the leading man is my tpye

This movie is the proof that the world is becoming a sick and dumb place

Great visuals, story delivers no surprises

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

The title is kind of misleading. In some translating, the title reads as Zatoichi Vs Yojimbo and others as Zatoichi meets Yojimbo. The blind swordsman Zatoichi (Shintaro Katsu), whom real man is Ichi. Zatoichi return to a village of his past, only to find it besieged by Eboshiya Yasuke's oldest son, Masagoro and his evil Kobotoke Clan. A huge embezzlement scheme is on, as the Kobotoke Clan is scheming to skim gold from the federal treasury. Toshiro Mifune is Imperial Shogunate Secret Agent Sassa Daisaka employ by the gang mostly spends most of his days drinking. Yojimbo spends far too much time moping around and the film made out Yojimbo to be a slave of the system. He acts as the son's Yojimbo (bodyguard). He longs to be with a local whore who's been forced into the sex trade by a debt she owes the merchant. What misleading by the title is that Toshiro character isn't the one from the original Kurosawa movie, yet the film tries to make homage to those films. Also this movie doesn't even follow close to the storyline from the other Zatochi's films. Viewers who went to see the film to see the film tied up the loose ends of the previous films would be disappointed. At 155 minutes, it's longer than any of the Zatochi films that came before yet Ichi is barely on film here. Ichi is caught up in the middle of a rivalry between two gangs who are led by an at-odds father and son. After becoming indebted to the father for springing him out of jail, Zatoichi goes to work for him as a bodyguard. Ichi meets the son's yojimbo. Naturally, the two begin as adversaries, before forming a kind of strange fellowship and an uneasy alliance to find out where the money is and take it for them. The script is bog down by the pacing from time to time as both characters have agendas within agendas what to do with the money. The plot is needlessly complex, involving many characters and twists. The exchanges between the drunk, yelling Yojimbo and quiet Zatoichi are consistently amusing and funny. The film misused the time by adding too much local plot points with Eboshiya Yasuke's two sons. It's amazing that they found the time to have Ichi and Sassa fight in the same scene, but it happens in the last five minutes of the movie and only lasts for one minute. From all the Zatoichi films, it's not too bad, just not that great. The film may benefit from a second viewing so you can get a better grip on the characters' various (sometimes changing) motivations, but But a single viewing will very much need you to pay attention. All of this is a setup for Mifune and Katsu to go at each other hammer and tongs, each playing serious mind-games with the other, culminating in one serious bad-ass sword fight. Ichi's fighting skill is incredible, with his sword-grip in inverse manner; this, combined with his keen ear and sense of smell and proprioception, renders him a frighteningly formidable opponent. While Mifune's fighting style is brutally efficient, yet at the same time stunningly graceful. There is no wasted motion in his sword strokes as he attacks with lighting-quick strikes, but at times it looks like he's just wildly hacking at anything that moves. His blows are ruthless and powerful, and he rarely requires more than one or two strikes to bring down any foe. Sadly it's only a minute. The cinematography is gorgeous. The colors on this release are pretty vibrant. It's weird seeing Toshiro Mifune in color still. Leone based his style on these types of movies on these Japanese noodle westerns. There's almost no music until the last reel when we get some nice cues from Akira Ifukube, it seems recycled from another film. The subtitles of the newer DVD are wonderful. It provide a simple translation of dialogue and Japanese text that appears throughout the film, which is also color coded to display when more than one person is talking on screen. The other set of subtitles will provide background information to some of the Japanese terms. If watching—get the newer DVD version.

This film brings together two of the greatest characters created in Japanese cinema. Zatoichi (Shintaro Katsu) is the blind swordsman who goes back to a village that he remembers as peaceful and tranquil. It has been two to three years since his last visit and he longs to get away from the constant attacks that plague him on a daily basis, as he has a price on his head. But all is not as he remembers. When he arrives to his beloved village, he finds it is torn between a father and son that have their own gangs involved in their own family feud. As a result, the village is torn between the two men as the son seeks his father's gold (which may or may not exist).As the blind masseur becomes involved in the midst of this feud, the son's hired bodyguard (Toshiro Mifune) is introduced. Mifune ever-so-slightly reprises his role from the Akira Kurosawa films, Yojimbo and Sanjuro. It's not the exact same character, but only the most devout film buffs would see the subtle differences. As the Yojimbo discovers just who Zatoichi is and the price on his head, the two banter back and forth with threats and insults and even a few sword fights as the plot thickens.The film keeps you guessing until the very end as to whether or not these two samurai masters will end up friends or foes. All the while, Shintaro Katsu and Toshiro Mifune give master performances in their roles as usual. What Toshiro Mifune brings to this long running series of films is a stark contrast to Shintaro Katsu's simple and quiet Zatoichi. Toshiro Mifne's Yojimbo is harsh, loud, and aggressive when comparing the two. Putting these two great actors together, while playing off one another, results in a well balanced and enjoyable opposition. We all know who the hero is but what happens between these two? Do they find resolution or does it all end in a bitter and bloody sword battle? The only way to find out is to watch.I enjoyed this film immensely. I cannot recommend it enough to fans of Japanese period films, Zatoichi fans, or Toshiro Mifune fans. If any of those appeal to you, then you owe it to yourself to watch this film. You will find nothing but sheer delight in this great masterpiece. This is also a great entry into the Zatoichi films. Even though this is a sequel you will not be lost by starting with this film in the series. This marks the 20th film of the Shintaro Katsu Zatoichi films. It was originally shot in 1965 in color and is in Japanese with the optional English subtitles. The transfer to DVD has been masterfully handled by AnimEigo and the translation is great. I was amazed at how crisp the picture and the sound was for being such an old film. Again I cannot recommend it enough. If you have any inclination to see this movie do not hesitate. I'm sure you will enjoy it as much as I did.

I love Akira Kurasawa films. Of all his films, one of my personal favorites is Yojimbo. I have also seen most of the Zatiochi films and enjoy them very much. So, you'd think that a crossover that COMBINES the two would be an exceptional film. However, it was, at best, an average Zatoichi vehicle--perhaps even a little below average. First, because expectations will very likely not be met. Secondly, because Mifune's character seems too selfish and inconsistent to be the same Yojimbo from the Kurasawa flick.Now having Mifune's character POSE as a hired assassin/body guard was not a bad thing. But, his loyalty to the Shogun and to Zatoichi seemed unimportant compared to his love for a woman. Towards the end, this lady is shot AND Zatoichi is attacked by a group of about a dozen warriors. Mifune doesn't lift a finger to helps him but takes his beloved to try to revive her. YES, he should have tried to help her, but as a samurai it just seemed rather disloyal and cowardly to forget about everything else at this point. Also, Zatoichi trying to pilfer a small amount of the stolen gold dust for himself seemed a little out of character as well (unless he was going to give it to some starving orphans or something--now THAT'S like Zatoichi).I dunno. The movie just didn't make me as excited as I'd hoped it would. Sorry.

It's important to see Yojimbo or a Zatoichi film before viewing this stinker. Otherwise you might ascribe guilt by association. The progenitors are wonderful. Yojimbo gave rise to the vehicle which brought Clint Eastwood to stardom - A Fistful of Dollars. Zatoichi films are the mold for the current Xena and Hercules series. Unfortunately, Z... to Y... lives up to none of the promise of its title. It may possibly be the worst film featuring Zatoichi. The surprising thing is that Katsu and Mifune reprise their roles from the original. If you happen to see this one first, don't despair - the originals are real gems.