Shintaro Katsu, the actor who played the blind swordsman in the Zatoichi film series, produced all the hyper-violent Lone Wolf and Cub films, based on Kazuo Koike’s influential manga. Katsu enlisted the directorial talents of associate Kenji Masume, who is no stranger to Japanese historical epics, having directed films like RAZOR: SWORD OF JUSTICE, ZATOICHI CHALLENGED, and RETURN OF DAIMAJIN. The original Lone Wolf and Cub movie, SWORD OF VENGEANCE attracted audiences in Japan, and Toho released five sequels in the ensuing years. The Lone Wolf and Cub films totally reconstructs the Samurai genre--they are so different from the traditional, honorable Samurai epics like the Zatoichi series. The dark cinematic world of Lone Wolf is graphically violent, and owes more to the Spaghetti Western than it does to the Akira Kurasowa Samurai classics.

In 1980, the original SHOGUN mini-series brought historical Japanese culture into the living rooms of America. Ninjas, Samurai, and the Japanese martial arts became more popular then ever. It was at this time that New World Pictures acquired the rights to the first two Lone Wolf films, SWORD OF VENGEANCE and BABYCART AT THE RIVER STYX from Toho. Robert Houston rewrote the dialog in English, re-edited the films together, and added a new electronic score (by Mark Lindsay of the Mamas and Papa’s fame). Roger Corman’s New World Pictures were the kings of hype, and they came up with a radical promotion for this violent action thriller. "The Greatest Team in the History of Mass Slaughter" was the tag-line most associated with SHOGUN ASSASSIN. "Sword and Sorcery--with a Vengeance!" was another line touted on posters and in the trailers, even though there is no fantasy elements in the film! These campaigns catered to the horror and exploitation crowd, and New World released it on the drive-in theater circuit. Though the film had limited appeal, SHOGUN ASSASSIN left an impression on the minds of those who saw it. For better or for worse, many credit SHOGUN ASSASSIN for turning them on to Japanese cinema. Despite the high profile nature of the movie, it has been out-of-print on VHS for years, and is even difficult to find in the bootleg market. So this remains a major coupe for VIPCO (the U.K. equivalent of Anchor Bay) to release this English speaking adaptation on DVD, fully uncut (SHOGUN ASSASSIN always has problems with BBFC certification) and in widescreen for the first time.

Ogami is the executioner for a powermad Shogun in feudal Japan. When he and his master have a falling out, the Shogun sends his Imperial Ninjas to wipe out Ogami and his family. The Ninjas are masters of deception and attack the family when they least expect it. Ogami fights off the intruders, but not before his wife is killed. He asks his son Daigoro to choose either a toy ball (upon which he will kill his son and send him to his mother), or a sword (which will keep him alive, but on the same bloody path as his father). Daigoro selects the sword, and Ogami is happy he does not have to kill his son. Their joy is short-lived however, because the Shogun has made Ogami’s death his top priority. His men surround the executioner, and the Shogun offers him a deal; if he can defeat his son in combat, the Shogun will declare him a free man. Ogami agrees and makes short work of the Shogun’s eldest son, ensuring his own freedom. The treacherous Shogun is outraged, and grants Ogami’s freedom, but instead places a bounty on Daigoro’s head. With all the Shogun’s cutthroats out to kill the youth, Ogami and his son take to the road in a baby cart filled with hidden weapons. Ogami earns money for weapons, supplies, and food by offering out his services as a professional assassin.

Life on the road is fraught with danger for Lone Wolf and Cub. The Shogun has enlisted a clan of vicious female Ninjas to assassinate Daigoro. These professional killers are led by the Supreme Ninja (Kayo Matsu). After dispatching countless female Ninjas in various disguises, Ogami’s wounds get the better of him. Instinctively, a wounded Ogami pushes the cart into an abandoned shelter, and he collapses. Daigoro takes care of his father the best he can, including gathering food and water for him. But the Supreme Ninja and the Shogun’s guards capture Daigoro and string him up over a water well. Ogami revives just in time to save his son from a painful death at the bottom of the well. Ogami eviscerates the guards but spares the Supreme Ninja, who stands in awe of the human death machine before her. The three of them are forced to huddle together to survive in the freezing climate of Northern Japan, where Ogami travels to meet with people who want to hire him.

Ogami is recruited by peasant rebels to kill Lord Kurondo, brother of the evil master Shogun. However, this is easier said than done as Kurondo is protected by the assassins known as the Masters of Death. These killers each have a specific weapons they use for killing, such as an iron gauntlet, a spiked glove, and a steel claw. Lone Wolf and Cub meet the Masters of Death on a doomed ship en route to their respective jobs. The Masters of Death and Ogami play a game of mental chess, until the boat sinks in a fiery maelstrom. The Masters of Death escort Lord Kurondo across the desert and fall into a trap. The rebels burst from below the sands, and attack the Masters of Death. But these rebel peasants are no match for these three professional killers. Suddenly, Ogami appears on the dune, (like Clint Eastwood from the Sergio Leone trilogy) and prepares to fulfill his blood contract. But, Ogami must fight through his deadly rivals to get to the Lord Kurondo!

New World’s version of the film is swiftly edited and tightly paced. The first ten minutes is the Lone Wolf and Cub origin sequences from SWORD OF VENGEANCE. Then the part with the female Ninja team and the Masters of Death are lifted from BABYCART AT THE RIVER STYX. The English dubbing is fairly well done (as far as dub jobs go), and clearly superior to Kung Fu films of the time. One of the best parts of SHOGUN ASSASSIN is the added narration from Daigoro. The kid comments on the most dramatic and black-humored moments of the movie, such as explaining how he counts his father’s victims. Another big addition to the film, is the rescoring by Mark Lindsay. This electronic score adds an element of the surreal to the proceedings, and is an appropriate choice. For example, getting back to the Spaghetti Western angle in the Lone Wolf series, SHOGUN ASSASSIN culminates with an exciting battle between Ogami and the Masters of Death in the dunes of wind-blown desert. Director Kenji Masume includes stilted camera angles and close-ups of the confrontation that pay homage to Sergio Leone. Mark Linday’s music here is closer in tone to a Euro-Western than the original themes (by Hideaki Sakurai) from BABYCART AT THE RIVER STYX.

SHOGUN ASSASSIN is not just action and violence. Director Kenji Masume maintains a grim tone and an aura of doom. He uses advanced editing and slow-motion techniques to dictate the violent clashes and arterial spray. Contrasting all this ugliness, Masume produces some artful widescreen compositions that capture these ballets of death with artistic splendor. Many scenes are gloriously played out against the setting sun, and the director shows his mastery of shadows and light. Like John Woo’s slow motion bullet ballet’s, the violence in SHOGUN ASSASSIN is equally surreal and poetic. The battle scenes are the exact opposite of the graceful fight choreography from Chinese historical efforts. These fight scenes are just as thrilling, only a lot quicker and more brutal. Ogami kills opponents with one swift slash of his blade, then turns to take out the next attacker. No matter how weak the blow of the sword, the victim gushes blood like water from a hydrant; then is dead in an instant. This graphical overkill takes SHOGUN ASSASSIN into a sublime alternative territory that leaves the audience primed for more.

The powerful performance of Tomisaburo Wakaya is one of the reasons why SHOGUN ASSASSIN (or the entire Lone Wolf series for that matter) is a cut above the rest. Wakaya is quite a physical presence, sort of like the Charles Bronson of Japan. You can clearly read the emotional scars in his delivery and mannerisms. Ogami Itto is a character very unlike Shintaro Katsu’s Zatoichi or any of Toshiro Mifune’s samurai characters. Ogami is the biggest and fastest swordsman we’ve ever seen, and clearly the most dangerous. It takes an actor like Wakaya to bring Ogami to life, and just looking into his eyes, you feel the vengeance and hatred radiating off this man. Then in the next scene, you see him give his son a bath, contrasting the sensitive side of Ogami. His son brings out the nurturing side of his father, courtesy of a fine performance of Akihiro Tomikawa, who plays Daigoro through the entire film series. Tomikawa is clearly way too young when this was filmed (perhaps 4 or 5 years old), and its hard to imagine how seeing the decapitated heads and spraying arteries didn’t affect the poor kid’s mental state. You have to love the scene where Daigoro reaches a up and grabs the exposed breast of the Ninja leader!

There is a Picture Gallery containing 20 bloody shots of mayhem from SHOGUN ASSASSIN. Those wonderful visuals on this page come from this gallery. The only other extra is the New World Pictures trailer, which is also a beautiful widescreen print! Put on your best 1980’s trailer voice and indulge in the glorious New World Pictures hyperbole:

"Return to the vanished kingdoms of ancient times! Journey to a lost empire, of mad wizards and barbaric passions! Behold the saga of a legendary warrior! A loving father who has the power of a dozen armies in one sweep of his mystic blade. This is a story of honor, disgrace, vengeance, massacre, and a man who became a demon. Once he was the greatest of the magnificent samurai, now he searches for the evil lords who butchered his wife, and stained his honor. One man and one child defy the most notorious masters of death on the planet! Like father, like son. Meet the greatest team in the history of mass slaughter. Nothing on Earth can match their eternal fury! Nothing on the screen can match this awesome spectacle of sword & sorcery! "

The trailer is 2.35.1, mono sound, and runs 2:24. It appears to be a direct film-to-video transfer, and not a VHS port.