Yami no karyudo (1979)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Hideo Gosha

Writers:

Hideo Gosha (writer)
Shotaro Ikenami (novel)

Release Date:

17 June 1979 (Japan)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Drama

Plot:

Yataro Tanigawa, a one-eyed hired assassin, impresses yakuza boss Gomyo Kiyoemon with his skill. Gomyo hires Tanigawa as his bodyguard...

Plot Keywords:

Based On Novel

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Tatsuya Nakadai	...	Gomyo Kiyoemon
Yoshio Harada	...	Yataro Tanigawa
Ayumi Ishida	...	Oriwa
Keiko Kishi	...	Omon
Ai Kanzaki	...	Osaki
Kayo Matsuo	...	Oren
Tetsuro Tamba	...	Okitsugu Tanuma
Hajime Hana	...	Hanba
Kôji Yakusho	...	Kuwano
Hideo Morita	...	Hino
Daisuke Mine	...	Someyoshi
Tatsuo Umemiya	...	Kawazu
Mikio Narita	...	Gosun
Makoto Fujita	...	Kasuke
Hideji Otaki	...	Shiba

Also Known As:

Hunter in the Dark (USA)

Runtime:

137 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Meandering, self-indulgent...but rewarding.

I'm a big fan of Japanese cinema, but this is the only Hideo Gosha film I've seen so far. It was well worth the wait! Years ago I read a review of another Gosha film, "The Wolves", and the writer referred to it at least twice as "self-indulgent". As it turns out, this description can also be applied to "Hunter In the Dark". Gosha introduces multiple plot threads in rapid succession, tying them together only when he is ready to do so. You have to be attentive and patient; the payoff comes during the fight scenes! Tatsuya Nakadai is great as always, and Shinichi Chiba shows remarkable restraint(this is not "The Streetfighter"!). Storywise, "Hunter In the Dark" is a real downer--as many martial arts films are--but it's superbly directed and acted. There's also some nudity and sex that is more or less gratuitous; I've read that sex was a vital ingredient in Gosha's movie-making formula, but it doesn't really seem to add anything to this film.