. But Ichi has a surprise for them. There is a really funny part in the film, where Zatoichi and Jushiro wager on a bet. [I'll let you watch that--it's hilarious, even by Ichi standards] I'll write no more, watch the film, you will enjoy it. The music is good, the cinematography is great, the plot is excellent and the acting is terrific. Highly recommend.

I finally decided get into the zatoichi series.......2006-07-15

I actually decided to watch lone wolf and cub first but am going to have to sneak a few more of these in.

I guess I thought it was Chang Cheh who introduced us to these types of movies but I can see now that some of my favorite movies ever like one armed swordsman are just good ripoffs of Zatoichi. This guy is wher it started. Well, the wong fei-hong movies come first in terms of martial arts, but Zatoichi has to be the first person on screen you could really look up to because of the heroic deeds that he does. Not just doing the good deeds, but the way he slices through everybody is beautiful. Being a kung fu fan I need a good final fight but wasn't really expecting one with how old this is but was pleasently surprised.

I can't believe I thought it was the chinese that started all this, but I was way wrong. When Shintarô Katsu hit the screen, he may not have been the first but was far and away the best for it's time. THE JAPANESE EVEN SEEM TO HAVE INVENTED TEH OPENING STAGED FIGHTING SEQUENCES!!!

The movie is anamorphically widescreened and when they say the picture is remastered Home Vision Entertainment is not lying one bit.

So I have to say that my first Zatoichi experience was breathtaking, funny, touching, and very exciting.

One of the best of the series.......2005-01-22

Actually I think this is far better than the previous Zatoichi outings. Visually it's a stunning film that ranks among the great action films of all time but could be hung as stills in any art museum. Hokusai & Hiroshige influences abound.

Yet best of all is the unforgettable character Zatoichi himself. Shintaro Katsu created an everyman/superhero who had no equal, at least in western culture. A squat, homely, bandy-legged self-deprecating blind man full of humor & humility & an abundance of spirituality. And could he make that sword dance.

These movies have no equal. Each one is as perfectly made as any movie can be. I used to go see them when they first appeared in the theaters of San Francisco & Los Angeles Japanese neighborhoods. I still love them every bit as much now.

Can't miss with a hard drinking highly skilled swordsman.......2003-03-04

As always, this movie gives you all you want in the zatoichi vein, the emmotional women, the amazing swordsmanship, and the numerous opportunities for Zatoichi to display the character that lasted him thru so many movies. Mixed up in the search for a lost chest of gold, thieves, and crooked goverment officials, Zatoichi saves the day in his unsual manner. Not quite as good as the first ones but still worth the price

DVD:

DVD List

DVD

DVD

Charm of La Boheme

Wing Chun: Self Defense : DVD

Entrapment [P&S] [Special Edition] [1999] (REGION 1) (NT

DVD: Zebrahead

Pinocchio