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Kedamono no ken (1965)
Highly enjoyable, briskly paced 60's samurai film
This is a very early Gosha film and an immensely enjoyable one. Thematically this film is fairly similar to Gosha's masterpiece Goyokin. Both films follow disillusioned samurai while they attempt to break away from their past life as retainers. Compared to Goyokin, Sword of the Beast is much shorter and not as wide or ambitious in scope.
The plot follows Gennosuke, a samurai that we learn has been manipulated by his clan and eventually hunted. Adding to the drama, he is hunted by a group of people lead by a former friend from his clan. Through flashbacks we learn exactly how Gennosuke has ended up in his current position. Previously he was a low level samurai in his clan, with great sword skills but little else. A high level retainer talks with and manipulates a naive and ambitious Gennosuke into taking action. As you can imagine, when he is on the run his aspect on life and his clan is much different! The most interesting aspects of the film occur when his circumstances cause him to view the samurai code much differently than he had as a retainer.
The action is very well filmed with good composition and stylistic choices such as the freeze frame. At only 85 minutes, the film is quickly placed with plenty of action. While Mikijiro Hira doesn't match Tatsuya Nakadai's masterful performance in Goyokin, he still does a more than competent job. Overall, this film was a pleasure to watch. To anybody else who enjoyed the film, I would highly recommend Goyokin (thematically very similar and one of Gosha's best).
Shussho iwai (1971)
good, well-paced gosha
Like all of the other Gosha I've seen, I thoroughly enjoyed this film. This being the first yakuza film I've seen from Gosha I wasn't exactly sure what to expect. Unlike many of the yakuza films made around this time, it is longer, slower and more meditative. You can tell Gosha is quite confident and he takes his time, developing the story at his own leisurely pace. Compared to his earlier films, Three Outlaw Samurai and Sword of the Beast, the pace is much more drawn out.
The plot follows Nakadai as he is released early from prison, after being put away for homicide after killing a rival boss (this all occurs within the first 10 minutes of the film, in flashback form). When he is released he finds his old yakuza world to be much different from how it used to be. However, he is very careful not to step on anyone toes and goes to extreme measures to avoid offending anyone. Unlike his intense performance in Gosha's Goyokin, he does his best to avoid any fatal mistakes. The plot itself is quite convoluted, with several of the genre's typical plot elements expertly handled by Gosha. It is worth noting that most of the action is bundled up at the beginning and the end. Those expecting nonstop action will likely be sorely disappointed.
The film is well worth it for any fans of Goshas and fans of the earlier chivalry yakuza films. Nakadai gives a very good performance as always and Noboru Ando is his equal as a prisoner (formerly rival gangster) that gets released at the same time as Nakadai. I've only seen Ando in Sympathy for the Underdog and this film, and he has held his own against two great performance by Nakadai and Koji Tsuruta.