Johan Dondokambey The story nicely entwines two main plots that are unraveling in Munezo's life together. The the plot shift is also nice to see; opens with the honor plot then focus on the love plot and then focus to the honor plot and closes with the love plot. Yet I think that the side plot of the western modernization on the clan's military doesn't really have any significant thing and looks only as a waste of duration time. The character building is very nice, especially on Munezo and Kie, and even also on Hanzama. I like the acting overall, which is a good work for me. Masatoshi Nagase played the movie's focus character very well, encompassing all the needed emotions just enough to keep the samurai pride in them. Takako Matsu also played well enough as the servant. This movie is quite entertaining although I think the duration can be shortened a little bit to excluding all those unimportant parts.

MartinHafer "The Hidden Blade" isn't necessarily that unusual. Lots of Japanese movies are set in the early years of the Meiji era--just after the country was opened up to foreign trade around the year 1860. It was a truly revolutionary period and this isn't surprising. And, there are lots of films that show the corruption of the Shoguns and local bosses that call into question the morality of the Code of Bushido. So in this sense the movie is not all that unique. However, it is handled so beautifully and deliberately that I was very, very impressed by the film.The film concerns a samurai named Munezô Katagiri (Masatoshi Nagase). He's a good man who seems out of place. He doesn't see himself as superior to the lower classes and actually loves a woman from the lower caste. However, being a good samurai, he doesn't act upon this love--it simply wouldn't be allowed. This bothers him but he follows the unwritten rules of society. However, when he sees his leaders behaving in very dishonorable ways, he is stuck. While he agrees to kill a rogue samurai (who was his friend), the motives of his family's leaders disgust him. How will he handle this and his love for a woman who he cannot marry? See this lovely film and find out."The Hidden Blade" has a lot going for it. It isn't just some action film (in fact, there is an amazingly small amount of action), but it's both a love story and a film about moral dilemmas. What I liked about this most was the wonderful pacing, direction and music--it all worked together wonderfully and is a film that really, really impressed me. Beautiful and well worth seeing.

bob the moo Munezo is a samurai who serves closely with friends and peers Samon and Yaichiro. When Yaichiro goes far overseas to serve for the clan, Munezo is left with Samon, who becomes closer as he marries Munezo's sister Shino, leaving him at home with his aged mother and maid Kie. The years go by and when his mother dies, Munezo struggles with his studies of new Western weaponry and battle techniques and misses Kie – who has long since married into a merchant family befitting someone of her caste. A man of tradition and respect – Munezo is forced to act against inherited wisdom and practice when he learns of Kie's mistreatment and also of the dishonourable imprisonment of Yaichiro.Some have warned caution of this film to those expecting an action film and they are right to do so, but to me the opposite applied. Screened late at night on BBC4, I recorded this film thinking it sounded interesting but could easily be a very dry film full of its own importance and depth, delivered with long shots for the sake of, stilted dialogue and every single bit of it screaming "restrained!" like the audience is an idiot. Suffice to say, I have been hurt before when it comes to such films! I needn't have worried though because The Hidden Blade manages to be about the restrained traditions of feudal Japan without making the telling or the film be dry and withdrawn into itself. Nor does the film labour the point in the way some similar works have, indeed it does give the audience food for thought in regards the pros/cons of both tradition and progress – neither of which is an entirely good or bad thing but has bits of both. To me this made it more worthy of my respect and interest but what made it so engaging was the amount of ground it covered. I am surprised to read that some found this film "boring" because to me the narrative is surprisingly packed with threads that cover friendship, relationships, loyalty and tradition across many aspects – all of which work really well. OK, I will give you that the final ten minutes could have been done with a bit more certainty but even this was only a minor thing because mostly there is plenty to watch. What surprised me most about it was that it did also have a good vein of humour running through it, my favourite moment of which was the men trying to catch a chicken with a basket – great little throwaway gag.The script is the starting point for it as it builds conflicted characters with as much attention to them as to the world they inhabit. The visual construction of the film matches this as it feels very much in the period and I was quite surprised to find it was made as recently as it was because of how of its time it felt. The cast come good mostly even though I didn't think anyone really nailed it or dominated proceedings. Nagase is a strong actor with almost what the character needs in terms of expression and inner thought processes. He was not quite as distinctive as I would have liked the odd time but mostly he is a firm lead. Matsu overplays the "sweet little maid" role just a tad but the script is strong enough to make it work regardless and she does come over as charming and a character we care deeply for. The supporting cast around these are mostly good with turns from Ozawa (not given enough time though), Ogata, Yoshioka and Tabata among others.The Hidden Blade may not be what you think it is going to be but, whether you assume it is action-packed or dry as a bone, it doesn't matter because the film performs really well at what it sets out to do. The plot builds the world and characters really vividly, providing thoughts on progress and tradition while also laying out both in terms of the relationships, positions and lifestyles of the main characters. It has humour, sadness and intelligence all delivered with professional direction and atmospheric design and cinematography. It is well worth seeing and rewarding with only a little patience required.

roland-104 This is a long and, frankly, not very interesting Samurai film, set in the mid-19th century. Shogen Hori (Ken Ogata), the Chief Retainer, is a crafty, self indulgent type who takes advantage of people at every turn. Yaichiro Hazama (Yukiyoshi Ozawa), a Samurai retained by Hori, leaves to join a Shogenate in Edo. But he returns in disgrace, having been mixed up in an aborted palace coup in Edo. Hazama is imprisoned, but then escapes.The central protagonist, another Samurai, Munezo Katagiri (Masatoshi Nagase), is then required by Hori to prove he was not in league with Hazama by killing him. When they practiced long ago, Hazama was the better swordsman of the two. But this time Katagiri buffs up his skills with his old master teacher, who gives him a couple of new tricks to use.The whole business is complicated, and Mr. Nagase doesn't seem to have the chops to sustain his central role in a manner that compels interest. He's not the fascinating character that was played by Hiroyuki Sanada in Yôji Yamada's earlier film, "Twilight Samurai." As in that film, "Hidden Blade" observes a lot about marriage and domestic life of the Samurais but offers very little combat, and that only at the end, so Samurai action junkies are forewarned that this might not be the movie for you. My grade: low B 6.5/10.