Plot: What’s it about?
Zatoichi (Shintaro Katsu) finds himself in prison, thanks to some involvement in an illegal gambling operation. He wanted to gamble and this case, he lost and had to serve some time. The punishment for his offense was a whipping and of course, Zatoichi takes his punishment and moves on. He has a few laughs at his captors’ expense, but he also meets a man in prison named Shimazo and a relationship begins. Shimazo claims he is imprisoned wrongly, as he is innocent of the numerous charges filed against him. The crimes include arson and murder, as well as smaller misdeeds, but the murder charge means his days are numbered. His claims of innocence aside, his position as a prisoner means he is unable to contact his family and tell them about his situation, which makes the ordeal even worse. Shimazo asks Zatoichi to reach out to an associate, a friend of Shimazo’s on the outside. That way, word could get to his wife and daughter about his terrible situation. Although he always lands in hot water when he agrees to such favors, Zatoichi decides to lend a hand. On the road to Shimazo’s contact, Zatoichi runs into all kinds of people, including a conman who loves to pose as other people. Surrounded by odd and dangerous people, can Zatoichi complete the favor, or is the road too rough?
After a few middling installments, this series returns to a higher watermark with Zatoichi and the Doomed Man, the eleventh film in the franchise. As I’ve said in reviews of previous Zatoichi films, after this many volumes, it has to be tough to crank out more top notch installments. Even the best film franchises stumble and produce poor sequels, but Zatoichi remained strong and even the weaker volumes were worthwhile. In Zatoichi and the Doomed Man however, we have a terrific installment that more than proved than Zatoichi’s blade was as sharp as ever, even after almost a dozen movies under his belt. Then again, there would be a total of twenty-five sequels and more than one hundred television episodes, so the grinding stone for his sword must have been quite busy. The plot here is an excellent one and while somewhat formulaic, it stands as a fresher volume when compared to the last few installments. There is also a lot of humor in this movie, most of which is effective and adds another dimension to the familiar situations. I love the large amount of swordplay here also, as it is always fun to watch Zatoichi wield his blade. I recommend viewing the films in proper order of course, so that references to past adventures are caught and in the case of this installment, the more you know about Zatoichi, the more you’ll like the flick. So if you’re a fan of the series, then Zatoichi and the Doomed Man is highly recommended.
Video: How does it look?
Zatoichi and the Doomed Man is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. This is another great visual treatment from Home Vision, who have shown immense care with these releases and fans should be delighted. As a result, we’re presented with a clean source print that has only minor defects, as well as a sharp, clean overall image to experience. The colors have a little flatness in a few scenes, but seem bright enough in most, so no complaints there. As far as contrast, I found detail to be high and black levels look good, leaving me to score this one rather well. I continue to be impressed by Home Vision’s work on this series and of course, I hope future installments are just as well handled, which I am sure will be the case.
Audio: How does it sound?
The original Japanese soundtrack is preserved here, via a solid, but unremarkable mono option. A few minor defects aside, the material has held up well over the years and provides a more than adequate experience. The dialogue is clear and never muffled, while sound effects are well presented also, though limited to what mono allows, of course. The film’s superb musical score sounds good as well, with as rich a texture as mono can offer and since its such a good score, that’s wonderful news. In case you don’t happen to speak Japanese, you can enable optional, new & improved English subtitles.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes the film’s theatrical trailer.
