The Cinema of Kihachi
Okamoto
Kihachi Okamoto was born on 17th February 1924,
he belonged to a generation which was described as those most likely to be
killed. Okamoto was drafted during the very worst of the war when he was a
19-year-old university student. It was 1943 and he was shipped straight to the
front. "You could say it's a miracle I survived the war at all, since
statistics show that the largest number of people killed were those born, like
me, in 1924," he said in a 1977 interview with Peter B. High. This
experience molded, one could even say, scarred a whole generation of filmmakers
such as Masaki Kobayashi, Seijun Suzuki and Kenji Misumi.
This
early and rather bleak vision of the suffering and violence of humanity brought
about a new view of the human experience, Japanese society and, as a side
product, of cinema itself. Many would argue that Japanese cinema never saw
itself the same again after the war and the horrors of
In
1947, after the war Okamoto entered Toho studios, where he served as assistant
director to Senkichi Taniguchi on one of the earliest
Akira Kurosawa scripts - Snow Trail (Ginrei No Hate).
He began to direct in 1958 with the a number of
melodramas such as All About Marriage, but these were not especially
successful. He came to realize that his forte was in action films and he went
on to direct three entries in Toho's successful Underworld series. A big fan of
John Ford, Okamoto quickly began to model his action films on American
westerns. Creating a strange and unique amalgam of war films, Westerns and a
Japanese/American cultural mix led to his many successes. (Dokuritsugu
Gurentai) Desperado Outpost (1959) – a witty and
satirical story of island-bound soldiers that transposed an “American cowboys and
indians” type western to the Manchurian front of
1940’s was a huge success. This was followed by Westward Desperado, the plot
structure of which is clearly modeled on a traditional American Western--a lone
army troop on patrol is hounded by guerrilla attacks by the warring
enemy--except the situation is WWII, the Indians are the Chinese, John Wayne
becomes Kayama Yuzo, and the cavalry is the Japanese
Imperial Army !
Okamoto’s
films always seen to balance humour, satire and wit
with violence and savagery, both Desperado Outpost and Westward Desperado have
a strong if not biting humour and even the process of
transplanting the American West has certain ironic twist. He did attempt a
comedy (Oh! Bomb in 1964) but it was not well received so he returned to what
he knew best and stayed there, at least until later in his career.
Within
1964 Warring Clans marked his focus on what are known as Chanbara
films, the term literally means sword fighting and are usually period pieces
which are marked by action and violence. Okamoto’s films in this genre saw him
becoming very well known in the west and marked a unique development of his own
style which included an eye for rhythm, the careful use of sound and effect
combined with careful editing to create flowing sword fighting and action
sequences.
At the
same time he broke with traditional Japanese cinematic tradition and was highly
critical of bushido, the samurai lifestyle and Tokugawa society in general.
This disaffection with the traditions that had led
Some of
his most popular films from this period Samurai Assassin (1965), Sword of Doom
(1966), Kill! (1968), Red Lion (1969), all resonate
with his dissatisfaction with tradition, the high cost of violence and the fact
that when the sword (read gun, knife, bomb – whatever) is used, it is the poor
and weak who suffer.
In
1970’s many changes took place with in the film industry, the studio era came
to an end and Okamoto began to work as an independent filmmaker. During this
period he again tried his hand at other genres and made a bewildering range of
films, ranging from Human Bullett (a war satire) to a
science fiction film (Blue Christmas) and a crime comedy (The Rainbow Kids).
Again, these were only marginally successful and it became obvious that his
primary successes were war and Samurai titles.
One of
the more popular during this period was East Meets West in 1995 which was
billed as a Samurai Western. In this ultimate mixture of genres Kamijo Kenkichi is a Ronin from a clan opposed to
This
was quite a major success and re-ignited interest in Okamoto in the West, in
2001 he made Vengeance for
This
superb box set from Eastern Eye includes four of his classic Samurai/ Chanbara films. Samurai Assassin, Red Lion, Kill!
and Sword of Doom. This is a beautifully
packaged set with high quality editions of each film with trailers and picture
galleries.
Samurai Assassin
Samurai
Assassin is based on the Sakurada Gate Incident of 1860. Inside Edo castle, a
group of assassins from the house of Minto wait by
Sakurada Gate to kill the lord of the House of Ii, “Ii Naosuke”
also known as the “Demon of Hikone”, a powerful man
in the Tokugawa government, which has ruled
They
suspect a traitor in their midst, and their suspicions fall on Niiro, a poor and undistinguished Ronin.
Niiro lives in a hut made of mud and sticks and works
as a cheap bodyguard and bouncer for hire with some crime on the side to make
ends meet. Toshiro Mifune stars as Niiro, who has manipulated his way into the coup with the
forlorn hope that it will gain him enough fame to earn a position in a great
Samurai house. Moreover, Niiro has a secret, he is a
bastard child, but his high-ranking father will only disclose himself if Niiro achieves samurai status.
Both Ii
Naosuke and the assassins believe they are protecting
While
Sword of Doom is considered Okamoto’s most classic film, Samurai Assassin is
considered the best known and most revered of all Samurai films in Western Cinema !
Red Lion
In this
strange and quirky Samurai tale, Red Lion, Gonzo shows up in his home town
after several years' absence wearing red headgear impersonating a leader of
the imperial army. The son of a peasant, Gonzo became a soldier to escape the
stifling nature of his village. He returns to bring news that the tyranny of
the local establishment has come to an end and to sing the praises of the
Imperial Restoration. Of course, this message has as much to do with his
personal desire to bring down his oppressors as any political significance.
Strangely, the peasants (used to their way of life) and the local Samurai do
not welcome the message of their “liberation”. All sorts of arguments, fights
and conflicts arise, all calling into question Gonzo's
military prowess and connection to the imperial army and resurrecting old
scores from the past.
While
this may seem like a film which is primarily locked within a specific
historical period i.e. the Meiji restoration, it can just as much be seen as a
revolt of the poor against the rich. This motif is found in many cultures
ranging from the Robin Hood figure so loved in English cinema to our own Ned
Kelly and the myth of the bushranger. The whole model of the warrior who works
on the side of the poor stealing from the rich is embodied in this strange yet
intriguing epic.
Kill!
In this dark Samurai comedy it is
They team up with a group of seven strong but somewhat dim
samurai who murder a vassal of the Shogun on behalf of a local boss named
Chamberlain Ayuzawa. But soon the men realize Ayuzawa is a danger to both of their lives, they side with
the rebels who are under siege at a remote mountain cabin.
This is
based on the novel as Akira Kurosawa’s Sanjuro,
however Kill! Interprets the source differently
creating a darkly funny farce packed with wit, even some of the more violent
scenes seem to brim with comedic elements. Okamoto mixes Westerns, comedy and
traditional Samurai/Chanbara forms into a unique
amusing film.
Sword of Doom
In 1913
the serial novel
As the story
opens, it’s Spring 1860,
The
next scene continues exploring the theme of the amoral Ryunosuke,
the Samurai as psychopath. The wife of the challenger of his next exhibition match, comes to plead for her husband’s life. Not only does Ryunosuke demand she surrender herself to him as payment,
he then proceeds to kill her husband anyway with a single breathtakingly brutal
sword stroke.
As the
film continues we begin to see the world through Ryunosuke’s
eye, his mind is one with the metal, he focuses on his skill and human life is
disposable. He treats men as objects to be battled against and women as objects
of desire to be taken as required.
This is
a dark and gruesome film, Okamoto mixes superb choreography and violent
swordplay with exquisitely beautiful images of the landscape. It is an
evocative and powerful film filled with perfectly framed scenes and set
pieces. It is a strange exploration of
opposites, light and dark, beauty and violence, love and death.
Ryunosuke is a
damaged man, he is a character than on one level seems demented, psychopathic,
even perhaps pathological, yet at the same time he seems to be a man that is
haunted by the changes in his society and perhaps represents the madness of the
world around him. He seems to have some sort of conscience yet lives beyond it.
Yes, he is a amoral Ronin,
but he seems to have a darkness within him that suggests so much more.
The
Sword of Doom is considered one of Okamato’s most
classic films, haunting, violent, dark and beautiful.
Kihachi Okamoto Collection
4 DVD Box Set
Eastern Eye
Entertainment
Includes: Kill !,
Sword of Doom, Red Lion and Samurai Assassin
Eastern Eye
Madman
Entertainment
All four are also available as individual titles.