Ninja hichô: Fukurô no shiro

I did not really have any expectations before watching this movie. I found the movie grabbing my attention from the start and kept it to the end. The story makes sense and the characters have some depth. I did also find the acting and the camera work rather good.

For the story the movie starts with attack and massacre on a village and a guy swearing to get vengeance. And then you follow his pursuit of vengeance and battle between ninja clans. There is even time for some romance in the story that even have some sort of purpose for the movies story.

This movie is recommended for people that do like Japanese cinema. Some parts can be slow I guess for people used to modern movies, but a good diversity to the usual samurai movies. If you are into older samurai and ninja movies you will not be disappointed with this movie.

If you like it and are into Black and white I can recommend Jûsan-nin no shikaku (1963) that is samurai that go crazy instead :-)

I'm torn, since I found it to be a mixed bag of great moments and a (mostly) poor execution of a decent idea.

A half-decent film that touches on a man's honor and duty for revenge.. while balancing his "new desires" and the future of his country. The premise itself is rather interesting, and the characters likeable! With an ending that is quite memorable. And while the cinematography provides the viewer with some eye-catching and impressive moments, it also often leaves a lot to be desired. Specially during action scenes.. on a Shinobi movie of all places!! But when it goes slowly, that's when I found its appeal. All this without mentioning the messy and choppy editing or the inconsistent sound mixing/levels.

Too many issues for me to recommend or enjoy fully..

I guess Ninja hicho fukuro no shiro aka Castle of Owls is not a movie for everyone - there are some fine action scenes but the movie's plot is unfolding rather slowly. But if you like classic movies about classic Japanese culture and stories, and you do watch them not for the fights and battles only, you will like this one. The movie is almost like a meditation and will draw you into its cosmos.