SYNOPSIS:
In
the mid-19th century, during the final days of the Shoguns and the Samurais,
the winds of change blowing throughout the country are beginning to be felt
even in the Unasaka domain, a small fief on the northwest coast of Japan's
main island.
MOVIE
REVIEW :
Following
the success of “Twilight Samurai”, director Yoji Yamada presents
another tale of Samurai’s heroism with “Hidden Blade”.
Similar to the first film, “Hidden Blade” follows the tale of
a humble small town samurai, Masatoshi Nagase, caught in fulfilling a difficult
code of samurai honor and a social structure that separated him from Kei,
the woman he loved, during the period of Japan's transition to modernization
The “Hidden
Blade” refers to an interesting samurai sword skill that will only
be revealed towards the end of the film. There isn’t that many sword
fights in this movie because by staying true to the Samurai’s motto,
duels are only a last resort as everyone are fearful of death, even the
Samurais.
“Hidden
Blade” managed to keep up to the standard set by the predecessor “Twilight
Samurai”, in aspect of both cinematography and story telling. The
usual style of Yoji Yamada’s direction once again captures the beautiful
sceneries and mixing it with the ambient music to create the mesmerizing
cinematic atmosphere that almost uniquely his trademarks.
In the story
telling aspects, the sequences of events and strong character development
progresses at a well balanced pace. All the elements, such as the political
issues, climatic fight scene and the relationship between Kei and Masatoshi
Nagase unfold smoothly and will keep the viewers attentive and concerned
thru out the film.
Folks who had enjoyed and could not get enough of “Twilight Samurai”
or director, Yoji Yamada’s works would probably enjoy “Hidden
Blade” too.
SPECIAL
FEATURES :
This
barebones DVD contains no special features to be reviewed.
AUDIO:
Japanese
Dolby Digital 2.0 with English and Chinese Subtitles.
VISUAL:
The
presentation is superb. The detail is spot-on, maintaining clarity throughout
whether on the close-up face shots or the longer, broader landscapes.
MOVIE
RATING:
DVD RATING:
Review by Richard Lim Jr
