Journey of Honor (1991)

In the seventeenth century, Japan is divided between two forces. The Eastern Army, lead by the Warlord Tokugawa Ieyasu, and the Western Army, which fights for Toyotomi's clan. Despite ... See full summary »

Director:

Gordon Hessler

Writers:

Shô Kosugi (story), Nelson Gidding (story)

Stars:

Shô Kosugi, David Essex, Kane Kosugi

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Shô Kosugi	...	Daigoro Mayeda
David Essex	...	Don Pedro
Kane Kosugi	...	Yorimune
Christopher Lee	...	King Philip
Norman Lloyd	...	Father Vasco
Ronald Pickup	...	Capt. Crawford
John Rhys-Davies	...	El Zaidan
Polly Walker	...	Cecilia
Dylan Kussman	...	Smitty
Miwa Takada	...	Yadogimi
Nijiko Kiyokawa	...	Counselor
Toshirô Mifune	...	Lord Ieyasu
Yuki Sugimura	...	Chiyo Mayeda
Ken Sekiguchi	...	Ishikawa
Naoto Shigemizu	...	Nakamura

Storyline

In the seventeenth century, Japan is divided between two forces. The Eastern Army, lead by the Warlord Tokugawa Ieyasu, and the Western Army, which fights for Toyotomi's clan. Despite wining a recent battle, things look grim for the Eastern Army. Toyotomi's Army has a supply of modern firearms, a weapon which might turn the tides of war. Tokugawa Ieyasu sends his trusted samurai Mayeda, and his son Yourimune, to Spain. There, they are to purchase five thousand muskets. But it's a dangerous journey, and there are many who plot against them, and when they finally arrive in Spain, nothing goes the way they expected.

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Plot Keywords:

army | spain | fight | weapon | musket | 

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama

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Certificate:

PG-13

Did You Know?

Trivia

Final film for director Gordon Hessler.

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Goofs

Spain didn't use the red-and-gold flag before 1785.

User Reviews

It could have worked, but ...!

I must admit that I have been a sucker for Samurai flicks since I can remember. I used to watch rather indiscriminate, be it "elitist" works like The Seven Samurai or the bloody comic-book variation like Lone Wolf and Cub. I also liked US-/Japanese "Crossovers" like The Bushido Blade. And of course everything containing Sonny Chiba and Hiroyuki Sanada. And I've virtually watched every Samurai at least twice. But not Kabuto.

In 1993 I first watched Kabuto on video, that even Samurai films can be boring. In the beginning I was looking forward to Mayeda reaching Europe and the confrontations that would come from that but by the time he actually reached Spain, I really didn't care so much for the movie anymore.

It wouldn't do the film justice to call it "bad". Technically it's a clean entry into the genre. But there is simply never quiet enough. Sho Kosugi has limited skills as both director and actor and has only a fraction of above mentioned Japanese actors charisma. And speaking of Sho Kosugis son Kane, who appears in almost all Sho Kosugi films as Shos son: he has inherited little-to-none of his fathers limited acting skills. Adding to the minus-points is the absence of the blood and gore that until then was a trademark of all Samurai film. This was obviously intended for a younger US- / European audience.

Lets just say that it's a so-so film for the average historic-action-adventure fan but a bore for hardened fans of Samurai cinema. Fans who are into the "Samurai meets …"-genre, should rather go and watch Red Sun (1971), featuring Charles Bronson as cowboy who has to team up with Samurai Toshiro Mifume to retrieve a samurai sword from bad-guy Alan Delon. It pretty much how to do it right and where Kabuto went wrong.

So, even though the film is a mere 100 minutes, it seems like a much longer film.

The reason I gave this a honourable 4/10 points instead of 3/10: First time I saw this film, I saw it in the German synchronized version. In this version, Kosugi can actually be understood. I must admit that his 'Engrish' is at times funny but gets tiresome after about 30 minutes.

Details

Country:

UK Japan USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 September 1992 (Czechoslovakia)

Also Known As:

Journey of Honor

Filming Locations:

Japan

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mayeda Productions Inc., Sanyo Finance, Sho Kosugi Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1