The Best Movie Critic   +  review

The Sword of Doom

Justin here with a look at the excellent samurai movie, The Sword of Doom.

From the opening shots, it's clear that The Sword of Doom is different. Though it is not explicitly supernatural in any material way, The Sword of Doom is as much a horror movie as it is a samurai movie. My reading of most samurai movies starts from the premise that they're about empowerment and force of will. The samurai is given strength through swordsmanship and in some cases authority from a shogunate and is a force for change to the world around him. Sometimes that change comes in the form of justice or vengeance, and sometimes that force manifests itself in more altruistic auspices. In Sword of Doom, that force is purely destructive. It brings meaningless death to all that evil samurai, Ryunosuke faces.

Ryunosuke is the protagonist of this movie, but he is by no means a “good guy.” The movie focuses primarily on him with a good 85% or so of screen time following his descent into damnation. He is portrayed by actor Tatsuya Nakadai who looks like a leading man, he's handsome and self-sure. This makes his despicable actions all the more alarming. It is reminiscent of Robert Mitchum in The Night of the Hunter or Henry Fonda in Once Upon a Time in the West.

The movie begins in earnest as an old man and his granddaughter trek across a steep mountain range. Upon reaching the summit, the old man stops to offer some incense and a prayer to Buddha. Ryunosuke crosses his path and strikes him down for no reason at all. Effectively, this frames Ryunnosuke as being pure evil. For people who have read the Bushido, the samurai code of chivalry, there is some deeper meaning as well. That code, (also explicitly referenced in other parts of the movie) speaks about how the samurai must live every life expecting to die and that he must cut down Buddha if Buddha stands in his way. After that pointless slaughter, Ryunosuke is out of view of the camera which moves slowly in on other people at the summit - potential victims. The suspense is thick, they're helpless against someone like Ryunosuke. They have no weapons and no training. Even skilled samurai that may challenge him lack his prowess. Ryunoske uses an unusual form that we find out can only be defeated by one move that must be flawlessly executed.
Director Kihachi Okamoto's camera brings the same kind of precision and an incredible vitality to the movie. His use of light and shadows is breathtaking. Scenes of a potential rival to Ryunosuke practicing his technique over and over again in a darkened dojo as sunlight illuminates the dust in the room are incredible. Subtle camera movements add to the tension in scenes where people are in danger. There's a pervasive sense that no one is safe from Ryunosuke including his own child.

The Sword of Doom is one of the darkest movies I've ever seen. It was adapted from a long running serial in a newspaper giving it a welcome episodic feeling that manages to propel the movie to its finish as Ryunosuke collects more people who have a vendetta against him. We see these folks begin to loosely conspire against him and plot to take him down, however, their biggest competitor in that race is Ryunosuke's own shattered psyche.

I've read that there are a lot of people who were dissatisfied with the ending this movie has. It seems to be building towards a showdown that ***spoiler alert*** never happens. Apparently the reason for this was that the serial source material ended abruptly with the author's unexpected death. However, the finale the movie does have is so much more incredible than any duel I can imagine. I don't think it's fair to how awesome the movie is as a whole to call it a “pay off,” but damn, totally amazing.

Movies like The Sword of Doom are why I search so hard for new and different movies to watch. I loved it, it was totally unexpected, and most importantly unlike any other movie I've ever seen. This is the first movie I've watched that was directed by Kihachi Okamoto apparently there are at least 38 more. I can't wait.