Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance (1972)

The story of a Ronin (i.e. a masterless samurai) who wanders the countryside of Japan with his small child, having various adventures.

Director:

Kenji Misumi

Writers:

Kazuo Koike (manga), Goseki Kojima (manga)

Stars:

Tomisaburô Wakayama, Fumio Watanabe, Gô Katô

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tomisaburô Wakayama	...	Ogami Itto
Fumio Watanabe	...	Bizennokami Yagyû
Gô Katô	...	Ikiyu
Tomoko Mayama	...	Osen (whore)
Yûko Hama
Shigeru Tsuyuguchi	...	Kurando Yagyû
Asao Uchida	...	Kenmotsu Sugito
Taketoshi Naitô	...	Ichige
Yoshi Katô	...	Danjô Tonami
Keiko Fujita	...	Azami Ogami
Isao Yamagata
Reiko Kasahara	...	Crazy Woman
Ichirô Nakae
Michitarô Mizushima
Akihiro Tomikawa	...	Daigoro

Storyline

In this first film of the Lone Wolf and Cub series, adapted from the manga by Kazuo Koike, we are told the story of the Lone Wolf and Cub's origin. Ogami Itto, the official Shogunate executioner, has been framed for disloyalty to the Shogunate by the Yagyu clan, against whom he now is waging a one-man war, along with his infant son, Daigoro.

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Plot Keywords:

samurai | revenge | lone wolf | samuari | ronin | 

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Genres:

Action | Adventure

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

23 August 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance

Filming Locations:

Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Katsu Production, Toho Company, Toho Film (Eiga) Co. Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Footage from the first two Lone Wolf and Cub films (Sword of Vengeance and Baby Cart on the River Styx) from 1972 (Japan) would years later be re-edited into an American film called Shogun Assassin (1980). This merger of the two films would go on to earn it's place in American pop culture as one of the most notorious exploitation films of the early 80's.

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Quotes

Ogami Itto: You would've been happier if you'd chosen to join your mother in her world.

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Alternate Versions

The 1999 UK video was cut by 6 secs by the BBFC to edit a scene where a woman is stripped topless, and the Artsmagic DVD featured the same print. The 2009 Eureka release (featured in the "Lone Wolf & Cub Collection") is fully uncut.

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Connections

Version of Kozure Ôkami: Sono chîsaki te ni (1993)

User Reviews

The beginning of one of the most entertaining Japanese movie-series.

The foremost reason why this is a standout movie-series is because of it's unusual and highly original main concept. There are plenty of Japanese movies about a shogun, ronin or a samurai fulfilling their destinies and travel through the country, getting into all kind of adventures and troubles. The Kozure Ôkami-series has an original take on this type of movies by letting the main character carry and drive around his infant son in an armed and dangerous baby cart. His infant son even helps him in battle sometime. No big surprise that this all is being based on a manga-series, by Kazuo Koike, who also contributed to this movie its script.

It also becomes obvious that this movie is being based on a manga when you look at its violence. It's really deliberately being over-the-top and the entire series is well known for featuring fountains of blood, whenever someone gets struck down or gets a limb or head cut off. It's a pretty bloody movie but because it all gets down in such an over-the-top way, it's nothing too shocking to watch, even when you don't have the stomach for it.

It are really its action sequences that stand out and there is plenty of action in this one. All of the fights got nicely choreographed and brought to the screen and above all things they also often have something original to offer. Often Itto uses some tricks to fool his opponents and can strike down the best trained and most powerful shogun with one strike because of some clever and unexpected moves and tricks, sometimes helped by his infant son Daigorô.

The movie is good looking, thanks to its fine directing, that provides the movie with some nicely done sequences but also due to its great looking environments. The movie often uses nature elements and environments as a key part of the movie its climatic battles, such as water or the sun.

All in all, a great start of the series!

8/10

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