Zatoichi's Vengeance

1966 1h 23m JA

👍

7.0

SOLID

★7.0TMDB · 44

ActionDramaAdventure

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Zatoichi comes upon a dying man who asks him to give a bag of money to "Taichi". Zatoichi has no idea who this is but when he comes upon a small town harassed by gangsters, he finds that "Taichi" was the man's young son. Along his travels he also met a blind monk who makes Zatoichi question his murderous lifestyle. In trying to help the town, Zatoichi kills some gangsters and becomes a hero to the boy. He must make a choice of whether to use non-violence and set a good example, or violence and set the boy on the wrong path in life.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

Criterion ChannelSubscription

Cast

Shintarō Katsu
Zatoichi
Shigeru Amachi
Genpachiro Kurobe
Jun Hamamura
Blind Biwa Priest
Gen Kimura
Tamekichi
Kanae Kobayashi
Tamekichi's mother
Kōichi Mizuhara
Joshuya
Mayumi Ogawa
Ocho / Oshino
Kei Satō
Boss Gonzo

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Tokuzō Tanaka
Writers: Kan Shimozawa, Hajime Takaiwa
Languages: Japanese
Countries: Japan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

83 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

60 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Tokuzō Tanaka, shot by Kazuo Miyagawa. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Akira Ifukube. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Kanji Suganuma shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Shintarō Katsu and Shigeru Amachi and Jun Hamamura carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Tokuzō Tanaka directs. Kazuo Miyagawa behind the camera. Akira Ifukube scores. Kanji Suganuma cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

183 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
260 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Part of the "Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
5Directed by Tokuzō Tanaka, shot by Kazuo Miyagawa. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Akira Ifukube. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Kanji Suganuma shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Shintarō Katsu and Shigeru Amachi and Jun Hamamura carry the top of the cast.
9IMDB entry: tt0143012 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Only 44 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Kazuo Miyagawa
Original score: Akira Ifukube
Editing: Kanji Suganuma
Production design: Yoshinobu Nishioka
Runtime: 83 min · 1h 23m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: JA
IMDB: Zatoichi's Vengeance (1966)

Part of

Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman Collection

The colossally popular Zatoichi films make up the longest-running action series in Japanese history and created one of the screen’s great heroes: an itinerant blind masseur who also happens to be a lightning-fast swordsman. As this iconic figure, the charismatic and earthy Shintaro Katsu became an instant superstar, lending a larger-than-life presence to the thrilling adventures of a man who lives staunchly by a code of honor and delivers justice in every town and village he enters.