Shurayukihime (1973)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Toshiya Fujita

Writers:

Kazuo Kamimura (writer) &
Kazuo Koike (writer)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Thriller

Plot:

A young girl is born and raised to be an instrument of revenge.

Plot Keywords:

Revenge | Childbirth | Prison | Buddha | Assassination

Cast

Meiko Kaji	...	Yuki Kashima (Shurayuki-hime)
Toshio Kurosawa	...	Ryûrei Ashio
Masaaki Daimon	...	Gô Kashima
Miyoko Akaza	...	Sayo Kashima
Shinichi Uchida	...	Shirô Kashima
Takeo Chii	...	Tokuichi Shôkei
Noboru Nakaya	...	Banzô Takemura
Yoshiko Nakada	...	Kobue Takemura
Akemi Negishi	...	Tajire no Okiku
Kaoru Kusuda	...	Otora Mikazuki
Sanae Nakahara	...	Kitahama, Okono
Hosei Komatsu	...	Genzô Shibayama
Makoto Matsuzaki	...	Daikashi
Hiroshi Hasegawa	...	Daihachi Kachime
Takehiko Ono		(as Susumu Kuroki)

Also Known As:

Blood Snow
Lady Snowblood
Lady Snowblood: Blizzard from the Netherworld (UK)
Shura-yuki-hime (Japan) (alternative transliteration)
Snow of Blood

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

English | Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | Australia:R (DVD rating) | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Canada:18A (Ontario) | West Germany:16 | New Zealand:R16

Company:

Toho Film (Eiga) Co. Ltd.

Trivia:

Along with its sequel, this movie served as one of the main inspirations for Quentin Tarantino's movies Kill Bill Volume 1 and 2.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Little Red Riding Hood (2009) (V)

Don't let "Kill Bill" ruin this flick for you...

Unfortunately this film's only getting the attention that it deserves because of Tarantino's "Kill Bill." Fortunately, this film is getting the attention it deserves because of Tarantino's "Kill Bill." This is the double-edged sword of sample-based art. Is it theft, or an homage? Does it help, or hurt the classics? While Tarantino did lift a number of images, a few characters, countless plot devices, and one memorable song from this film; it is impossible to lift the experience that each film offers. Besides, would this film be crawling from the dark, fuzzy depths of the bootleg video without its newfound attention? From the opening scene in the all female prison, we are grabbed from our worlds and thrust into the dynamic Japan at the end of the nineteenth century. Ultimately Toshiya Fugita's 1973 film is about the victims of profound social change, and how sometimes the only way to erase victim-hood is to pass it on to those that have done you wrong. Yeah, "The Bride" goes through quite a bit for her revenge, but Meiko Kaji's character is literally born from death, with the express purpose of carrying out revenge for a family she's never met. While it's hardly addressed openly in the film, Kaji brings a subtle uncertainty to her character's motivations and actions. This depth not only grants humanity to the character, but by making her more believable, Fujita and Kaji raise the stakes. If she can fail, will she? Will she decide her parents revenge is not her own? Or will she embrace her destiny and proposed purpose? Don't get too worked up over how much and what "Kill Bill" sampled from "Shura-yuki-hime." Instead, remember that the samurai (chambara) genre is like any genre; without sampling it wouldn't exist as a genre. Fugita's samples: "Chushingura" Kuniyoshi's ukiyo-e (woodblock prints), "Sword of Doom," every film by Hideo Gosha...