Yatsuhaka-mura

It's so hard to find any of Kon Ichikawa's later films in this country that I wouldn't want to discourage anyone from watching The 8 Tomb Village, should the opportunity arise. Nevertheless I felt that it was sub-par for a director like Ichikawa whose mastery of the medium deserves a great deal more notice than it has received.

The Walt Disney influence definitely comes through in The 8 Tomb Village (as it does in Dora-Heita) and dominates the picture's aesthetic, particularly the mood. It also did not seem to be as sophisticated or complex as some of his other films like Enjo, Kagi, or even Watashi wa Ni-sei. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but since there is a twenty-five year gap in my familiarity with Ichikawa (from Tokyo Olympiad 'til now) perhaps there is something I'm missing. Also, I'm not sure that the transfer I saw (a dub of a Japanese DVD) was the greatest possible quality.

Nevertheless, Ichikawa's characters are typically quirky and a pleasure to watch as they inhabit their peculiar little world. A must for Ichikawa fans, but definitely not a place to start for those that are unfamiliar with this unknown (in the West) master.

Story based on the series of the untidy and always scratching detective Kindaichi Yousuke written by the revered master of suspense Yokomizo Seishi. 400 hundred years ago the inhabitants of the village of Yatsuhaka murdered 8 samurai rebels, whom they were actually helping to hide away, afraid of what the Shogunate would do to them. Before dying one the samurai puts a curse on the village. Strange things start to happen so the villagers decided to erect 8 graves for the murdered samurai to appease their anger. Then four hundred years later the head of Tajimi family and head of the village goes mad and starts killing almost everyone in the village. 25 years later his eldest son is poisoned. Kindaichi Yousuke detective is hired by the family?s lawyer as everyone in the village believes is the curse of the samurai again. The film looks great, fantastic dark and creepy interior shots in stunning locations. Filmed with the Ichikawa usual panache as the grained black & white shots at the beginning mixed with gushes of gaudy red blood. The cast is quite interesting. It includes two of my favourite Japanese actors: Renji Ishibashi and Ittoku Kishibe and some other familiar faces such as Kyôko Kishida (Woman of the Dunes) or Hisako Manda miss Japan 1978 and now NHK morning talk show presenter. But they don?t save the film from being quite dull and slow going; there is lack of tension and mystery. Etsushi Toyokawa?s unconvincing performance of the unkempt detective (he is far too pretty and cool) doesn?t help either. In fact the film looks like some sort of family entertainment movie with the exception of the extremely gory slaughter of the villagers worth of the Lone Wolf and Cub series, a fine touch from Ichikawa in a film which quite below his standard.