The Hidden Blade
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Profile
- Movie: The Hidden Blade
- Romaji: Kakushi ken oni no tsume
- Japanese:
- Director: Yoji Yamada
- Writer: Yoshitaka Asama, Shuuhei Fujisawa (novel)
- Producer:
- Cinematographer
- Release Date: October 30, 2004
- Runtime: 132 min
- Language: Japanese
- Country: Japan
Intro
In 2002 "The Twilight Samurai", the 77th film by 'Tora-san' director Yoji Yamada, took Japan by storm. A resounding commercial success, and sweeping almost all the film awards possible, including the Japan Academy Awards in 12 categories and the most prestigious "Kinema Junpo" Awards. It was also chosen in competition at the 53rd Berlin International Film Festival, won Golden Maile for Best Feature Film at the 23rd Hawaii International Film Festival, and has been nominated for the 76th Academy Award as Best Foreign Language Film of the Year.
"The Twilight Samurai" was adapted from stories by Shuhei Fujisawa, whose long string of best-sellers established him as Japan's foremost writer of historical fiction. His stories of everyday life, conflicts, joys and sorrows, of the samurai swordsmen, in a setting of great natural beauty evoke a powerful nostalgia, and present this vanished world with a seamlessness that had always been thought impossible to film until Yamada chose one for his first period drama of his long and distinguished career. "The Twilight Samurai", the story of a low-ranked samurai at the end of Japan's feudal era, who finds through his family qualities of consideration, courage and pride - which is widely considered to have vanished from modern Japan - struck a chord with audiences all over the country.
Now, two years later, Yamada again takes up the challenge of filming a Shuhei Fujisawa tale in what he calls 'a period drama unlike any that's ever been made before.' Combining stories of "Oni no Tsume (The Devil's Claw)", from Fujisawa's "Kakushi Ken (Hidden Sword)" series of unconventional 'swordfighter' tales, with "Yuki Akari (The Gleam of the Snow)", a story of forbidden love, "Kakushi Ken - Oni No Tsume" is set once again in the fictional Unasaka clan, in the Shonai area (northern part of Japan), along the beautiful Japan Sea coast. At the turn around of the Japanese history where the unstoppable western culture came in and on the verge of a dizzying period of social change, its hero finds that the instruction he has received in an esoteric and closely guarded technique of swordsmanship embroils him in a violent and fateful series of events, overlaying his deepening love for a lower-caste woman who has come into his house as a maid.
In the role of this samurai, Munezo Katagiri, is Masatoshi Nagase, whose eccentrically individual acting style has brought him to the attention of directors both in Japan and abroad, including Jim Jarmusch for "Mystery Train", His love interest, Kie, is played by Takako Matsu, known for her work in film ("April Story"), TV, and stage. A powerful cast of stalwarts in supporting roles, many known for their work in previous Yoji Yamada films, includes Hidetaka Yoshioka, Yukiyoshi Ozawa, Tomoko Tabata, Reiko Takashima, Kunie Tanaka, Chieko Baisho, Min Tanaka, Nenji Kobayashi and Ken Ogata.
The production will reunite many of the staff of "The Twilight Samurai", with Director Yamada again sharing credit with Yoshitaka Asama on the script, cinematography by Mutsuo Naganuma. Gen Nakaoka will light the work of art director Mitsuo Degawa, while Kazuko Kurosawa will design the costumes. Music will be provided by the legendary Isao Tomita.
Plot
Two friends, Munezo Katagiri (Masatoshi Nagase) and Samon Shimada (Hidetaka Yoshioka), see Yaichiro Hazama (Yukiyoshi Ozawa) off on his journey to take up an important position within the clan organization in distant Edo. The two return to Munezo's home, a modest dwelling befitting a samurai who lives on a tiny stipend of only 30 `koku' of rice per year, but a place of warmth and laughter he shares with his mother, his younger sister Shino (Tomoko Tabata) and Kie (Takako Matsu), a pretty farm girl working as a maid while she learns the skills and manners she will require to make an advantageous marriage.
Three years pass, in which time Munezo's mother has died, concerned that her son remains without a wife, and his sister has married Samon, leaving Munezo alone in their house with one elderly maid. Kie has married into the Iseya, a family of oil wholesalers, and Munezo assumes she is living happily. Encountering her out shopping one winter's day, he notices that she has grown thin and sad, and feels a tug at his heart as he watches her walk away through the snow.
Several months later. Under the direction of an official from Edo, Munezo is one of several samurai studying the new science of artillery. Hearing that Kie is ill, he and Samon hurry to the Iseya. Reluctantly admitted by Kie's mother-in-law, he finds her lying half-dead in a dimly lit storeroom. Ordering her husband to institute divorce proceedings, he carries her back to his own home.
Gradually she recovers, her younger sister comes to help, and Munezo's house once again becomes a place of gaiety and laughter. However, a plot by members of the clan in Edo against its leaders is brought to light, and fearful that this will come to the attention of the Shogun's government, those responsible are ordered to commit suicide. Yaichiro is also implicated, and he is sent down to the clan's domain, where he is imprisoned in a small hut deep in the mountains.
Munezo and Yaichiro were two of the best students of Kansai Toda (Min Tanaka), former fencing instructor to the clan. Yaichiro was actually the better of the two, but for some reason Toda chose to impart his secret 'Oni No Tsume (devil's claw)' technique to Munezo.
The clan's chief retainer, Shogen Hori (Ken Ogata), summons Munezo and informs him that he is suspect due to his association with Yaichiro, and demands the names of others Hazama is friendly with. Munezo, saying that it is a samurai's duty to respect confidences, refuses to tell him.
Later, Munezo learns that Kie has never been to the sea. He asks her if she wants to go and picnic with him by the seaside. She happily accepts. During their picnic, Munezo tells Kie that she must go back to her parent's home. She asks him if it is an order. Munezo says it is. Kie starts crying, and says that if it is an order, she must obey. She leaves the next day.
Yaichiro tricks the prison keeper into reaching his arm into the cage by playing dead. Yaichiro grabs the prison keeper's arm and threatens to break it if he doesn't give him the keys. The prison keeper gives the keys, but gets his arm broken anyway. He runs in pain, searching for help. He reaches the Unasaka dwelling, but collapses and dies. Yaichiro takes refuge in a farm house, taking an old man and his granddaughter hostage. Ogata (Nenji Kobayashi), the clan's chief overseer, orders Munezo to kill him the next day.
During the night, Yaichiro's wife visits Munezo and begs him to let Yaichiro live. She says that if he lets Yaichiro live, then Yaichiro will become powerful, and give him many riches. Seeing that Munezo isn't interested, she offers her body to him. Munezo still isn't interested. Yaichiro's wife gives up begging and leaves. She tells Munezo that she is going to beg Ogata to have mercy on Yaichiro. Munezo tells her not to, but she ignores him.
The next day, Munezo visits Kansai Toda, who teaches him a new technique. Munezo then heads into the woods, where Yaichiro is waiting to duel. Several gunners disperse themselves around the area and wait. After a long duel, Munezo does the new technique, and slices Yaichiro's chest. Dying, Yaichiro asks who taught him such a cowardly move. He tries to attack Munezo, but his fighting hand is shot off by one of the gunners. He collapses and dies.
When Munezo is leaving the site, he crosses Yaichiro's wife, who tells him that last night, when she visited Ogata, he said that Yaichiro would be spared. Munezo is shocked by this, and that night, he visits Ogata, who is dining with a couple of geishas. Munezo asks him if Yaichiro's wife visited him last night. Ogata admits that she came and begged him for her husband's life. He says that he slept with Yaichiro's wife in exchange for Yaichiro's life. Munezo is enraged by this and angers Ogata with his comments. Ogata says they will finish the conversation another time, and furiously leaves.
The next day, Yaichiro's wife is found in her home, dead. She had cut her own throat. Later, Ogata is in his home, when he suddenly feels the urge to urinate. He runs towards a toilet and tries to urinate, but cannot. He has apparently had this problem for a while, and curses the doctor who he thinks is giving him useless cures. He walks down a corridor and meets Munezo. He asks what Munezo is doing here. Munezo bows, but suddenly gets up and does a slight movement towards Ogata's heart. Munezo then calmly walks away, leaving Ogata standing in shock. Munezo had actually stabbed him in the heart with a hidden blade. Ogata collapses, and it is a while before his body is discovered by a servant. The doctor is called. He determines the cause of death as being the stab to his heart. The people with him are surprised that not a single drop of blood went out. The doctor says the cause of death is internal bleeding, but it is impossible to find what did it.
Later, Munezo declares he is leaving. He strips himself of his title of samurai and becomes a civilian. He says farewell to Samon and his sister before leaving.
Munezo later arrives at Kie's home. They sit down in the grass and Munezo explains to Kie why he is a civilian. He then tells her he will be leaving to Ezo island (Hokkaido) to become a merchant. Kie is very sad and asks him if this means they will never see each other again. Munezo doesn't answer, but then finally tells Kie that he loves her and wants her as his wife. Kie is surprised by the sudden declaration of love. After a while, she smiles and asks him if it is an order. Munezo smiles and says that it is. Kie smiles and says that if it is an order, she must obey. The film ends with both of them laughing in joy together.
Cast
- Masatoshi Nagase ... Munezo Katagiri
- Takako Matsu ... Kie
- Yukiyoshi Ozawa ... Yaichiro Hazama
- Hidetaka Yoshioka ... Samon Shimada
- Min Tanaka ... Kansai Toda
- Tomoko Tabata ... Shino Katagiri
- Ken Ogata ... Chief Retainer Hori
- Nenji Kobayashi ... Ogata
- Reiko Takashima ... Hazama's Wife
- Chieko Baisho ... Mrs. Katagiri
- Sachiko Mitsumoto ... Mrs. Iseya
- Kunie Tanaka
- Makoto Akatsuka
- Hiroshi Kanbe
- Takashi Sasano
Trailer
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