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Kiba Okaminosuke

Samurai Wolf

Japan 1966
produced by
Nobusaburo Honda, Nroimichi Matsudaira for Toei
directed by Hideo Gosha
starring Isao Natsuyagi, Ryohei Uchida, Junko Miyazono, Tatsuo Endo, Junkichi Orimoto, Yoshiro Aoki, Takashi Tabata, Kyoichi Sato, Misako Tominaga
written by Hiroshi Tasaka, music by Toshiaki Tsushima

review by
Mike Haberfelner

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Okaminosuke (Isao Matsuyagi), a penniless master swordfighter, drifts into town, not much more than a mail relay with a few houses and a brothel attached, to drop a dead body he has found after a mail robbery, something not uncommon in the region, because you know, as insignificant as the mail relay may seem, Nizaemon, the shogun's "messenger", wants it because of its strategic position. Thing is, Chise, the blind widow who runs the relay, isn't willing to give it up at any cost - so she hires Okaminosuke to aid her. He reluctantly accepts because he's in desperate need for work, however temporary, on one side, but he also feels for the widow.

Soon enough, Okaminosuke has killed some of Nizaemon's fiercest fighters (though mostly in self defense), so Nizaemon can't helpt but take notice ... and thus he hires masterless master samurai Sanai to take care of Okaminosuke. The two have a duel, and it soon becomes clear that Sanai outclasses Okaminosuke, but upon setting his eyes on Chise, he breaks off the duel and leaves.

The next day, Chise and company have to handle a fortune in gold, and they are almost certain that Nizaemon and gang will attack, so Okaminosuke leads the treck carrying the gold ... and indeed they are attacked, but eventually, Sanai, who has gotten quite friendly with a local whore, steals the wagon carrying the gold and tries to hightail it with his girl - but the wagon crashes, his girl dies, and he has to learn it was carrying nothing but stones, as Chise has actually sent the gold off with a group of soldiers dressed as harmless farmers and the treck was only a decoy.

Back at the relay, Nizaemon has taken Chise prisoner to lure Okaminosuke into a trap - but what he doesn't know is that Chise is actually Sanai's long thought lost wife, and now that Sanai has found her he frees her and asks her to leave with him.

Without having Chise as bait though, Nizaemon has nothing to lure Okaminosuke into his trap no more, and he and his man die at Okaminosuke's hands.

Finally, all culminates in the duel between Okaminosuke and Sanai over Chise, whom both love and who still has feelings for Sanai but feels more drawn to Okaminosuke. In the end, Sanai dies at the hands of Okaminosuke, but he might have just sacrificed himself. After that though Okaminosuke leaves and advices Chise not to follow him.

 

A film that ably demonstrate to what extent Easterns (and especially chambara movies) and Westerns (from both the US and Italy) inspired one another in the 1960's: While Seven Samurai and Yojimbo served as virtual blueprints for two of the most influential Westerns of the era, Samura Wolf is clearly influenced by Western movies, with a story typical to Westerns and many genre mainstays (including a shootout) being rather smoothly introduced into Japanese culture. The outcome is ... pretty cool, actually. It's by no means the most influential samurai flick, but it's a well-shot and well-paced piece of genre cinema with the occasional inventive scene and plenty of action to keep everyone happy.

No classic maybe, but immensely watchable.

 

review © by Mike Haberfelner

 

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In times of uncertainty of a possible zombie outbreak, a woman has to decide between two men - only one of them's one of the undead.

 

There's No Such Thing as Zombies
starring
Luana Ribeira, Rudy Barrow and Rami Hilmi
special appearances by
Debra Lamb and Lynn Lowry

 

directed by
Eddie Bammeke

written by
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produced by
Michael Haberfelner, Luana Ribeira and Eddie Bammeke

 

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