In a Nutshell. Mini reviews of movies old and new. No fuss. No spoilers. And often no sleep.

Saturday 28 February 2015

Zatoichi at Large (1972)

Ichi’s been left holding the baby more than once in the series, but never quite as literally as he is in the 23rd film. It’s a simple, reliable device to get him placed. Unfortunately, once he's there the film begins to lose focus. Certain characters get introduced and then all but disappear from the story. Others play a larger role but are too obviously underdeveloped.
What’s perhaps stranger is Dir. Mori’s technique; his occasional close quarters handling of events give it the feel of a B-Movie/exploitation flick. I like both of those things, but it didn't win me over in this instance. It's definitely not a case of over-indulgence on my part; I could watch a hundred Ichi movies with Katsu in the lead role and still want more.

2½ stones to the head out of 5

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