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This thrilling ninja and samurai movie produced by Toei Studios is known as Shogun’s Ninja. It was released in the Japan in November of 1980 and generated some revenue. It also enhanced the careers of some quality actors. I found this film in a combo DVD set by Saint Clair Vision that was released in 2004, which was well into its public domain status.
The digital image transfer is a little subpar, which just so happens to also be the case for the unforgiving pan-and-scan that gets rid of a hefty 15% of the frame. During certain fighting scenes, it was easy to spot since most characters were at the corner of the screen and the pan scan just cut them off completely. The sound is clear, though quite loud, and the dubbing is nothing spectacular. It’s surprisingly long at 117 minutes, and at times, feels longer.
The film possesses all the classic elements of a grand continent-spanning movie, with hints of Robin Hood, Ulysses, and Godfather all blended into one. It’s like Tolkien wrote Herodotus and flavored it into the film also. This time I am going to write this similarly to the way I did for Lord of the Rings only on account of the sheer amount of characters. This film will be hard to identify the actors from the roles they play as it lacks an English subtitled version and there is very little information regarding it on the internet.
The movie is ruled by one almighty ‘criticism’ and that being its appalling soundtrack. After few listens, it does grow on you. The mutant fusion of Japanese hair-band ballad, Bacharach’s instrumentals and the 1970s porn movie music is indeed horrible. But isn’t everything subjective?
To start, this picture is set during the feudal epoch in Japan, when Shoguns and Princes were fighting for control over a land that had poverty stricken peasants and rich gentry. There was a lot of brokenness, and violence. While in many ways this was akin to Medieval Europe, there were some key differences.
This film is quite literally a story about two men. The first being an idealistic young Shogun and the second, a young warrior. Over a span of 10 years, these two men will combat each other and from there, the plot and action of the movie will ensue. The other thing to note here is that these two characters are quite important to the story.
Sonny Chiba, Tokugawa Shogun, was played by a 41 year old sonny Chiba Now, more than a fine actor, he was good as a martial artist too. Like I said previously, he was Jet Li before Jet Li.
The year is 1581 and eight year old Aragorn, the king’s son of the Momochi Clan in Japan, is the center of our story. The Clan is the ruling faction in this region and while growing up, he is accompanied by a mother, countless relatives, and many royal servants at the court who take care of him.
Towards the western region, there exists another kingdom that is even more powerful. The clan is ruled by Hideyoshi Toyotomi, a character played by 49 year old Asao Koike. We like to refer to him as “the King”. With the vision of uniting the whole nation of Japan under the kingdom’s rule, the first order of business is to get rid of the rival momochi clan, thus allowing the King to squash all the clans beneath his enlightened jackboot. The king did exist and led Japan for years during the 16th century, after which he proceeded to invade Korea and China, harshly imposing restrictions on the Europeans and Christians present in Japan.
The Shogun is nothing but a complex character and he betrays the Momochi Clan by murdering his master, the King, in a temple. Although the Shogun is not a real person, he works for the Momochi Clan while participating in treasonous alliances with the opposing clan. However, the King is a tough nut to crack. He fights back, but ultimately succumbs to the beating.
What the Shogun wants with the sword kept with the King is very specific, a short sword. The short sword is said to have engravings of the secret gold mine of the Momochi Clan on it, The Shogun eyes the sword for more than one reason. If he aqquires the sword along with the engravings, he can claim the title of a powerful man all by himself. The issue surfaces as the sword has not been located with the dead King.
The story of the killing reaches the eyes of Aragon’s mom and she is not only saddened, but pained as well. Aware that young Aragorn is now at risk (whoever set out to kill the King is most probably going to pursue all his male offsprings), she summons the boy’s uncle and orders him to move the child to a safe area instantly. She also is in possession of the sword with the engraving of the map on it. Handing the sword to the boy, she orders him to never let it go and return to avenge his parents.
Due to an archaic code that his mother believes in blindly, she has no other option but to commit suicide. Just moments after the boy was separated from her, she grabbed a sword and without a second thought, stabbed herself in the stomach. Her death was revoltingly gruesome, made even more powerful due to the fact that Aragorn was moving back to see the horrifying sight of his mother’s death. Now that’s soul traumatizing.
He and his squad of pale grey ninjas arrive after and miss the boy, but stumble across the mother’s corpse. Angered, the Shogun commands his forces to hunt down and eliminate every single servant of the noble family of Clan Momochi, and most importantly the boy heir alongside retrieving the sword.
At the height of the night is when uncle rescued young Aragorn from the life threatening situation. As they drive into the beaten zone, they came across a bunch of kids and grown people that were in hiding. They were the remaining children of the royal family, those who are sons and daughters to some of the princes and princesses of the Momochi Clan. Some of them share blood with Aragorn as well. In the second half of the movie, many of these children play a pivotal role in making alive.
Out of nowhere, they are suddenly surrounded by the Shoguns ninjas! At least eight ninjas assail them, easily slicing through the few men that are present, and going straight for the women and kids. Within a minor skirmish, a single male and three female ninjas along with a child were seen being slain by swords and throwing stars. One of the attackers is able to defeat the defending fighters, but this fight is quickly becoming more and more violent.
From the references that come later, it appears to be the sea of Japan, but it is still unclear. In a desperate attempt, Aragorn’s uncle fought his way toward the water’s edge. While he was under an unrestrained amount of pressure, he grabbed the boy, clutched him tightly and jumped in. Towards the end of the battle when everyone was on the Banqueting Hall Ninja, the Ninja army followed him which made it easier for the rest of the children to flee.
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