Rating: **
Review Date: 7/15/24
Cast: Ken Ogata, Sonny Chiba
An insane shogun plots to murder his 5-year old firstborn son so that his favored second son can inherit the throne. Everyone knows this is a terrible idea, but no one dares to challenge his authority in the matter. One clan hires a ronin named Igo Gyobu (Ken Ogata) and his band of skilled ruffians to protect the child as they make their way to Edo, pursued by a relentless Sonny Chiba.
While it's long, tedious, and overly predictable, it's a good-looking and well-shot film that features a wide variety of gorgeous locations. The stunt work is good and occasionally quite harrowing, but unfortunately suffers from some unnecessary animal cruelty. For a film full of sword fighting, the action is disappointingly bloodless, but one character death is shockingly graphic, which caught me by surprise and made me flinch. Sadly, the late 80's CGI effects are appallingly bad, and the film features possibly the worst chromakey compositing that I've ever seen. It's downright embarrassing. Thankfully, the fire effects and explosions look great and are mostly real, as opposed to many modern films. Another sore spot in the film is the soundtrack, which is pleasant and dramatically appropriate for the most part, but erupts into a terrible rock anthem towards the end, which spoils the tone and really dates the production.
The acting is good and appropriately melodramatic, given the heavy-handed themes of loyalty and honor. An overly sweaty and pock-marked Ken Ogata delivers a sympathetic hero with a tragic past, but he isn't especially endearing or charismatic. Sonny Chiba, on the other hand, is overflowing with charisma, although he's largely absent for an entire hour in the middle of the film. He is an extremely good samurai actor, and the material suits him well. It forces him to reign in his tendency for bombastic overacting, while still allowing him to maintain his signature intensity. And his sword fighting is superb. The supporting actors are good, although not very memorable. Overall, I found the film to be a mixed bag and difficult to fully enjoy. For as many things that I liked about it, there were just as many disappointments and forehead-slapping moments. The large budget and high production values also force the film to aim for mass appeal, which dilutes the narrative and results in a sense of compromise and mediocrity.