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Sonny
Chiba
is something of a god in exploitation flick circles yet he has never
attained the respect a Bruce Lee or a Jackie Chan gets without hesitation
from the larger pool of film buffs. Perhaps it is due to the fact that his
catalog is poorly represented on these shores and his films are usually
hacked up and badly dubbed when they do make it here. Thankfully, Adness
has been addressing this problem by releasing properly mastered, unedited
Japanese-language versions of his films with subtitles. Often, this basic
respect makes all the difference in the world.
Case in point - The Legend Of
The Eight Samurai. This one has had a negligible rep, even among
Chiba
fans, because it was erratically re-edited and given a spectacularly lame
dubbing job. Some of the bad
press might also have to do with the fact this isn’t a pure Sonny Chiba
vehicle – he has a limited (but important) supporting role in the
film’s ensemble. This
restored edition is quite entertaining - flawed but not worthy of the
out-of-hand rejection it has received over the years.
The Legend Of The Eight Samurai
was inspired by the 100 volume mythology epic Satomi
Hakken-Den (the same literary work that also inspired Fukasaku's
less entertaining, just plain weird Message
From Space). It's got a very complex plot, as you might imagine,
so here is the quick, reader-friendly rundown - the Hikita clan was wiped
out years ago by the Satomi clan but managed to place a curse upon the
Satomi clan before dying. Since then, they have returned as ghosts to
bedevil and murder any living Satomi clan member.
They have succeeded in wiping out every one except Princess Shizu (Hiroko
Yakushimaru). The Princess escapes and seems doomed to be captured until
Dosetsu (our man
Chiba
) and his brother Daikaku (Minori Terada), the last descendents of her
family's protectors, come to the rescue. They tell her of a legend about
her ancestors that predicted eight specially-gifted samurai, each
signified by their possession of a magical pearl, would unite to defend
the last Satomi clan member in her darkest hour. Further complication is
added by Shinbei (Hiroyuki Sanada), a young would-be samurai who first
wants to capture Shizu for a ransom but soon discovers his ultimate fate
is entangled with that of Shizu and her magical samurai.
The films ‘gathering of heroes in a desperate time’ premise is a
time-honored premise and the treatment it receives here is never dull.
Unfortunately, the way it plays out is a mixed bag. The pressure of
melting down a hundred volumes' worth of story has resulted in a story so
dense that it ultimately becomes pulpy - the immense forward drive of the
narrative leaves no room for characterization and the dialogue is burdened
with a preponderance of exposition (it's necessary but it results in lots
of scenes where we are told things instead of seeing them happen).
The filmmakers also sought to modernize the tale for audiences - meaning
that the two youngest characters are pushed to the fore and cast with two
of the hottest young stars of the day. Both Sanada and Yakushimaru give
solid performances but the fact remains that their characters are among
the least interesting due to their youth and naiveté. Another unfortunate
outgrowth of the film's pop approach is a synth-driven score that is often
wildly inappropriate for the material, including two hideous pop songs
guaranteed to conjure up one’s worst memories of Loverboy.
And yet Legend Of The Eight
Samurai is tremendously entertaining despite these problems. It
may be over-plotted, but in a highly entertaining way - there isn't a
minute in this story when something important to the plot is happening and
the breathless rush from one big event to the next is endearing. I
can only imagine how troubling a cut version of the story might be.
Despite a limited amount of screen time, Chiba anchors the tale with his
usual heroic presence and Chiba-flick regular Etsuko Shihomi steals a few
scenes as a team member/former assassin/ tragic loner who is forced to
fight the only man who might have loved her (of course, he works for the
other side). Kinji Fukasaku directs with a confident grasp of the epic and
his work is enhanced by an endless parade of stunning sets and costumes
that dazzle the eye. He also caps his tale with a thoroughly rousing
fifteen-minute fight finale that makes any prior missteps forgivable.
In short, Legend Of The Eight
Samurai may be flawed but it's also a helluva lot of fun. It
delivers the romance, tragedy, palace intrigue, ancient curses, heroic
journeys, valiant sacrifices and the swordfights by the dozen that a
Japanese epic requires. Exploitation fans will also be happy to know it
boasts giant centipedes, huge flying snakes, flayings, decapitations,
scads of old-school optical effects and a sexy ghost who bathes au natural
in a giant pool of blood. Don't believe the hype regarding the dubbed
& edited version - this is a good time for anyone with an interest in
Japanese cult cinema.
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