13 Assassins

13 Assassins is a Japanese jidaigeki or period drama as well as chanbara or sword fighting action film. Despite a solid reputation in its home country, the film was critically overlooked by international cinephiles and only came back into the spotlight following the critically acclaimed remake of the same name by veteran director Miike Takashi that is surprisingly close to the original film.

The story revolves around ruthless Lord Matsudaira who rapes a young woman who works in an inn and then proceeds to kill her lover. Appalled by his actions, a high-ranking official commits seppuku. Due to his connections to the shogun, Lord Matsudaira is also about to be elected into a Council of Elders which would make him even more influential. Another high-ranking official named Sir Doi understands that such a raise to power by such a ruthless person could lead to revolts and ultimately a civil war. In order to prevent such a worst case scenario, Sir Doi starts to organize a conspiracy and proceeds to hire twelve samurai who are asked to ambush as assassinate Lord Matsudaira during one of his travels. With the help of the inn owner who seeks revenge and blocks the usual route of Lord Matsudaira, the ruthless man and his companions are forced to take a different route and go through a remote village. It's at this precise place that the twelve assassins, now supported by a local swordsman who joins them, set up numerous traps to complete their bloody mission.

This movie convinces on numerous levels. The cinematography is gorgeous with calm camera work, beautiful traditional costumes and stunning landscapes. The movie has a constant gloomy undertone and is quite explicit for its time when showing the lord's brutal actions. Thanks to precise acting performances, the audience empathizes with courageous Sir Doi and feels strongly against selfish Lord Matsudaira. The first half of the movie takes its time to introduce the audience to the different characters, settings and historic circumstances. The second half is quite fast-paced and focuses on intense fights and clever traps during the ambush. The fight choreographies are skillful, intense and entertaining to watch.

The movie has aged rather well. The only differences between this film and the remake are that the remake shows much more blood and is obviously not shot in black and white. If you like atmospheric sword fighting action films, you will certainly like both the original version and the remake. It's great that this critically overlooked old gem finally gets the attention it truly deserves.

The story of Thirteen Assassins begins with a vassal of the Akashi clan committing seppuku in front of a daimyo's house. As it turns out, it's in protest to his lord raping and killing a girl and her samurai husband. This scandal is quickly covered up as the Akashi lord happens to be the Shogun's younger brother. What makes matters worse is that this reckless scoundrel will be soon appointed to a higher political position which could prove to be detrimental for the entire Shogunate. In response to that, a plot is hatched: 13 assassins will undertake the suicide mission to murder him on his way back from Edo.

The movie can be roughly split in two parts. The first hour is purely character-driven, in a anti-establishment style that resembles Masaki Kobayashi and his masterful work in Seppuku and Samurai Rebellion. The last half hour is totally action-oriented as we see the Akashi clan entourage being trapped in a village and fighting to protect their lord, at which point the film channels heavily the corresponding part of Seven Samurai.

Very good, obscure, jidai-geki from the 60's done in stark monochrome, the genre's proper palette. Kudo is a moderate talent who draws heavily from the tradition of filmmaking he belongs to, but competently executes his material.

We find here familiar jidai-geki themes; oppression of the weak by those in authority, old friends that have to face off, a vassal that sees how villainous his lord is yet he doesn't hesitate to sacrifice his life for him. It's not quite as elaborate and tragic as Kobayashi's work and is pretty much abandoned after the first half hour where the emphasis shifts to the planning of the assassination, but it still provides a solid dramatic backdrop. The final battle could have been better though, not bad by any means but it won't make any best-final-fights lists either.

Overall a very solid and commendable effort, beautiful to look at with a nice story and some action to go with it. Fans of the genre will want to take a look.