User Reviews

I love Akira Kurasawa films. Of all his films, one of my personal favorites is Yojimbo. I have also seen most of the Zatiochi films and enjoy them very much. So, you'd think that a crossover that COMBINES the two would be an exceptional film. However, it was, at best, an average Zatoichi vehicle--perhaps even a little below average. First, because expectations will very likely not be met. Secondly, because Mifune's character seems too selfish and inconsistent to be the same Yojimbo from the Kurasawa flick.

Now having Mifune's character POSE as a hired assassin/body guard was not a bad thing. But, his loyalty to the Shogun and to Zatoichi seemed unimportant compared to his love for a woman. Towards the end, this lady is shot AND Zatoichi is attacked by a group of about a dozen warriors. Mifune doesn't lift a finger to helps him but takes his beloved to try to revive her. YES, he should have tried to help her, but as a samurai it just seemed rather disloyal and cowardly to forget about everything else at this point. Also, Zatoichi trying to pilfer a small amount of the stolen gold dust for himself seemed a little out of character as well (unless he was going to give it to some starving orphans or something--now THAT'S like Zatoichi).

I dunno. The movie just didn't make me as excited as I'd hoped it would. Sorry.

The title is kind of misleading. In some translating, the title reads as Zatoichi Vs Yojimbo and others as Zatoichi meets Yojimbo. The blind swordsman Zatoichi (Shintaro Katsu), whom real man is Ichi. Zatoichi return to a village of his past, only to find it besieged by Eboshiya Yasuke's oldest son, Masagoro and his evil Kobotoke Clan. A huge embezzlement scheme is on, as the Kobotoke Clan is scheming to skim gold from the federal treasury. Toshiro Mifune is Imperial Shogunate Secret Agent Sassa Daisaka employ by the gang mostly spends most of his days drinking. Yojimbo spends far too much time moping around and the film made out Yojimbo to be a slave of the system. He acts as the son's Yojimbo (bodyguard). He longs to be with a local whore who's been forced into the sex trade by a debt she owes the merchant. What misleading by the title is that Toshiro character isn't the one from the original Kurosawa movie, yet the film tries to make homage to those films. Also this movie doesn't even follow close to the storyline from the other Zatochi's films. Viewers who went to see the film to see the film tied up the loose ends of the previous films would be disappointed. At 155 minutes, it's longer than any of the Zatochi films that came before yet Ichi is barely on film here. Ichi is caught up in the middle of a rivalry between two gangs who are led by an at-odds father and son. After becoming indebted to the father for springing him out of jail, Zatoichi goes to work for him as a bodyguard. Ichi meets the son's yojimbo. Naturally, the two begin as adversaries, before forming a kind of strange fellowship and an uneasy alliance to find out where the money is and take it for them. The script is bog down by the pacing from time to time as both characters have agendas within agendas what to do with the money. The plot is needlessly complex, involving many characters and twists. The exchanges between the drunk, yelling Yojimbo and quiet Zatoichi are consistently amusing and funny. The film misused the time by adding too much local plot points with Eboshiya Yasuke's two sons. It's amazing that they found the time to have Ichi and Sassa fight in the same scene, but it happens in the last five minutes of the movie and only lasts for one minute. From all the Zatoichi films, it's not too bad, just not that great. The film may benefit from a second viewing so you can get a better grip on the characters' various (sometimes changing) motivations, but But a single viewing will very much need you to pay attention. All of this is a setup for Mifune and Katsu to go at each other hammer and tongs, each playing serious mind-games with the other, culminating in one serious bad-ass sword fight. Ichi's fighting skill is incredible, with his sword-grip in inverse manner; this, combined with his keen ear and sense of smell and proprioception, renders him a frighteningly formidable opponent. While Mifune's fighting style is brutally efficient, yet at the same time stunningly graceful. There is no wasted motion in his sword strokes as he attacks with lighting-quick strikes, but at times it looks like he's just wildly hacking at anything that moves. His blows are ruthless and powerful, and he rarely requires more than one or two strikes to bring down any foe. Sadly it's only a minute. The cinematography is gorgeous. The colors on this release are pretty vibrant. It's weird seeing Toshiro Mifune in color still. Leone based his style on these types of movies on these Japanese noodle westerns. There's almost no music until the last reel when we get some nice cues from Akira Ifukube, it seems recycled from another film. The subtitles of the newer DVD are wonderful. It provide a simple translation of dialogue and Japanese text that appears throughout the film, which is also color coded to display when more than one person is talking on screen. The other set of subtitles will provide background information to some of the Japanese terms. If watching—get the newer DVD version.

Mifune spends half of the film on the floor sleeping or drunk. Katsu outwits Yojimbo beautifully when he isn't eating everything in sight. Their first meeting is classic comedy. A drunken Mifune plunges his sword into Zatoichi only to find that he has actually returned it to it's sheath. In a hilarious scene, Zatoichi, blind and afraid of heights has to climb four flights of stairs to see his patron. Somewhat friendly enemies, constantly harassing each other and both on the fringe of lawlessness these two oblique characters defeat the bad guys, Mifune gets the girl and Zatoichi staggers off into the sunset. You really have to watch closely to catch some of this films subtle humor. It is well worth the concentration. Delightful all around.

A classic of Japanese cinema, Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo, is an all around good time, with great performances, bloody samurai action, and a plot reminiscent of Kurosawa's original Yojimbo.

Zatoichi, tiring of life on the road, returns to a village of which he has fond memories. Only to find out that the last three years have changed the landscape considerably. Two years ago, Boss Eboshiya took over the town with his sons, one of which has gone against his father. Eboshiya's son Masagoro has enlisted the aide of a money grubbing Yojimbo named Sasa (Mifune) to find out the town's secret of the hidden gold. A secret only Eboshiya knows, a secret everyone is dying (literally) to find out.

Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo features two legendary Japanese actors in two of their greatest (recurring) roles. Zatoichi played by Shintaro Katsu and Yojimbo played by Toshiro Mifune. Both actors are as great as their characters are eccentric. Mifune plays his standard swaggering, drunken, sheisty Yojimbo, while Katsu utilizes his traditional sputtering, honorable, blind swordsman. One of the strenght's of the film is that both characters stay true to the previous works of the same characters, and the interaction between Mifune and Katsu is the stuff of cinematic legend. Although, Mifune's Yojimbo is a little more jaded than in the original Kurosawa flicks, but considering the life of the fictional character... this difference is understandable.

As I've mentioned the plot resembles that of the original Yojimbo; two gangs, one town, and scandalous samurai playing the clans against each other. Only in Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo, it's two samurai, who not only are working the gangs but each other as well. ZMY also adds the element of a third assassin named Kuzuryu (played devilishly by Shin Kishida) a man who helps to stir the proverbial pot.

Of Course, Zatoichi is loaded with awesome chambara action, the kind that was exclusive to the mid 1960's, an era in Japanese cinema when samurai films were still making the transition from the black and white samurai epics of Kurosawa's days, to the exploitational samurai films of the 70's (such as Lone Wolf and Cub). Which, in laymen's terms means it's bloody, just not outrageously bloody.

The film does have it's faults though. Ayako Wakao is great as Umeno, a beautiful prostitute who falls in love with Yojimbo, but her role is underdeveloped, thus the romantic aspect of the film kinda falls flat on its face. Other than that, the ending is abrupt and jarring but these are minor issues for this type of film.

Bottom Line- This film should be seen just for Mifune's and Katsu's brilliant acting. If that's not enough (and it should be!), then watch it for the great old school chambara action!