Zatoichi monogatari (1962)

Kenji Misumi's Zatoichi Monogatari is the first film in the legendary Zatoichi film series starring Shintaro Katsu as Zatoichi, the blind masseur and master swordsman. This beginning film has Ichi visiting his friend, Boss Sukegoro, as he passes by the town of Iioka. He discovers that Boss Sukegoro is in the midst of a feud with the next town over, Sasagawa, lead by Boss Shigezo. After much convincing and begging, Ichi’s talents are reluctantly bought to side with Boss Sukegoro in the upcoming war.

Zatoichi, le masseur aveugle, arrive dans la ville de Iioka dans la province de Shimosa. Là, ses talents de joueur font rapidement le tour de la ville et Sukegoro, le parrain de la ville, présente à ses hommes cet étrange vagabond comme étant Zatoichi, un yakuza aux talents de bretteur hors normes qu’il a connu quelques années auparavant.
Zatoichi, el masajista ciego, llega al pueblo de Iioka en la provincia de Shimosa. Allí, no tarda en demostrar su talento en la mesa de juego, y pronto Sukegoro, el amo del pueblo, lo presenta a sus hombres como un eximio espadachín que ha conocido hace un tiempo. Entretanto, el vecino pueblo de Sasagawa, tiene otro jefe, Shigezo, que envalentonado por la llegada de un maestro samurai, planea disputarle la supremacia a Sugekoro.
Primero de una serie de más de veinte films a lo largo de tres décadas, Zatoichi monogatari fue objeto de una remake y homenaje reciente en 2003 a cargo de Takeshi Kitano.

Beginning in 1962 with The Tale of Zatoichi, the blind swordsman immediately captured the public's imagination and spawned over 26 film sequels spanning three decades. The series produced a number of imitators, such as Shochiku Studio's Crimson Bat films or the Daiei produced Kyoshiro Nemurai Samurai films that lasted for eleven dark episodes. Although successful in their own ways, neither series could match the hold that Shintaro Katsu's portrayal of the blind swordsman had on the public.

Derek Hill, Images

La saga Zatoichi s’inscrit dans le Jidai-geki, ces films historiques se déroulant avant la fin de l’ère Edo, dont le Chambara ("bataille de sabre") n’est qu’une catégorie. Les aventures du masseur aveugle se situent plus précisément durant l’ère Tenpo (1830-1844) qui correspond aux dernières heures de la société d’Edo (1603-1868). Si le cadre historique est d’une importance primordiale dans une série comme Baby Cart, où les intrigues de clans visant à s’accaparer le pouvoir mènent l’intrigue, ici l’évocation se fait en filigrane, même si la reconstitution historique est constamment soignée. Le trait le plus caractéristique de cette ère, qui marque le vacillement du Shogunat des Tokugawa (la famille en charge du Shogun), est une famine endémique qui décime les populations paysannes. Ichi à chaque épisode se jette avec avidité sur la nourriture, scènes souvent comiques où il se goinfre mais qui sont révélatrices de l’un des maux de cette époque.

Dvdclassik

Yet on a more intriguing level than his master sword ability, there is a human, tragic character here that is far from a caricature. Zatoichi’s history is vague, but this film, the first of the series, reveals that before he was a master swordsman, he was a masseur. Those who know their Japanese history (or those who read the DVD jacket, as I did) will know that the masseur is the lowest job that a blind man could get in ancient Japan. Thus, we realize that Zatoichi literally started at the bottom of the food chain and worked his way up, overcoming his disability through determination and strong will. (…)
The film is shot in black and white, with an emphasis on black. Many scenes take play at night or in dark, crowded rooms, and it is often difficult to see exactly what is going on. I’ve read reviews complaining that this technique makes the film seem amateurish; I would argue that it effectively creates a sense of what it must be like to be a master blind swordsman. Rather than simply telling us that Zatoichi relies equally on his four remaining senses, the film demonstrates how he does it by making us to do the same. As a result, the final image of Zatoichi stumbling off into the woods, headed towards his next adventure, is all the more stirring: Now that we see how he works, we appreciate him even more and want to see where he takes us next. This appeal, not the mention the complexity of the man himself, carried Zatoichi into one of the longest lasting and enduring film series of all time.

Daniel GriffinFilm as Art

RS DOWNLOAD

Part 1/Part 2/Part 3/Part 4/Part 5/Part 6/Part 7/Part 8
Spanish, English & French subs