Zatoichi and the Chest of Gold (1964)

Zatoichi and the Chest of Gold packed plenty of action and humor into its short running time. Unlike many martial arts films from the time, Zatoichi had excellent choreography and a comprehensible story. This sixth film in the franchise was my introduction to the character and I was quite pleased with the film's quality.

Zatoichi, a blind traveling gambler and masseur, as well as a swordsman who has a "lightning sword" visits the grave of a man he killed previously. The man who died was the brother of the young woman, Chiyo, accompanying Zatoichi. The local villagers welcome him to their joyous celebration filled with drinking and singing. They finally have the 1000 gold ryo they owe to the ruthless intendant, giving them some room to breathe and more to eat. Unfortunately for Zatoichi, the gold is stolen in a botched robbery. He was coincidentally seen sitting on the pilfered chest which the bad guys recovered. Chiyo was all too quick to name him as a suspect. Zatoichi talks the villagers into giving him a chance to find the real culprits which the villagers grudgingly agree to. His investigation takes him to a bathhouse with a beautiful woman and later to a gang of men led by the somewhat virtuous Chuji who had also been implicated in the crime. It doesn't take long for our blind hero to track down the real villains, the intendant planning double taxation, his corrupt constable, and the three ronin they had hired. One of the ronin, Jushiro, is a whip wielding baddie determined to duel Zatoichi.

The sword-fights were quick with a minimum of blood spurting. Regardless of the number of opponents, the blind hero cut through them like soft butter. Only the final fight caused him problems as he had to seek Jushiro's weakness in order to best his rival.

From the stylistic opening scenes, Zatoichi was beautifully filmed in color. The sets both indoor and outdoors were well done. As Zatoichi carries a young boy down a mountain at night, the constable's men travel with their identical lit lanterns like a glowing caterpillar along the trail. Quite a stunning sight!

The story gave insights into the swordsman, some favorable and some not. He offered a beautiful woman in a communal bath a massage, saying it was okay because he was blind. He came across more as a dirty old man than sensual or humorous. A prostitute gave him a "massage" and then charged him for it which didn't go over well with him. But he also showed his heroic integrity as he went out of his way to help the accusatory villages knowing they would be unable to come up with more money for taxes which would have been a death sentence for them.

Katsu Shintaro brought the right amount of gravity and humor to the legendary swordsman. After Zatoichi's last fight, beaten and bruised, struggling to walk, you could feel the weight of the character's recent trials. I do wish I had a dollar for every time he mentioned he was only a blind man, I'd have enough to eat out for a week! Jushiro was played by Katsu's real-life brother. Their brutal fight would have been a cathartic way to work out old sibling rivalries.

The film highlighted the plight of the hardworking poor, striving to exist under a system crushing them and the corrupt leaders loading the boulders on their shoulders. Zatoichi was the mythical character who could break through the massive unscrupulousness and ease their burden, righting the wrongs committed against them. Something we might all wish for when life seems unfair. I was quite pleased with my foray into this franchise and look forward to watching other films with the self-effacing and lightning quick swordsman.

4/17/23

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