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More chess in film - Zatoichi and the Chess Player - Blindfold Chess in film!
More chess in film - Zatoichi and the Chess Player - Blindfold Chess in film!
I happened upon this by accident. The title of the film is Zatoichi and the Chess Expert.
Zatoichi, or "ichi" as the character is known, is a blind masseur in pre-modern Japan. He's played by Shintaro Katsu, who is almost revered by virtue of playing this role of the blind, likable, justice-seeking masseur. And he's a hell of a swordsman. He fights with a cane sword which is built right into his walking stick.
Hans may like this (I haven't watched the whole film) as in deals with blindfold chess. Mind you, the whole premise is weird. I didn't think they even played much chess in Japan - ever. I thought their game was Go.
Re: More chess in film - Zatoichi and the Chess Player - Blindfold Chess in film!
ChessTalkers who expect to see some chess action may be disappointed as the games here are the Japanese version called Shogi - played with inscribed men shaped like tombstones.
Zatoichi, the blind samurai was, I believe the creation of the late great film director Akira Kurosawa who made a series of classic films going back some fifty years. One of his early works - The Seven Samurai, was shamelessly copied by Hollywood, frame for frame, from beginning to end, and titled 'The Magnificent Seven'.
Perhaps my favourite Kurosawa film was one of his last - 'Dersu Usula, the Hunter' set in Siberia about 1905 when a party of surveyors for the railway meet an old gnome-like hunter in the woods who is 'as one' with nature. His name, Dersu Usula and he could well have been the model for Yoda of the Star Wars series.
Last edited by Vlad Dobrich; Wednesday, 28th May, 2014, 12:29 PM.
ChessTalkers who expect to see some chess action may be disappointed as the games here are the Japanese version called Shogi - played with inscribed men shaped like tombstones.
That explains the 9x9 board and the pieces called Silver and Gold. Oh well.
Zatoichi, the blind samurai was, I believe the creation of the late great film director Akira Kurosawa who made a series of classic films going back some fifty years.
The other stuff about Kurosawa is correct but the films and the TV series with Zatoichi were based on the novels by Kan Shimozawa (see the Wikipedia entry for Zatoichi). I don't think Kurosawa did much in TV at all.
One of his early works - The Seven Samurai, was shamelessly copied by Hollywood, frame for frame, from beginning to end, and titled 'The Magnificent Seven'.
Perhaps my favourite Kurosawa film was one of his last - 'Dersu Usula, the Hunter' set in Siberia about 1905 when a party of surveyors for the railway meet an old gnome-like hunter in the woods who is 'as one' with nature. His name, Dersu Usula and he could well have been the model for Yoda of the Star Wars series.
Star Wars itself is based on a film called The Hidden Fortress (directed by Kurosawa, fyi) . At least, George Lucas admitted the very strong influence of this film on his making of Star Wars (part IV - the initial release). To be perfectly honest, I prefer the Kurosawa film to Star Wars. However, The Magnificent Seven is a childhood favorite of mine, which I watched dozens of times long before I discovered post-war Japanese film. And I think it stands up on its own. While Hollywood shamelessly ripped off many Japanese films, without acknowledgement at the time, it is worth noting that a number of Japanese directors did remakes of famous Shakespearian plays set in late medieval and early modern Japan. Sometimes, these mutual influences can be positive.
Dersu Usala is a film that literally saved my life. I was trapped on a mountain-top, far from assistance, and I used the technique Dersu used to keep myself and my companion alive until help arrived. While my more experienced friend panicked somewhat, I remembered the film, and kept calm, and set about building something that would keep us warm just as Dersu had done.
Dersu Uzala
PS - I've sent you a PM, Vlad.
Last edited by Nigel Hanrahan; Wednesday, 28th May, 2014, 01:29 PM.
Reason: PS
Dogs will bark, but the caravan of chess moves on.
A few points. Yes, obviously The Magnificent Seven was basically an Americanized version of The Seven Samurai. One might think the Sturges film "shameless", others might see it as an homage. It's particularly fitting as an homage, as Kurosawa has himself claimed that his films were influenced by the Hollywood Westerns of John Ford. Kurowsawa's main go-to actor - Toshiro Mifune - is so very clearly the equivalent of Ford's Wayne (with Mifune being the better actor by the way). The themes of individual struggle against great odds are a constant theme for both directors.
Star Wars was also inspired by Kurowsawa's The Hidden Fortress. Kurowsawa's swords become Lucas' light sabres. (Light sabres for fighting would otherwise be a pretty stupid idea when you have all kinds of laser guns and laser rifles at your disposal).
You're right on Shakespeare's continuous influence on Kurowsawa as well. Ran was his version of King Lear. As for Dersu...... a very fine film..... hoping I never need to practice these survival techniques though..... must have been frightful.
... Kurosawa has himself claimed that his films were influenced by the Hollywood Westerns of John Ford. Kurowsawa's main go-to actor - Toshiro Mifune - is so very clearly the equivalent of Ford's Wayne (with Mifune being the better actor by the way). The themes of individual struggle against great odds are a constant theme for both directors.
Star Wars was also inspired by Kurowsawa's The Hidden Fortress. Kurowsawa's swords become Lucas' light sabres. (Light sabres for fighting would otherwise be a pretty stupid idea when you have all kinds of laser guns and laser rifles at your disposal).
The Hidden Fortress has a scene depicting crowds of people, fleeing or in a battle, in a very different way than the one-sided individualism (often) typical of Hollywood and western films generally (especially in the Cold War era). It was startling to see this scene. This is maybe typical of Asian films generally; they do a better job of depicting collectivity as something more than "a mob of people", as something positive and normal, maybe since many Asian cultures have more of this than our own hyper-individuality in culture and film.
Dogs will bark, but the caravan of chess moves on.
Perhaps. But the theme of cattle barons vs. homesteaders in Shane as the background for which the Shane character stands out as "leader by example" strikes me as nearly identical to the treatement Kurosawa gives to his various Mifune characters.
Without a doubt, films like Ran and Kagemusha have brilliant scenes of masses of people where it seems even the waving flags respond to the Director's orders, but let's remember too that George Lucas is at Kurosawa's side in Ran. This is more, I'd think of a recent Western touch you don't see in Kurosawa's earlier films.
Surely those scenes your talking about with crowds of people fleeing or in battle are similar in style to the countless numbers of westerns where the armies if Indians are attacking the covered wagons?
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