The Sword of Doom (1966)

A jidaigeki about a wandering samurai who antagonises almost everyone he meets. His expression is unreadable most of the time, but deep down he has a reserve of burning madness and when he kills it’s to assuage it.
There’s no mistaking this is an Okamoto film. The precise way everything is orchestrated, the slow movements, the waiting, and the feeling of impending danger is almost constant. The music, too, is a character.
The abrupt ending is easier to take when you learn that two sequels were planned but never got made.

4 forms out of 5