A petty thief with an utter resemblance to a samurai warlord is hired as the lord's double. When the warlord later dies the thief is forced to take up arms in his place.A petty thief with an utter resemblance to a samurai warlord is hired as the lord's double. When the warlord later dies the thief is forced to take up arms in his place.A petty thief with an utter resemblance to a samurai warlord is hired as the lord's double. When the warlord later dies the thief is forced to take up arms in his place.
- Nominated for 2 Oscars
- 20 wins & 5 nominations total
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaMuch of the film recounts actual historical events, including Shingen's death and the two-year secret, and the climactic Battle of Nagashino in 1575. Those scenes are also modeled closely on detailed accounts of the battle.
- GoofsIn the final battle there are at least 100 riflemen shown firing their matchlock rifles in volleys. The smoke generated by the matchlocks almost immediately dissipates. This indicates a more modern gunpowder was used in the matchlocks as the historically correct black powder load would blanket the battlefield with thick smoke after a handful of volleys.
- Quotes
Nobukado Takeda: The shadow of a man can never stand up and walk on its own.
- Alternate versionsIn the original Japanese version, there are 20 minutes featuring Kenshin Uesugi. For some reason, these scenes were cut out of the USA version.
- ConnectionsFeatured in A.K. (1985)
Featured review
Another Brilliant Epic
This is a great epic of war and a film of great emotion. At the center is a man who has nothing. He is thrust into a world he didn't create. He is a petty thief and really would like to just get on with his life. What he also has is great loyalty to his now deceased lord, and despite his great concern for his ability to carry it off, he agrees to the position. He has to know that at some point this will all come crashing down. The Samurai code makes it so that he has few options. He runs the war the best he can but occasionally falls victim to who he is. Even with advisers watching his every move, he becomes so much a part of the entire picture that he is left to destroy himself, and, in the process, the clan that he represents. The battle scenes are remindful of the other huge films like "Ran" and "Throne of Blood." They sweep across the screen with the flag carrying horsemen and the infantry fighting until there is nothing left but total carnage. Because of the complexity of the story and the wonderful acting, I would put this at or near the top of my Kurosawa list.
helpful•316
- Hitchcoc
- Sep 22, 2009
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Kagemusha, sjena jena ratnika
- Filming locations
- Himeji Castle, Himeji, Japan(Nobunaga's castle)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $6,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $4,000,000
- Gross worldwide
- $4,018,532
- Runtime2 hours 42 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- 4-Track Stereo(original version)
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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Top Gap
By what name was Kagemusha: The Shadow Warrior (1980) officially released in Canada in French?
Answer