07-06-2014, 08:31 PM
Thanks for the suggestion but I'm still in the blind chanbara zone.
Zatoichi is a dangling feature on Hulu+, not included in the Criterion collection and dated 1989. I believe it was one of the television installments, and I'm not sure how extensive the tv stuff is exactly, or where to see it. It's 2 hours (most of the films are closer to an hour and a half), and it has these parsing fades that were surely for commercial breaks. But then, this is also the most violent installment so far, lots of decapitation, amputation and arterial sprays. Ichi even fights one battle wielding a decapitated head. There's even a flying nose. And there's a few topless scenes. Ichi get laid in a hot tub (finally! And it's a weird scene because that character sort of disappears for most of the rest of the film, leading me to believe she plays a role in later installments of the tv series). Dayum, Japanese TV rocked back in 89. Ichi does the dice-falls-out-of-the-cup scam and the cutting-candle-resting-on-sword-tip again. Ichi is grayer, and begins groveling in prison. Not much humor here, but there is some. The pay-out finale fight is excellent. There's a massive yakuza war, that segue ways into Ichi cutting down more yakuza then ever with some great moves. My two favs SPOILER Ichi splits a bamboo spear in two to cut the wielder as both shards penetrate two more yakuza & the hiding in the blind urination scene which is just priceless END SPOILER. One other notable oddity - there's a ballad for this film sung in English.
Now, on to Crimson Bat.
Zatoichi is a dangling feature on Hulu+, not included in the Criterion collection and dated 1989. I believe it was one of the television installments, and I'm not sure how extensive the tv stuff is exactly, or where to see it. It's 2 hours (most of the films are closer to an hour and a half), and it has these parsing fades that were surely for commercial breaks. But then, this is also the most violent installment so far, lots of decapitation, amputation and arterial sprays. Ichi even fights one battle wielding a decapitated head. There's even a flying nose. And there's a few topless scenes. Ichi get laid in a hot tub (finally! And it's a weird scene because that character sort of disappears for most of the rest of the film, leading me to believe she plays a role in later installments of the tv series). Dayum, Japanese TV rocked back in 89. Ichi does the dice-falls-out-of-the-cup scam and the cutting-candle-resting-on-sword-tip again. Ichi is grayer, and begins groveling in prison. Not much humor here, but there is some. The pay-out finale fight is excellent. There's a massive yakuza war, that segue ways into Ichi cutting down more yakuza then ever with some great moves. My two favs SPOILER Ichi splits a bamboo spear in two to cut the wielder as both shards penetrate two more yakuza & the hiding in the blind urination scene which is just priceless END SPOILER. One other notable oddity - there's a ballad for this film sung in English.
Now, on to Crimson Bat.
Shadow boxing the apocalypse