Shogun Assassin gained infamy on the midnight cinema circuit, yet its leading man didn’t enjoy fame comparable to Ogami Ittō’s hellish saga. Tomisaburo Wakayama, although prolific and renowned in his own right, is nought but a footnote for World Cinema fans next to the likes of Tetsuya Watari, Joe Shishido, […]
Samurai
Samurai Wolf (1966) & Samurai Wolf II (1967) Isao Natsuyagi’s potential killer franchise (Review)
Samurai Reincarnation (1981) – Theatrical bombast meets relevant messages (Review)
Adapting Futaro Yamada’s 1967 novel, Samurai Reincarnation, writer/director Kinji Fukasaku crafts a historical fantasy which begins over 350 years ago following the Shimabara Rebellion. A revolt led to thousands of Christians being slaughtered by the Tokugawa regime, as horrifically conveyed within a display of severed heads – with many split […]
Revenge (1964) A True Masterpiece of Japanese Cinema (Review)
How does one win when the chips are stacked so very high against you? In a society where social standing and face mean everything, the slightest disagreement or misunderstanding can escalate to unfathomable levels of violence, heaping consequence upon consequence. When does it end? And just how far does it […]
Punk Samurai (2018) Samurai Comedy Anarchy that we’ve never seen the likes of before (Review)
Kagemusha (1980) Kurosawa, the master visual story-teller (Blu-ray Review)
74 years old Akira Kurosawa was when he directed Kagemusha. And, funnily enough, the 1970s weren’t a kind decade to the master director with the highest-profile film, of the three he produced that decade, being the marginal Serbian Adventure Movie, Dersu Uzala. A point stressed in the extras of this […]
Three Outlaw Samurai (1964) Satire and Chaos in Feudal Japan (Review)
For many, the samurai movie is the domain of Akira Kurosawa, with both the legendary director and chanbara (sword fighting movies) tied at the hip. Naturally, that isn’t true. That said, perception is reality by anything beyond Kurosawa being difficult to find; it’s getting better, but still – it’s not […]
4-Panel 138 – He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Lens Flare
After some Thanos-based finger-snapping shenanigans only two-thirds of us are available for this episode, so join Mick and Producer Rob as they discuss J.J. Abrams’ new and “subversive” superhero movie, DC’s plans for another TV adaptation Swamp Thing, and a strange case involving Superman, Lois Lane, the Church of Scientology […]
Keyframe 109 – A Game of Segues
Keyframe 106 – Having A Chuuni Moment
This week we brace ourselves after the announcement of a new Mario Bros. movie (but thankfully it may not be live-action). We also get our first look at the new design of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Netflix announces several surprising partnerships to produce exclusive anime. After that it’s […]