Sword of the Beast, 1965
A samurai named Gennosuke (Mikijiro Hira) is on the run, having been tricked into killing an important figure in his clan. He is pursued by the dead man's son, daughter, the daughter's fiance, and a handful of enforcer types. A worker named Gundayu helps Gennosuke in his escape, and then convinces him to come in on a scheme to illegally poach gold. But this mountain is hopping with other illegal gold poachers, including a gang of bandits and a couple who are illicitly panning gold for their clan.
This film utterly defied my usual habit of movie-multitasking. I'd look up, realize I'd lost the plot, rewind 20 minutes, look down, look up, be confused, rewind. I probably watched the first 40 minutes of the film three or four times before finally throwing in the towel and giving it my full attention.
TO BE FAIR, this is a film with a lot of plot and a lot of characters, many of whom display shifting loyalties. Part of the larger theme of the film is Gennosuke resigning himself to becoming a "beast", a predator. And it is the interactions with those around him who are more predatory (from the more highbrow version of crooked clan leaders to the more lowbrow version of the murderous bandits) that challenge his sense of ethics and his sense of self. Gennosuke, for all his talk of being a wolf, seems constantly horrified by the immoral behavior of those he encounters.
The look of the film is very strong, with plenty of gorgeous nighttime sequences and a lush mountain setting as the backdrop. Water and specifically the rushing river are used to very good effect, adding a kinetic element to both dialogue and action sequences. The river itself almost becomes a character.
A real strength of the script is that it draws very clear character motivations and has well-realized small and large conflict. For example, the female half of the clan couple isn't so keen on the idea of risking her life just to get some gold for their clan. When her partner tells her that if they are captured they will just let themselves be executed instead of giving away the clan, the look on her face if priceless. This is NOT what she signed up for.
For a samurai film (of which I have seen several but not a ton), the gender politics are far more nuanced than what I am used to. In one sequence, a woman who has just been sexually assaulted calmly redresses herself, and Gennosuke remarks that she is a "true daughter of a samurai" because despite having just been raped, she cares about her appearance. It could have come off as some weird, gross compliment, but in the line delivery and Gennosuke's expression, it is more of a horrified observation. And this sequence, and the emotional resonance of it, is used to good effect later when a group of men
WARNING: spoilers below
chase down another woman. It begins so much like the sexual assault sequence that this is what I assumed was happening, only for two of the men to brace her arms and the third to hold her head underwater, coldly drowning her. It's a brilliantly structured shock, and the woman's body slips down the river just as the other woman's clothing did in the earlier scene.
chase down another woman. It begins so much like the sexual assault sequence that this is what I assumed was happening, only for two of the men to brace her arms and the third to hold her head underwater, coldly drowning her. It's a brilliantly structured shock, and the woman's body slips down the river just as the other woman's clothing did in the earlier scene.
The action scenes are also notable for the way in which they are both really well-staged, but also at times almost anti-action (such as a scene early on in which Gennosuke runs away from a half dozen assailants who yell after him that he is not behaving in an honorable way). A huge theme is the absurdity and destructiveness of the clan structure, and so many of the action set-pieces reflect a lack of honor or fairness.
I think I liked this one about on par with
Three Rebel Samurai, the other film I have seen by Gosha.