Release CalendarDVD & Blu-ray ReleasesTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsIn TheatersComing SoonMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    Best of 2021OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersGolden GlobesEmmysSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In

Shogun Assassin

  • 19801980
  • 14A14A
  • 1h 25m
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
10K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Shogun Assassin (1980)
Watch {VideoTitle}
Play trailer2:35
1 Video
38 Photos
ActionAdventure

When the wife of the Shogun's Decapitator is murdered and he is ordered to commit suicide by the paranoid Shogun, he and his four-year-old son escape and become assassins for hire, embarking... Read allWhen the wife of the Shogun's Decapitator is murdered and he is ordered to commit suicide by the paranoid Shogun, he and his four-year-old son escape and become assassins for hire, embarking on a journey of blood and violent death.When the wife of the Shogun's Decapitator is murdered and he is ordered to commit suicide by the paranoid Shogun, he and his four-year-old son escape and become assassins for hire, embarking on a journey of blood and violent death.

IMDb RATING
7.4/10
10K
YOUR RATING
  • Directors
    • Robert Houston
    • Kenji Misumi
  • Writers
    • Robert Houston
    • Kazuo Koike(screenplay)
    • Goseki Kojima
  • Stars
    • Tomisaburô Wakayama
    • Kayo Matsuo
    • Minoru Ôki
Top credits
  • Directors
    • Robert Houston
    • Kenji Misumi
  • Writers
    • Robert Houston
    • Kazuo Koike(screenplay)
    • Goseki Kojima
  • Stars
    • Tomisaburô Wakayama
    • Kayo Matsuo
    • Minoru Ôki
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 99User reviews
    • 44Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Trailer [EN]
    Trailer 2:35
    Trailer [EN]

    Photos38

    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Shogun Assassin (1980)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Tomisaburô Wakayama
    Tomisaburô Wakayama
    • Lone Wolfas Lone Wolf
    Kayo Matsuo
    Kayo Matsuo
    • Supreme Ninjaas Supreme Ninja
    Minoru Ôki
    Minoru Ôki
    • Master of Deathas Master of Death
    Shôgen Nitta
    • Master of Deathas Master of Death
    Shin Kishida
    Shin Kishida
    • Master of Deathas Master of Death
    Akihiro Tomikawa
    Akihiro Tomikawa
    • Daigoroas Daigoro
    • (as Masahiro Tomikawa)
    Lamont Johnson
    • Voiceas Voice
    • (voice)
    Marshall Efron
    Marshall Efron
    • Voiceas Voice
    • (voice)
    Sandra Bernhard
    Sandra Bernhard
    • Voiceas Voice
    • (voice)
    Vic Davis
    • Voiceas Voice
    • (voice)
    Lennie Weinrib
    Lennie Weinrib
    • Voiceas Voice
    • (voice)
    Lainie Cooke
    • Voiceas Voice
    • (voice)
    • (as Lainie Cook)
    Sam Weisman
    Sam Weisman
    • Voiceas Voice
    • (voice)
    Mark Lindsay
    • Voiceas Voice
    • (voice)
    Robert Houston
    Robert Houston
    • Voiceas Voice
    • (voice)
    David Weisman
    • Voiceas Voice
    • (voice)
    Gibran Evans
    • Daigoroas Daigoro
    • (voice)
    Reiko Kasahara
    • Azamias Azami
    • Directors
      • Robert Houston
      • Kenji Misumi
    • Writers
      • Robert Houston
      • Kazuo Koike(screenplay) (story)
      • Goseki Kojima
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

    Storyline

    Edit
    Long ago there was a great samurai warrior who served his Shogun honorably. The Shogun however grew paranoid as he became more and more senile. The Shogun sought to destroy all those who might stand to oppose his rule, and so he sent his ninja spies to the samurai's home. The ninjas failed to kill the samurai, but did kill his beloved wife. From then on, the samurai swore on his honor to seek out the Shogun and avenge the death of his love. The samurai roams the countryside with his toddler son taking on mercenary work for money until the final battle with the Shogun's three Masters of Death. —William Pagan <ny952696@pacevm.dac.pace.edu>
    based on mangapsychotronic filmsamuraininjarevenge2 more
    • Plot summary
    • Plot synopsis
    • Taglines
      • The legend of lone wolf and cub continues!
    • Genres
      • Action
      • Adventure
    • Certificate
      • 14A
    • Parents guide

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Many of the lines from this movie are sampled by hip-hop artist and Wu-Tang Clan member the GZA on his album "Liquid Swords".
    • Quotes

      Voice of Daigoro: When I was little, my father was famous. He was the greatest Samurai in the empire, and he was the Shogun's decapitator. He cut off the heads of 131 lords for the Shogun. It was a bad time for the empire. The Shogun just stayed inside his castle and he never came out. People said his brain was infected by devils, and that he was rotting with evil. The Shogun said the people were not loyal. He said he had a lot of enemies, but he killed more people than that. It was a bad time. Everybody living in fear, but still we were happy. My father would come home to mother, and when he had seen her, he would forget about the killings. He wasn't scared of the Shogun, but the Shogun was scared of him. Maybe that was the problem. At night, mother would sing for us, while father would go into his temple and pray for peace. He'd pray for things to get better. Then, one night the Shogun sent his ninja spies to our house. They were supposed to kill my father, but they didn't. That was the night everything changed, forever. That was when my father left his samurai life and became a demon. He became an assassin who walks the road of vengeance. And he took me with him. I don't remember most of this myself. I only remember the Shogun's ninja hunting us wherever we go. And the bodies falling. And the blood.

    • Alternate versions
      Shogun Assassin is actually an amalgam of two 1972 films titled Kozure Ôkami: Ko wo kashi ude kashi tsukamatsuru (1972) ("Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance") and Kozure Ôkami: Sanzu no kawa no ubaguruma (1972) (Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart at the River Styx"). The producer decided to join the best bits of these two films (using around 10 minutes of the first film as a pre-credits flashback sequence to introduce the characters) and create "Shogun Assassin". The English-language dubbing included voice-over narration, ostensibly spoken by the child Daigoro.
    • Connections
      Edited from Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance (1972)

    User reviews99

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    One of the classic Samaria sword movies and lots of blood.
    I think this film is almost as famous for its tour de force editing,taking a min-series and making it into a coherent masterpiece of 86 min as it is for its action sequences.

    The basic story is about a Lone Wolf. A very proud samurai who worked as the official decapitator for the shogun.The paranoid shogun sends out his ninja to kill lone wolf, but get his wife instead.At this point there is the classic "choose the(toy) ball and join your mother, choose the sword and join me" the son joins him and we hear the story from his eyes from this point.It is pure carnage from here on in, as the evil shogun sets his ninja out on Lone Wolf along with the brutal Masters of death.

    There is a lot of carnage and blood in this movie...I MEAN a lot. But the father son relationship is touching and strongly developed.

    This movie is a classic that is only just starting to show its age, my 8 might be a bit low of a vote really.

    If you like fast sword play and quick deaths watch this movie.
    helpful•24
    10
    • stormruston
    • Aug 21, 2005

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 7, 1980 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • Japan
    • Language
      • Japanese
    • Also known as
      • Henker des Shogun
    • Production companies
      • Baby Cart
      • Katsu Production
      • Toho Company
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 25 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

    Related news

    The Deuce Notebook: The Samurai Cinema Slaughter of ‘74
    The Deuce Notebook: The Samurai Cinema Slaughter of ‘74
    Aug 4MUBI
    Josh Ruben & Mishna Wolff
    Jun 29Trailers from Hell

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Shogun Assassin (1980)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Shogun Assassin (1980) officially released in India in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    View image
    Photos
    Hollywood Romances: Our Favorite Couples
    See the entire gallery
    Image caption not available
    1:23
    New Holiday Picks to Stream in 2021
    Watch the video

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads

    © 1990-2021 by IMDb.com, Inc.