Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo (1970) is another highlight in the series (the 20th installment). The talent gathered here is among the best of any film from the series so far: the director is Kihachi Okamoto (know for such highly rated samurai films as The Sword of Doom, Samurai Assassin, and Kill!), the director of cinematography is the eminent Kazu Miyagawa (Ozu, Kurosawa, Ichikawa and Mizoguchi all used him in the past), the two main superstars of the day in Shintaro Katsu (Zatoichi) with Toshiro Mifune reprising the role he created for Kurosawa, Yojimbo, Ayako Wakao (Street of Shame (Mizoguchi) and An Actor's Revenge (Ichikawa) among many distinguished roles). There is a complex plot that involves stolen gold, a spy, and greedy yakuza bosses and crooked officials-pretty much the usual for a Zatoichi film. The film has an ending that draws comparisons to the The Treasure of the Sierra Madre and an anti-climatic duel between Zatoichi and Yojimbo. Films with Miyagawa always standout visually and this is no exception: the first scene evokes the torrential rains of a Kurosawa film, the flashback of a sword fight in the snow, and scenes of fires burning at night are among the many arresting images captured throughout the film.
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