A rare film which depicts the tragic fate of a Christian lord who fought for his fate in the Edo period. Read More »
Tag Archives: Utaemon Ichikawa
Five Men of Edo AKA Oedo go-nin Otoko (1951) Daisuke Itô, Tsumasaburô Bandô, Utaemon Ichikawa, Isuzu Yamada
During the 17th Century bands of hatamoto, samurai vassals of the Tokugawa shogunate Read More »
The 47 Ronin (1941) Kenji Mizoguchi, Chôjûrô Kawarasaki, Yoshizaburo Arashi, Utaemon Ichikawa
In 1701, Lord Takuminokami Asano has a feud with Lord Kira and he tries to kill Kira in the corridors of the Shogun’s palace. Read More »
Doto no taiketsu / Showdown at the Great Tone River (1959) Yasushi Sasaki, Utaemon Ichikawa, Chiezô Kataoka, Action, Drama
One of the great stories from Japan’s rich history comes to life in this true tale of the bloody showdown between two rival yakuza gangs in the 1840’s. The battle between Boss Sukegoro of Iioka and Boss Shigezo of Sasagawa has been portrayed many times, most notably in the first Zatoichi film, where the blind man befriends the tubercular ronin Hirate Miki, before cutting him down in one of the great duels in cinema history. This all-star extravaganza pulls out all the stops, with appearances by virtually all of the great actors and actresses from Toei’s studio at the time. Ichikawa Utaemon’s portrayal of the kind-hearted, noble yakuza boss Shigezo of Sasagawa contrasts sharply with the devious Sukegoro of Iioka. Corrupt as he may have been, his men were all willing to give up their lives for him.
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