Japanese superstar Takeshi Kitano, the multitalented actor, director, painter, TV host, and stand-up comic best known for his hard-boiled cop films ("Hana-Bi," "Brother"), takes on the traditional Japanese hero Zatoichi in his new film, which promises action and whimsy in a period setting.
The blind masseur Zatoichi is the hero of Japan's longest-running film series. Actor Shintaro Katso played Zatoichi in twenty-six feature films and over 100 television episodes until his death in 1993. Kitano's Zatoichi updates the legendary swordfighter in several key aspects, but essentially stays true to the spirit of the series. In the title role, Kitano drags himself through historical Japan on bow legs, blind and weary (and blonde!), and chuckles at the human foibles he encounters. Secretly, he is also a master swordsman who uses his hidden cane sword to devastating effect.
The story of the new film is based on the 1963 original: Zatoichi interferes with a village gang war and has to face a powerful adversary who has joined one of the bosses to help his ailing wife. Two mysterious geishas also arrive with a secret agenda of their own. The ingredients include everything you'd expect in a period samurai film, or chambara: ninja, ronin, yakuza, geishas, even a yojimbo.
However, anybody looking for relentless action is bound to be disappointed by the new "Zatoichi." The film's set pieces--like a free-for-all in the pouring rain--are handsomely filmed, but there is no fanciful martial arts wire-work and there are no extended "Kill Bill"-style sword fight orgies. As in the old films, Kitano keeps the fighting realistic, sudden outbursts of violence, bloody, savage, and very quick. Somebody unsheathes their katana, and if it wasn't for the use of slow-motion, it would be easy to miss the lightening slashes that result in severed limbs and squirting fountains of blood. The realism, however, is lessened by the use of computer trickery which makes sword tips and blood appear patently fake.
Kitano also takes his time exploring the village, its inhabitants, and their day-to-day existence. There is almost as much traditional Japanese dancing as there is fighting. Inspired by the blind hero's reliance on sound, Kitano uses a percussive score to interesting effect. The attempts at humor, like the village idiot who charges periodically past the camera, will seem unsuccessful to Western eyes not used to Japanese conventions. Unless you're a hard-core Zatoichi or Kitano fan who can appreciate the updating of the character, you are probably better off with any of the original Zatoichi films, which are being released on DVD by Home Vision Entertainment.
