Kenji Misumi

Samaritan Zatoichi

Samaritan Zatoichi

Hired by a yakuza boss to eliminate an accused debtor, Zatoichi fulfills his task, only to witness the victim’s sister paying the owed amount minutes later. When the crime lord tries to possess the woman along with the cash, the blind swordsman wrestles with the injustice he has caused, and vows to protect the young lady at all costs.

Film Info

  • Japan
  • 1968
  • 82 minutes
  • Color
  • 2.35:1
  • Japanese

Available In

Collector's Set

Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman

Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman

Blu-ray Box Set

9 Discs

$139.96

Samaritan Zatoichi
Cast
Shintaro Katsu
Zatoichi
Yoshiko Mita
Osode
Makoto Sato
Yasaburo Kashiwazaki
Kô Nishimura
Sosuke Saruya
Tatsuya Fujioka
Shinkichi
Yasuhiro Minakami
Unokichi
Chocho Miyako
Ohaya
Akira Shimizu
Boss Kumakichi
Credits
Director
Kenji Misumi
Produced by
Hisakazu Tsuji
Original story by
Kan Shimozawa
Screenplay
Kiyokata Saruwaka
Screenplay
Hisashi Sugiura
Art director
Akira Naito
Cinematography
Fujio Morita
Edited by
Toshio Taniguchi
Original music
Sei Ikeno
Screenplay
Tetsuro Yoshida

Current

Tony Rayns on the Meaning of Zatoichi
Tony Rayns on the Meaning of Zatoichi

Asian-cinema expert Tony Rayns unpacks the significance of Zatoichi’s name and the strict social hierarchy that the character so gleefully upends.

On the Road with Zatoichi
On the Road with Zatoichi

He massages, he gambles, and he’s great with a blade. Who is this blind swordsman, anyway?

By Geoffrey O’Brien