is one of the lesser films in this very long running series, my Kenji-Misumi-love notwithstanding. It's not that there aren't many impressive sequences or some of the strange little occurrences I like so much about the Zatoichi films. The problem is rather that neat little moments and moody shots don't always make a consistent film. By which I am not saying the movie is bad, it just isn't as good as I wanted it to be.
But the film made a little clearer to me why I find the character of Ichi so endearing. Obviously, I, like every right thinking biped, love bad-ass swordsmanship and kind-hearted heroes, but these aren't very hard to find. What makes Ichi so lovable is his little, self-deprecating laughter (that sometimes at the same time mocks his opponent), the way in which it is always clear that Ichi is able to laugh at himself and mean it. In many of the films this laughter even seems to be the thing that keeps him going, as broken as he may get.
And about which other chambara hero can you say that?
Thursday, August 30, 2007
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