Shogun Assassin: What Makes it the Perfect Film
Вставка
- Опубліковано 19 лис 2022
- In 1980 the the original Japanese Lone Wolf and Cub films were taken by American director Robert RyuHouston - a man with an interesting and twisted filmography which includes Civil Rights documentaries and Playboy erotica - he then re-edited and combined the films, rewrote and re-recorded dialog - which includes the voice-over talents of Sandra Bernhard (yes, that Sandra Bernhard) - and made the films more palatable to American audiences. The first episode of Lone Wolf and Cub, “Sword of Vengeance”. and the second, “Baby Cart at the River Styx” are combined to make Shogun Assassin.
Help support my channel through my Patreon.
/ bushidoblues
Special Thanks to my Patrons:
The Nerdy Ronin
Zoey
Sandra Shimazu
Tobias Hilger
George
Caleb Rands
Cytieria
Follow me on Twitter
Check out Bushido Blues (@BluesBushido): BluesBushido?s=09
Music:
Duel of the Iron Mic: GZA - Фільми й анімація
My dad showed me this film when i was 12. I'm 49 now and Its still in my top five moives of all time. The dream like quality of this movie coupled with the endless quaotabilty. "Armour, you fear him so?" "He is the son of a mad wolf". Just amazing. Its one of the most influential and least talked about movies I know.
I love you son
My dad did the same for me but prolly at like 10 or so... always stuck with me my favorite samurai film of all time easy.
I prefer the Original Lone Wolf and Cub in Japanese. This is just a mashup of the 1st 2 movies. The original soundtrack is so much better.
My old man put me on to this film too when I was in middle school
@@wadeheaton123 How does your comment have anything to do with the others in this thread. Did your dad tell you these things? 😂 No one cares about the quality of the movie, or if there is a better version, they are talking about how this specific movie is connected to a positive memory of their fathers.
I was 21 years old. On my first active duty station in Osan Air Base S. Korea. It was Circa 1981 or 1982. I was in the barracks upstairs . It was the most amazing martial arts movie we had ever seen. It was in a different category than the Bruce Lee Movies ! I'm 61 now. Brings back fond memories !
The greatest single dad of all time 💯
Peace! Absolutely 💯 sir!!! No questions asked…
My first job was working at a movie theater in 1980. Shogun Assassin played at my theater for a couple of weeks and I was hooked! I love the story, the background, and the music. It portrayed a time in my life that I can never replace. Thank you for this video. I'm glad that I'm not alone. LOL
I wish I could have seen it in the movie theater!
I was 21 going on 22. Glad I witnessed this!
Saw this maybe 50 yrs ago, Hawaii on my Birthday, the Japanese version . Never forgot. It; A fan to this day . Read all the lone wolf and cub mangas online, which to me are just as good. Wonderfully illustrated. Thank you for featuring this !
I recently watched the whole wolf and cub series and still find Shogun the best of them all. They could not match the explosive energy and pacing of Shogun plus the 80s synth score was awesome. A classic movie.
I first heard this in the intro to Liquid Swords by GZA.
Then I had a Samurai phase in which I would watch or read or play ANYTHING Samurai that I could find.
When I came across Shogun Assassin I was like, "GZA!"
And then later in that journey I found a Criterion collection of DVDs at HMV and it may have been the happiest day of my life up to that point:
SIX whole movies of Ogami Itto.
Even though each DVD was way more expensive than even the latest releases, I spent the money (while I had NO money). 😅
This is a legendary film.
Legend of the Red Dragon (1994) is also inspired by Shogun Assassin. It even has the little boy choosing his fate in the beginning except with a rocking horse instead of a ball.
Saw this at 8yrs old in '86. One of my favorite martial arts films of all time. Made the Genius album liquid swords that much more amazing
Greatest hip hop album of all time in my opinion. The movie was almost made to go well with music.
After this movie came out in the states, its was years that i found out there were 6 movies in total. Also I found out Shogun Assassin was a mix of the first 2 movies and dubbed in English
The shogun dub was scary
My family rented this movie in the 80s and I instantly fell in love with it, The synth music was one aspects I loved, it fit when it shouldn't of...The creepy sounds through out was just awesome. And it was the action i craved instead of the Teenage Mutant Ninja turtles scene that dominated. I took Martial Arts and just soaked this movie up and bought all the Manga. My favorite movie ever! The comics really give you a sense of the time period too.
I remember watching Shogun Assassin in late 80s on VHS. I was completely blown away by the film! The sword play, non-stop action and cub in cart was classic! I eventually watched all the Lone Wolf & Cub films buying the box set in VHS. Shogun Assassin is my favorite of the films. Also, one of my favorite films of all time!
I was 13 when I first watched this. I had to fake my voice to sound like an adult since this was R-rated. I think the ticket lady knew but she let me in anyways.
I found it surreal that all this carnage was narrated from the POV of a child. 😊
I went to see this movie at the theater when i was 5 yrs old with my dad and older brother i absolutely loved k it . i remembered about a week after it was released it dissapeared...
“Bloody violent samurai movie”
This is exactly why I wanted to see this movie, I’m 51 so when I first saw SA it was on VHS. A few friends were telling me about how bad ass this film was so I made my parents take me to the Video store to rent it. I must of seen it 4 times before returning it.
I completely agree with you on the added narration by the kid, it gave him so much more depth, which I found disappointing in the OG series.
I still love this film , I watch it at least once a year. I am surprised that SA wasn’t remade in to a Western as Samurai and Westerns are truly interchangeable.
This was a great series homie, you did justice to all the films. Thank you
Thanks man! Glad you enjoyed it. Yeah exactly, it was that kind of film that the guys all talked about and you had to see it to believe it. I'm glad I can still enjoy it now and respect it on a different level.
Never get tired of Shogun Assassin fun every time lol
Exactly!
I was 11 years old when I saw Shogun Assassin, it was my first introduction to the series. I learned that many of the Samurai TV and Movies before Lone Wolf and Cub were very homogenized efforts. This movie is still one of my favorites.
All the Lone Wolf and Cub movies were fantastic.
I picked up this movie at my local video rental store back in the 90s. The amount of blood, gore and Non-Stop action made other movies seem like kids stuff. And I loved every minute of it
This movie should be playing on us cable stations,
The full series this movie was edited into was on the hbo max tcm but now tcm was discontinued
Great insightful review. Robert Houston starred in “The hills have eyes” before producing this. Another great exploration film. Every incarnation of lone wolf is entertaining, even the TV series. Thanks for your assessment of the series.
That's such a cool Easter egg next time I watch the hills have eyes. Thanks for enjoying it!
Wow! Your insights into the production process behind the making of the Shogun Assination films is to be appreciated. Perhaps in the future you could provide a sort of "where are they now" look at the actors that were involved in the Lone Wolf saga. You're right, these films may not be for everyone but for those of us who treasure these films they are truly special.
Thanks! That's a great idea. I think it was you that told me that the actor who played Daigoro got arrested for smuggling weapons into Japan.
Shogun Assassin is probably the best English/dubbed samurai film of all time , but the original films are WAY better. One of the best magma/comic book adaptations of all time and a huge influence on the Mandalorian.
I came across shogun when I was visiting Dallas TX. For a Busta rhymes /nas/cypresshill concert. I lived 3vours away from there and was going to the show with a friend. I had another friend in Dallas that was letting us crash there. At his house at some point I was looking through his movies and found it. It was an old movie his dad had recorded he knew nothing about. I had heard of it but not seen it we watched it and fuckin loved it especially vwhen I recognized the parts that were sampled for The GZA album "Liquid Swords". This movie got me more into samurai movies than any before. I have seen the others and I don't feel them as I do this . Great damn flick!
Superb review, I love this film an all time classic. You will wear out the rewind button watching this.
Thank you for reconnecting me to this film and back story !
I remember getting this on VHS in 1990 thinking it was a kung fu movie as I was a fan of Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan, I was shocked as had not seen anything like this before 😂 that was my introduction to Japanese cinema
To me this is a movie about free and independent mind resisting and defending itself from evil world with all of its horrors. You lost everything but you keep fighting using your sword. No fear. You accept death and are ready to face anything. You remain free no matter what. I love the main actor and I love this movie. ⚔️🙂🗡
My father showed this to me on WHT in the 80’s.
Changed my life forever!!
The 2004-5 Japanese television series, "Lone Wolf And Cub", goes a long way in explaining why Itto Ogami, the Lone Wolf was so devastating against so many samurai, ninja, and counter-assassins.
Everyone already understood that for his time period, the Edo Era of the 17th to 18th centuries, Ogami Itto was an exceptionally big and powerful man for a Japanese male. Japanese men at that time averaged 5'2" to 5'5" in height. Lone Wolf probably stood at 5'8", making him a big man in Tokugawa Japan. Second, everyone understood that Ogami Itto was an exceptionally skilled and experienced samurai nobleman and warrior. His swordsmanship was top notch and probably derived from the best Japanese fencing teachers in his youth.
Yet the 2004 tv series revealed Lone Wolf's secret: his sword.
Ogami Itto used what is known as a, "dottayuki", a battlefield sword. Shaped like a regular katana, the blade is slightly longer, is slightly wider, and slightly thicker. It was meant for cutting through samurai laminated armor on the battlefield. Being a larger, heavier blade, typically only bigger, stronger samurai would want to wield it because the typical, short Japanese samurai would find the dottayuki sword to be too heavy and unwieldy.
The dottayuki heavy battle katana sword was all that Ogami Itto needed. Notice that he did not carry a secondary, wakazashi sword. His strength and cunning did the rest. We all know that Lone Wolf was cunning and resourceful as well. He did not depend entirely on his dottayuki as Ogami was not a naive man.
Lone Wolf stored an armory of cleverly crafted weapons on and inside his son's plain, crude, wooden baby cart. Several times Ogami Itto had to resort to using those weapons when he temporarily lost his sword, or else needed a naginata-like pole weapon to fight off multiple armed enemies.
In the end you can could say that SHOGUN ASSASSIN the movie and the actual six-part movie series were all what the western courts would deem as, "pornography" - there are actually different types of pornography - but the movie appealed to the gladiator fan in all of us. Indeed, SHOGUN ASSASSIN was the equivalent of walking to the Colosseum in Rome on a warm morning to watch the latest gladiator vs. gladiator fights. A lot of the Roman citizens and visitors may have been appreciative of the different weapons fighting skill sets, but then a lot of fans came to watch the bloodletting and the more gruesome and sanguinary the better.
I started studying Japanese Karate. Shotokan. Got me very interested in Bushido. The Katana. Then watching Shogun Assassin and all the following movies. I’m 68 and still train with the Katana along with Aikido. The Spirit of The Blade.
Awesome! The films are definitely motivating enough to make me want to start training too.
Similar story . Started with Kyokushinkai, then Shotokan . Saw original Japanese version in Honolulu. Very motivating attitude in the film. I’m 73.
I saw this when it came out. I was in high school and it was showing at the Burlingame Drive In. At that time I had no idea this was a re-formation of two movies or anything about the Lone Wolf and Cub series of films. The drive in is now the site of the Facebook/Meta University
When the woman assassin starting running backward at superhuman speed in spandex I pissed myself laughing 😂 great film. Always have to lisson to Liquid Swords after.
Love this series of films so much. Absolute class 😊
daddy died when i was little. moved outta the styx to a relatively small town, which had a hotel, several schools, a public swimming pool, churches, and a drive in. now i was just a little kid, but i recognized the film that i saw driving up the road that was next to said drive in... i saw it years later on vhs when my uncle showed me on his kickass tv and sound system. i showed it to my younger cousins when i had an account at the local movie rental shoppe. they always remembered that, including the road warrior and many, many other movies lol this one is in my top five all time.
Shogun Assassin is truly the best movie ever made. The comic books were awesome and it’s amazing how well they took shots from the comic book and brought it to life itself. I was just telling my son today imagine if they took episode one and episode two from Star Wars and they took out all the Jar Jar Binks and the edited one cool movie and even enhanced it with a kick ass DJ soundtrack that’s what she’ll get assassin would be today.
Concur that Houston did create something unique with the editing, dubbing, and music. The music reminds me of some of John Carpenter's compositions; and the visuals no doubt influenced "Big Trouble in Little China".
One of the reasons my family watched this is because of Daiguro .
0:43 Those eyebrows… that’s what makes it a perfect film.
Haha
This movie sat in our Pantheon of pirated Betamax Tapes!!! The original comics are also highly influential and important to the genre.
Saw all 6 movies in a theater back in 2018. My ass was numb by the end but WORTH IT.
Like many, heard about this from the GZA album. The Internet isn't what it is now so it wasn't until Kill Bill almost a decade later that I became familiar with the rest of the movies. Was happy to get a hold of the original series live action but was bummed when they didn't release beyond 6 DVDs. Then the 2002 episodes popped up on UA-cam but it doesn't appear they released the entire series. I hope one day we get a comprehensive set.
The dub, that soundtrack - such a great movie. I love the original six Lone Wolf & Cub movies but this amalgam of part of the series is so much fun. There's nothing bad about that dub BTW it's fucking epic. I'm not a fan of Wu Tang Clan's music but they clearly recognised just how quotable those lines were.
Man do I agree with you, this movie is love vengeance, from the first time l saw it I thought that at the time that's was true tough and just. Vengeful justice,
What else made it good (and the series) was his love for his family, code and honor.
The first is still the best. The gore on Shogun Assassin was clandestine and futuristic to the exploitative nature of 80s mechanical blood effects that can't be touched by the CGI blood efx of today. You've got it right by this retelling of your admiration of it. "Geysers of blood." Cool expression on your part, brother. After a point, great film work belongs not to the original artist, but the public at large. They deserve to see the whole art expression, so that they can be immersed in its spirit experience.
Criterion released the boxed set of the original Lone Wolf and Cub films. It also includes Shogun Assassin.
Subscribed and shared.
Thank you!
Easily one of my all time favorite films, film series and tv series and soundtracks. one of my biggest inspirations while i was in film school was Shogun Assassin. I love and own both versions.
I was 12 when I first saw this movie and loved the sound track
The music was awesome!! I saw this movie for the first time when I was about 8yrs old !!
👐 Duel of the Iron Mic
I am so looking forward to hear your review of Shogun's shadow, it has so many parallels to Shogun Assassin, Seven samurai and 13 Assassins propably more movies. It also has a version of the scene you talk about, with the kid that has to make a choise. It is just the choise, will you flee and try to live hidden in refuge, or will you stand up against your father the shogun who wants you dead. I only have the one shogun assassin movie, believe it is the combi version.
This is the mastery I seek from the shinken. The essence of true conviction to combat letting mushin rule the mind, body and spirit.
I’ve seen this movie in the 70s when it first came out in America the dub version so we can understand it better. It was a very unique were movie unlike other other martial arts movies I enjoyed bloody Gore. Also the plot this was a classic. I seen Shogun assassin and the lightning swords of death separate also, I love this movie it’s a martial art classic to this day there’s still nothing like it. Thanks for sharing I’ve seen all of them.
Shogun Assassin and Sinbad starring T. Mifune are by far the best Sword fighting arts movies that I have seen in 60 years!!!
I grew up in L.A. and in the 70's we had a thearter on La Brea Blvd called the "The Toho" as there was a Japanese community around in those days and they should popular Japanese releases, we saw all the "Sword of Vengeance" releases and others in those days, subtitled off course but those were eye opening fun for us back in the 70's a must watch of all of them if you enjoyed "Shogun Assasin" which I also did seeing it on cable, very well done.
I would love to have seen these movies on the big screen!
I actually like that it's a remix. Since my knowledge of this movie is Liquid Swords, it's dope that the movie itself is a sample of an existing movie series.
For me, the original Lone Wolf and Cub series is the best.
It allows more time to show the other qualities besides the fight scenes.
The costumes, the landscapes and the old Japanese customs it showcases makes the whole experience much more believable in my eyes.
Best Samurai movies EVER MADE!
🏆
Duel of the iron mic! It's the 52 deadly strikes!!!
The tom Hanks Road to Perdition film where he is Lone Wolf with cub, the car is the cart, and Paul Newman is the shogun.
This is truly on the level of thr godfather for me in terms of the whole picture.
Life changing film. I saw this in an old neighborhood theater in Philadelphia back in the summer of ‘81. I was traumatized in such a wonderful way. This movie relegated Star Wars to the number 2 position.
We used to go to the drive-in back in the 70's to watch the Lone Wolf and Cub movies.
That sounds like the greatest thing!
@@bushidoblues9302 The drive-in was in a cow field, and they would even come up to your car window. lol The first time I ever went to that drive-in was in 1960 to see Godzilla. The concession stand consisted of Mom's cooking burgers, hotdogs and homemade milkshakes. Such laughs we used to have.
Perfect... no ifs, no buts
This guy gets it👊
Here's a sub and a like
My favorite martial arts movie of all time…by far.
CLASSIC.
The manga is so good, and the ending is just a chefs kiss. Enjoy!
I just bought volume 1 of the omnibus. Looking forward to collecting them all!
This is my all-time favorite 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
I still remember the slogan for "Lightning Swords of Death ". " Show A Kung Fu Fist to Ogami, He'll Just Cut It Off!"
Lol he would and I'd like to see him do it!
Were you not entertained? Were you not entertained? Is that not why you watched the movie?
Saw it first on "Kung Fu theater" late night on the weekend, back in the early 1980s. Loved it then, and love it now. Have it on Blu-ray and DVD.
“Pompous fool; the wolf lures you to your grave…”
love the movies, love the manga , masterpiece
Top five greatest samurai movie of all time and no one never thought of doing another lone wolf and baby cart film, with the baby being a grown man
My favorite movies ever
"Junai.... try to escape from the room"
Junai: "Ho?"
"Try to escape from the room!"
Swiftly loses his constituent parts...poor Junai
Classic Greatness. 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Hell yeah!!
I saw this around 6 years old and it was the uncut version on betamax. The last line that the man said about being cut in the throat being ridiculous used to make me and my Brother role with laughter.
I remember in 1987 when Lone Wolf and Cub movies with all the bloody gore and violence was shown on regular national TV. Oh it was intense!
This was the first film I was shown as a child about fatherhood.....
Best example of fatherhood I ever saw.
You said it best, Shogun Assassin is a good remix. The Lone Wolf and Cub story itself is pretty old, the concept is going to get remade plenty of times over. They did the same thing with Sentai Rangers to Power Rangers 🤷🏽♂️ they are both great in their own way. Whichever gives you more of a nostalgia feel is the one you go with.
I saw this movie when I 21 I still remember it I thought it was one greatest sword movie ever ❤👍
Gza's Liquid Sword album should be listened to as the perfect compliment / homage to this classic .
One of the greatest albums!
Nice job.
I always thought that Daigoro's choice was to join Ogamo on his quest for vengenance or to "join" his mother who has been killed by the Shogun's ninja.
He was pretty much given the choice to grow up or die.
It was. In the original dialogue and manga. Itto even cries for his son when he chooses the sword, because he knows whats coming.
I actually saw the 3rd in the series first on cable in '84-'85. It was titled Lightning Swords of Death, as you know. There was this video rental store in my city when I was growing up, Leonard's TV/Scot's Video, that had nearly 1/4 of the entire joint was kung fu films. Among them there were a few Japanese chanbara films, Sonny Chiba, and the likes. I first saw Shogun Assassin there in like '86 or '87.
Shogun Assassin vs the Kozure Okami series? You can't say one's better than the other. Once we all learned that Shogun Assassin wasn't canon, we all immediately gravitated towards the original in order to know the real tale of Ogami Ito and Ogami Daigoro. Then, we read the real original to ultimately engage the tale. I wish the movies ended like the manga, but a wish is just a wish...
What stood out to me in the films, was how discretely intelligent Daigoro was. Moments like when he's hanging over the well and he kicks his sandal off so his father knows exactly how long he has before Daigoro hits the ground/water. Or when he can't figure out how to carry the water his father desperately needs, so he carries it in his mouth. Or when he refuses to reveal the identity of the girl who was the quick-change pickpocket because he promised he wouldn't tell. Other scenes that go unnoticed are the duels when Ogami Ito uses the Wave Slashing technique. As he crouches into the water, he switches his sword into his left hand, then motions under the water with his right which causes his opponents to strike at it in attempt to parry his sword, but it isn't there, and when they slash nothing but wave, not only do they then understand the technique, they also know that they are dead.
I love the cinematography of Kenji Misumi films. His films stand above his peers. Every Zatoichi film he did were the finest in the collection, notably Zatoichi Goes to the Fire Festival. I love the scene in SA when they're in the bath and the camera seemingly spins around as if it were in the center of the tub. Such an intense moment given life by excellent camera work and editing.
This is absolutely one of the greatest films/series ever made. The only other film I have ever seen that absolutely pulled me into it's world completely was Evil Dead 2. Five Venoms is close, but SA overthrows your perspective with it's atmosphere and spirit.
Thanks for that knowledge! You really know these films and love them!
I really wish I could have witnessed that Leonard's Video store like you did. I really yearn for that kind of nostalgia!
@@bushidoblues9302 Thanks. It was amazing. The owner, Scot, would save all of the martial arts posters and paraphernalia and give them to me. I went there my whole life. There had to be about 2,000 movies in the martial arts section. I've never seen anything like it. My own collection is right over 1,000, but Leonard's TV/Scot's Video was were I acquired most of my education regarding Chinese and Japanese cinema. I'll never forget the day I drove down there and found an empty building. They closed down and I didn't know it. I never got to say goodbye or anything. You can find commercials for Uncle Leonard here on UA-cam.
Great movie - saw it around 1974 endless times / and still - bought the series and still waiting for chapter 7… / this year saw another nice movie from china called
Shadows and Echoes”. Also the Swordsman ( korean).
دیدن این سری سه تایی گرگ و بچه برام شده یک آرزو ، در زمان شاه فقید در شیراز این فیلم رو دیدم و آنزمان بسیار لذت بردم و بعد از چهل و اندی سال تنها چند قسمت از فیلم را توانستم ببینم ولی کاملش رو تا بحال ندیدم که بزودی خواهم دید ، فیلم بسیار زیبایی هست
Some of the music is also similar to Star Wars movie music.
Great film I love Dygert all I definitely grew up with that the first one is the best because it sets the model for the rest
A beautiful tribute to a masterpiece spliced movie! Let's face it, who hasn't spent most of their days since viewing it, trying to look lazy, whilst returning someones requested knife, left handed, with such perfection! A few may have cut off their own noses, in spite of their attempted saved faces disgraced reflection!
Funny enough I too was enlightened by QT in kill bill vol 2 during that scene with BB and The Bride. It’s the only reason I ever went and researched and saw Shogun Assassin… I feel like he left that Easter egg in there on purpose to get the youth into Jidaigeki-style, over-the-top, violent type of overseas films. Particularly since many Americans aren’t quite well versed in dubbed hyper violent foreign cinema.
Quentin does love his homages!
An exceptional film with so many finely crafted moments, the flaws are easily forgiven. I remember the the choice being walk the path with me to hell or join your mother in heaven making it very clear it was a life and death decision. Maybe that was in the sub tiles and not the dubbed. Nice video.
Yes it's also in the subtitled version but doesn't sound nearly as cool.
I own this on VHS! The first samurai to ever see.
I'd love to collect these on vhs. I really like the vintage cover art
I still solve all arguments with my daughter using the word "Daigoro"
Gza, and cage, sampled this.
I HAVEN'T SEEN A MOVIE YET , THAT CAN COMPARE 💪
I didn't grow up with the dub version, so my first exposure to Lone Wolf & Cub was first as the TV series 'Iron Samurai', a dubbed version of the TV version of Lone Wolf & Cub, and then later in the 90s I finally watched the BabyCart movies for the first time. Being a japanphile and all things samurai (on film), I don't think I can get past the english dubbing. I am fine with Kenji Misumi's original vision and the original score, which was early 70s funky (not in the porno or exploitation sense). With Kung Fu films on the other hand, I grew up with dubs, so for me, dubbed versions are just as enjoyable as the original language subbed version. But for Japanese films, I prefer the original audio and editing.
You can hear the Wu
What a badass movie!!!!
It's super badass!
@@bushidoblues9302 just listening gza's liquid swords and remembered the movie great video!!!