Samurai Fiction (1998)
"SF: Episode One" (original title)

A noble young samurai searches for a thief who has stolen a precious treasure and killed one of his clansmen and meets an older samurai who tries to deter him from the violence of revenge.

Director:

Hiroyuki Nakano

Writers:

Hiroyuki Nakano, Hiroshi Saitô

Stars:

Morio Kazama, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Tomoyasu Hotei

4 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Morio Kazama	...	Hanbei Mizoguchi
Mitsuru Fukikoshi	...	Heishiro Inukai
Tomoyasu Hotei	...	Rannosuke Kazamatsuri
Tamaki Ogawa	...	Koharu Mizoguchi
Mari Natsuki	...	Okatsu
Taketoshi Naitô	...	Kanzen Inukai (as Taketoshi Naitoh)
Kei Tani	...	Kagemaru
Fumiya Fujii	...	Ryunosuke Kuzumi
Naoyuki Fujii	...	Shintarô Suzuki
Ken Osawa	...	Tadasuke Kurosawa
Hiroshi Kanbe	...	Gosuke
Ryôichi Yuki	...	Ninja Hayabusa
Akiko Monô	...	Ninja Akakage
Taro Maruse	...	Sakyounosuke Kajii
Ramo Nakajima	...	Denbei Kimura

Storyline

Three centuries ago, a precious sword has been stolen by Kazamatsuri -- the sword, which historic and symbolic value is priceless for the clan (Shogun Tokugawa donated it to clan 80 years before that, at the same time that he established them as the local rulers). Lord's counselor's young son Heishiro goes to retrieve the sword himself to protect the clan from the shame or possible demise. He is accompanied with two friends, Shintaro and Tadasuke, and followed by the ninjas of the clan. After Kazamatsuri wounds Heishiro and kills one of his friends, the young aristocrat still wants revenge more than sword itself, but meanwhile have to recover from his wounds, in the small forest house of a lonely samurai and his daughter. At the same time, Kamazatsuri stays in nearby town in the entertainment center run by Okatsu and falls into her. The older samurai tries to dissuade Heishiro from fighting with Kamazatsuri, but is himself gradually drawn into the conflict.

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Plot Keywords:

samurai | sword | revenge | shogun | ninja | 

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Comedy

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Details

Official Sites:

Peacedelic Studio, Inc.

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

1 August 1998 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Samurai Fiction

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The sword that is stolen in this film was borrowed from the estate of 'Toshiro Mifune'. It was one of his personal swords.

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Quotes

Okatsu: I'm a woman who's killed all manner of men. Even trumped up little samurai like you! No stray dog is going to give me any cheek!
Rannosuke Kazamatsuri: How did it come to this?
Okatsu: Aaaaaiiiiieeeeee!

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Connections

References Pulp Fiction (1994)

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Soundtracks

"Swanee River"
Written by Foster
Performed by Utaroku Miyakoya and Titi Matsumura
Taken from the album "Kyuukyoku No Nokogiri Ensou"

User Reviews

Amazing Combination of Modern and Traditional Film Styles

I think Samurai Fiction is a truly amazing film for the way it balances artsiness with more typical film styles, for the unusual combination of traditional samurai tales with modern rock-ish music. I can't quite tell if it is meant to be an homage to Kurosawa and the like or not, but it's certainly serious enough, and good enough, to not be a parody.

Normally, I don't like black and white films, but the very limited and carefully placed use of color helps this film immensely.

I saw it first with no subtitles, and was quite understandably & totally lost. But now that I have seen it again, I'm glad I bought the DVD. Now, if I can only find the soundtrack...