Hanzo the Razor: Who's Got the Gold? (1974)

After extracting information by raping a ghost, Hanzo uncovers a plot among high officials to steal the shogunate's gold and loan it out to the poor.

Director:

Yoshio Inoue

Writers:

Takeshi Kanda (story), Kazuo Koike (comic)

Stars:

Shintarô Katsu, Kô Nishimura, Mako Midori

Cast

Credited cast:
Shintarô Katsu	...	Hanzo 'The Razor' Itami
Kô Nishimura	...	Magobei 'Snake' Ohnishi
Mako Midori	...	Yumi
Mikio Narita	...	Bansaku Tonami
Asao Koike	...	Ishiyama
Etsushi Takahashi	...	Sugino
Daigo Kusano	...	Onibi
Keizô Kanie	...	Mamushi
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Aoi Nakajima	...	Kato's wife
Hiroshi Nawa	...	Hotta
Kei'ichi Noda
Rokkô Toura	...	Kato
Michiko Tsukasa	...	Wife
Akira Yamauchi	...	Takei

Storyline

Follow the money. In a time of economic disaster for wage earners, Hanzo discovers a conspiracy among high officials to "borrow" gold from the shogunate's treasury and loan it out to the destitute, including impecunious samurai - exacting either interest payments or family heirlooms from the debtors. Along the way, Hanzo extracts a confession from a ghost using his assaulting methods, foils thieves, connects with Heisuke Takei a friend from his youth, offers protection to a forward-thinking physician Genan Sugino who has defamed his ruler, discovers a pleasure ring of young wives and a blind music teacher, and cuckolds a corrupt official under his very nose.

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Plot Keywords:

samurai | female nudity | sexploitation | rape | grindhouse film | 

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Genres:

Action

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Goofs

In the shot with a bamboo spear filled with gold pieces flying into the pond, the flight the spear takes is impossible, as the weight of the gold would have flipped it over.

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Quotes

Hanzo 'The Razor' Itami: A woman ghost? Interesting. Take me there.
Onibi: To see the ghost? Please, don't make us go back.
Hanzo 'The Razor' Itami: What did she look like?
Onibi: Her face was like...
Mamushi: Yeah, her face...
Hanzo 'The Razor' Itami: I want to make love to a ghost once.
Mamushi: To a ghost?
Onibi: Are you serious?
Hanzo 'The Razor' Itami: A man would like it once.
Onibi: Do you mean it?
[...]

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Connections

Follows Hanzo the Razor: Sword of Justice (1972)

User Reviews

Entertaining closure for the Hanzo trilogy

The final chapter in the Hanzo the Razor trilogy provides fitting closure for this entertaining series of samuraisploitation. Inoue replaces Yasuzu Masumura (Blind Beast, Red Angel, Manji) in the director's chair, but the style is pretty much the same, perhaps due to Shintaro Katsu serving as the producer, apart from the titular antihero.

Hanzo uncovers a female ghost who is guarding treasure hidden in the bottom of the lake. Of course, Hanzo being Hanzo, he's not put off by the fact she's a ghost, so he proceeds to rape... ahem, interrogate her, using the now familiar revolving net device. The plot takes through a series of blind monks who also doubletime as loansharks, corrupt officials, promiscuous wives and the necessary hack and slash. Hanzo's superior officer, Onishi, and his two servants, provide the typical comedic notes, and generally, it's business as usual.

Significantly less convoluted and easier to follow than the first (which is all over the place and a bit of a mess), less stylish, dramatic and bloody than the second (arguably the finest in the Hanzo series), but still entertaining and worthwhile on its own merits. Complete with trademark training sequences, the obligatory rape, swordfights, and a mystery Hanzo is called upon to investigate, this will ultimately satisfy the fans.

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

9 February 1974 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Hanzo the Razor: Who's Got the Gold?

Company Credits

Production Co:

Katsu Production, Toho Company

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1