It starts with the original Japanese theatrical trailers for all 25 films in the set, each in remastered HD on the Blu-rays (and anamorphic widescreen on DVD). But what holds it together is this amazing performance by Katsu.”. Then you get an excellent 27-minute interview with the British film critic and Asian cinema historian Tony Rayns, who offers expert detail and background information on Katsu and the films to place them in the proper context. The first film was remade by the actor-director Takeshi Kitano in 2004; it is not included here. There’s a moment near the beginning of each film when Zatoichi demonstrates his sword prowess, courtesy of filmic sleight of hand. And in my favorite, he tosses a baby to his companion (a prostitute) while, in the same movement, drawing his sword and piercing a wicker basket to reveal the weighted dice hidden within. You get a picture of a man who was intensely loyal, full of contractions, creatively brilliant and who was frequently driven by his passions to excess – very much the ‘live fast and die hard’ character his reputation suggests, but also much more. To call this a remarkable find for Ichi fans is an understatement. Yet they released this identical (I think) box set on 26 November 2013. The vast majority of the sword fights take place in tight areas: a house, an alley, a forest of pines. “When you grip a sword like that, it dramatically reduces your distance, so you have to engage your opponent very closely,” he said. Though the role was written for him, it eventually went to Tatsuya Nakadai when Katsu and Kurosawa were unable to resolve a conflict of personality in their work methods. That concludes our overall review of this box set, but if you continue reading over the next several pages (or simply select titles from the list below), you’ll find our reviews of all 25 films in this set – easy guides to lead you into the world of Zatoichi. This was followed by a second TV series in 1976, New Zatoichi (or Shin Zatoichi), that ran for three more seasons – 29 episodes in 1976, 19 episodes in 1978 and 26 episodes in 1979. The first series is still available on DVD in 6 volumes from Tokyo Shock. “The Tale of Zatoichi” was never supposed to have a sequel. At some points, he has trouble navigating a footpath or a bridge; at others he takes advantage of villains who don’t believe a blind person could be a threat. It may also surprise you to learn that Katsu was Akira Kurosawa’s original choice to play the title character in the 1980 epic Kagemusha. This is 25 films’ worth of pure samurai awesome. Troubled by his violent past, Zatoichi begins a journey to a series of shrines for a dose of cleansing spirituality. As we suggested earlier, the story of Katsu’s Zatoichi continued in two Japanese TV series.

Japan was in the midst of its Edo period, under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate. Not every Zatoichi film qualifies as great cinema, but even when the series falters a bit, every single one of these films is still well worth your time. In addition, Katsu produced and directed one additional feature film in 1989. His physical mannerisms and sword exploits grow more flamboyant while his inner struggle — a criminal, he often laments the bad things he’s done — becomes more precisely calibrated and more riveting, even painful, to watch. The first series is still available on DVD in 6 volumes from Tokyo Shock. Finally, the box set includes a 95-page hardback book that offers an essay on the character by critic Geoffrey O’Brian, plot summaries and background notes on all 25 films by Chris D. (with credits and original artwork for each), a new English translation of Kan Shimozawa’s complete original short story – an extraordinary treat all by itself – and additional notes about the transfers and remastering work. Detail is subtle and refined, with lovely texture and light grain apparent, all of which renders a very film-like appearance to the image. The audio is exactly what you’d expect from mono tracks of this age – somewhat flat sounding but generally clear and accurate outside of a bit of distortion in the opening credit music, which is an issue of the source material and nothing to do with the BD mastering. He massages, he gambles, and he’s great with a blade. Criterion’s Dual Format release collects all of the first 25 original Zatoichi films together in one boxed set, on both Blu-ray and DVD formats, including the rare Zatoichi’s Pilgrimage, which fans will know has never been officially released on disc here in the States. Yet at the heart of each is Katsu and his suis generis samurai — the blind, highly skilled swordsman who works as a masseuse, makes money gambling and wanders from one end of Japan to the other, grudgingly helping the poor and unfortunate — whether it be a baby, a child, a woman (often a prostitute) or even, in one film, a horse — resist subjugation by the baddies of the day. The first two installments are presented in their original black and white.

The opportunity to watch the character grow over so many years and adventures in the hands of a single actor is part of what makes this series so enjoyable. But viewing them in fully-restored, high-bitrate HD on Blu-ray is truly revelation for Zatoichi fans. The choreographers clearly worked hard to be sure Zatoichi’s fighting style made sense for a blind man. Zatoichi was confusing for other reasons, too. “He is a very on-point star. The studio had struggled to find the right vehicle for the actor, but with 1962’s The Tale of Zatoichi they realized that Katsu could play a classic anti-hero with tremendous financial success. Every bit of this material is worth sinking your teeth into.

In one, he slices a candle so perfectly down the middle that both halves of the wick still burn. It continues like this for page after page and film after film. Seemingly helpless characters who surprise their adversaries with — as she called them — “mad skills” have appeared in stories encompassing mythology and kung fu movies, she said. The documentary is accompanied by a new 18-minute retrospective interview with Nathan, who recalls additional stories of his time with Katsu. Even so, in the films this apparent gimmick is given its own internal logic.

Asian-cinema expert Tony Rayns unpacks the significance of Zatoichi’s name and the strict social hierarchy that the character so gleefully upends. The audience ends up in this position of instability. And how could he have done it? “If you notice in the fight scenes, he is basically right up against them. Contrast is also generally quite good in the color films, with mostly deep blacks, though the first couple (and also the later films of the 1970s) do tend to have blacks that are a bit more crushed, probably due to changes in the film stocks used over that period. https://www.criterion.com/films/28318-zatoichi-s-pilgrimage The left-hand page then opens further to reveal a pair of DVDs containing the same films. But now, the 13-year-old boy trapped in my 47-year-old frame has been given a gift by the Criterion Collection: On Tuesday, the company will release “Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman,” a boxed set with all 25 original Zatoichi films on Blu-ray and standard DVD.

But nothing – and we mean nothing – is better than watching a blind samurai kicking ass in the comfort of your home theater. The final 1989 film, Zatoichi the Blind Swordsman is missing, possibly due to rights issues, as is the television series. It’s the little things that make life grand.

Though Ichi is a yakuza of extraordinary and deadly ability, he only uses those talents when forced by his enemies and then usually in service of the poor and downtrodden – all no doubt keys to the franchise’s success.


That concludes our overall review of this box set, but if you continue reading over the next several pages (or simply select titles from the list below), you’ll find our reviews of all 25 films in this set – easy guides to lead you into the world of Zatoichi. It only took 34 years for me to learn why. Because television came relatively late to Japan, the local film studios chose to compete by bringing the new medium’s serialized storytelling to theaters first. Then there is that backhanded sword grip. An image from “Zatoichi and the Chest of Gold,” No. (So now, in the first film for example, Ichi more correctly smells the plum blossoms instead of apricot as in the previous Home Video DVD release.). While warning that there are hundreds of sword styles with which he is not familiar, he said he did not believe there are any involving a backward grip. Note that, in a unique move, Criterion has given only the entire box a spine number, not the individual films. A Zatoichi BD box has been a dream release for us – a holy grail to rank right up there with Warner’s Blade Runner: The Final Cut briefcase. Who is this blind swordsman, anyway?

The color films of the mid-to-late 1960s are the best looking of the lot.