Eureka Video UK Blu-ray Synopsis: Shogun’s Samurai – also known as The Yagyu Clan Conspiracy – is one of Kinji Fukasaku’s most revered forays into the chanbara or samurai genre: a twisting tale of political intrigue and bloody betrayal starring Kinnosuke Yorozuya (The Fall of Ako Castle), Hiroki Matsukata (Battles Without Honor and Humanity) and the incomparable Shinichi “Sonny” Chiba (The Street Fighter) in its lead roles. During the Edo period, shogun Hidetada Tokugawa is killed, poisoned by an unknown assailant. In the aftermath of his death, a vicious power struggle breaks out between his two sons Tadanaga (Teruhiko Saigo) and Iemitsu (Matsukata), who is suspected of having arranged his father’s murder. As the conflict between the two brothers intensifies and their father’s former allies are forced to choose sides, samurai Munenori Yagyu (Yorozuya) and his own sons Jubei (Chiba) and Munefuyu (Kentaro Kudo) become embroiled in the conflict until it reaches its bitter end. Featuring Chiba’s first portrayal of the legendary samurai Jubei Mitsuyoshi Yagyu (a character he would later return to in Fukasaku’s Samurai Reincarnation), Shogun’s Samurai stands with The Fall of Ako Castle as one of its director’s finest and most accomplished samurai epics. The Masters of Cinema is proud to present this landmark chanbara film on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK. (130 Mins)

 

Views: One of my favourite Kinji Fukasaku titles and a classic of Japanese cinema, Shogun's Samurai (aka) Yagyu Clan Conspiracy, finally makes it's UK Blu-ray debit courtesy of Eureka Video. Released as part of their Masters of Cinema series with a stunning new 4K restoration, the film is set in the Edo period and tells the tale of a power struggle between two brothers after their Shogun father dies by poisoning – one of which I suspected to have been behind it. Their bitter conflict draws in their father's former allies and forces them to chose sides. Samurai Yagyu, a close friend of the late Shogun Tokugawa, gets embroiled in the bitter family affair and, along with his sons Jubei and Munefuyu, must fight to the end in order to bring peace to the land once again. But all isn't quite as it seems, as Yagyu proves to have his own agenda that sees him betray everyone close to him – even his warrior sons. I really love this movie! It's huge in scale and story, running for just over 2 hours – which is not unusual for a samurai epic directed by the legendary Kinji Fukasaku. Of course, he was the very same man behind classics such as The Fall of Ako Castle (1978), Samurai Reincarnation (1981) and Legend of the Eight Samurai (1983) which all came after this and starred many of the same cast members who appear here. Of course, prior to that he was known for his wide range of genre pieces from gritty Yakuza thrillers such as the Battles Without Honour & Humanity series and even dipped into the sci-fi action genre with films such as Message From Space (1978) and Virus (1980). Of course, for those uninitiated into the world of Japanese cinema, Fukasaku would be most recognised for bringing the hugely successful and brutal Battle Royale (2000) to the world – his final full feature before passing during the production of its sequel at the age of 72. Winning the Japanese Academy Award for Director of the Year 3 times in his life, as well as receiving the Purple Medal of Honour from the Japanese government for his work, Kinji Fukasaku directed over 60 films throughout his 4 decades in the business, going on to inspire many who came after him including his own son, Kenta Fukasaku, who has went onto become a successful director in his own right.

 

A top cast leads the way in Shogun's Samurai – all incredibly prolific in their own ways. The first is Kinnosuke Nakamura, star of almost 150 titles, who appears here as the conspiring samurai known as Yagyu. A recognisable face of Japanese cinema, Nakamura appeared as the lead in the brilliant Lone Wolf & Cub (1973-76) television series, as well as classic films such as Revenge (1964), Incident At Blood Pass (1970), The Fall Of Ako Castle (1978), The Shogun Assassins (1979), and starred as the titular legend in the popular Miyamoto Musashi series. He is joined by regular co-star in the late and legendary Shinichi 'Sonny' Chiba, a man who really needs no introduction. As a kid, I had loved watching him in many of the aforementioned samurai titles as well as films such as The Street Fighter Trilogy (1974), Roaring Fire (1981), Sister Street Fighter (1974), Bullet Train (1975), G.I. Samurai (1979), and many more, continuing to do so as I obtain more and more of the late stars' lengthy filmography – which sat at around 230 titles in total. Here, he delivers his first ever role as the ninja known as Jubei; a character he would reprise a number of times throughout his career. Students and regular co-stars Hiroyuki Sanada and Etsuko 'Sue' Shihomi join him once again, bringing some youthful energy and skilled martial artistry to the table. Currently aged 64 at the time of writing, Sanada began acting at the age of 5, starring as the son of Sonny Chiba's character in Game Of Chance (1966) and soon became the protege of the late martial arts star – going onto star in a high number of his movies over the years. Often considered to be the Jackie Chan of Japan, Hiroyuki actually made his Hong Kong movie debut in Corey Yuen Kwai's incredible Ninja In The Dragon's Den (1982) before returning to star alongside Michelle Yeoh in Royal Warriors (1986) a short time later, reuniting with her over 20 years later for Danny Boyle's sci-fi thriller Sunshine in 2007 before getting to co-star and trade moves with Jackie Chan in Rush Hour 3 that same year. From there, his life in Hollywood was set and this new legendary Japanese action hero would fast gain a whole new fan club, eventually going onto win numerous awards for his role in the fantastic Shogun (2024) television mini-series. Like Sanada before her, the beautiful Etsuko 'Sue' Shihomi learned her skills at Sonny Chiba's Japan Action Club, often starring in many films with both stars while carrying her own in the Sister Streetfighter Series (1974-1976) and proving to be a highly entertaining martial-arts actress. In fact, I think it's only fair to say that she has often been overlooked in this department as many great female names of Hong Kong action cinema come to mind before hers, yet Shihomi never fails to entertain and should have gained the same success as her fellow Nipponese nutcracker, Yukari Oshima, did soon after...

 

They are joined by the prolific Hiroki Matsukata as the older prince, star of many Fukasaku titles and films such as The Rapacious Jailbreaker (1974), Shogun's Shadow (1989), Agitator (2001), Izo (2004), Avenging Blade (2009), and 13 Assassins (2010), before making an appearance in Yagyu Jubei: The Fate Of The World in 2015 which would be his last. Teruhiko Saigo plays the younger brother of the two, while the much loved Yoshio Harada – who starred in many films with his co-stars as well as the Hollywood ninja-flick, The Hunted with Christopher Lambert in 1995 – makes an appearance also. Tetsuro Tanba, star of over 400 titles which include later titles such as You Only Live Twice (1967), The Happiness Of The Katakuris (2001), The Twilight Samurai (2002), Gozu (2003) and The Sinking Of Japan (2006), co-stars as Ogasawara Gensinsai. Etsushi Takahashi stars as Matsudaira Izu, while Isao Natsuyagi appears as Shozaemon Bekki. Kentaro Kudo and Jiro Yabuki star as the younger Yagyu brothers with Ichiro Nakatani, Mikio Narita, and Isuzu Yamada helping to flesh things out. And finally, the great Toshiro Mifune adds even more star-power to the show as he makes an appearance as the Lord of Owari, going onto return for Kinji Fukasaku in The Fall Of Ako Castle later that same year.

 

Wonderfully shot by Fukasaku regular cinematographer Toru Nakajima, Shogun's Samurai is a Jidaigeki film of epic proportions offering sweeping locations, hundreds of extras, historic landmarks, and incredible action-pieces that feature dueling samurai, army battles, and exciting clashes with ninja. All in all, it feels incredibly authentic on every level which led to the film being adapted into a 39 episode TV series soon after with Chiba reprising his role as Jubei, and would later be remade a number of times over the years as television movies. In retrospect, this version went onto be nominated for five categories at that years Japanese Academy Awards. While it's restoration and overall release from Eureka is quite beautiful, the film unfortunately lacks any audio commentary which was quite surprising. It does, however, have a bonus feature called Echoes Of The Present which is an entertaining 21 minute video essay by Joe Hickinbottom on Kinji Fukasaku's Jidaigeki Cinema, an informative piece worth checking out. We also get three trailers alongside that, the first of which promotes the filming of Shogun's Samurai – a fascinating 2 minute look at the cast and crew in action behind the scenes, which was a unique way of promoting the film. The second is a 3 minute special report, rejigging some of the previous BTS footage with finished film scenes which, again, proved for an interesting watch. And finally, the third plays as the full 5 minute 'coming soon' trailer which I would loved to have caught on the big screen back then! As with many Eureka Video Blu-ray releases, Shogun's Samurai is limited to 2000 copies only and comes with a limited edition O-card slipcase and collectors booklet. It's also worth noting that John Dunn's new artwork captures the energy of the film perfectly and looks stunning. Yet another title worthy of a place of any Chiba fan's and Japanese chanbara lover's shelf!

 

Overall: A Fukasaku epic that has much to offer, Shogun's Samurai is dramatic, atmospheric and an exciting historical piece worth watching!

​

Watch my unboxing video for the Eureka Video release HERE