Zatoichi Primer: Before You Delve into the Legend

Show some respect. Zatoichi was the first time in Japanese media that the blind swordsman trope appeared. Zatoichi, literally “Ichi the low rank blind man,” was created by Kan Shimozawa in 1948 when he published the short story, Zatoichi Monogatari. Most of us know him as the beloved swordsman from the adapted film series, though. For any genre fans, or people that just want to see some rad katana shit, this series is instantly appealing. 

Yet many of us hesitate to start. It’s 26 fucking original movies. Oh, wait, make that 29, if you count the two unofficial Hong Kong crossovers and the official 2003 Japanese remake. Watching all of this ends up being about the equivalent runtime of watching four seasons of Game of Thrones. There are also four seasons of the TV series on top of that. If you prefer movies for the self contained storytelling, commitments like this might seem daunting. So I watched all 26 original movies and made a Zatoichi primer to give you a lay of the land.

Beginning here, the only spoilers you’ll find are the movies’ premises—no more than what a one-minute trailer would provide.

Among The Essential Chanbara Films

The first thing to understand about Zatoichi films is that they are not just swordsmanship period pieces: they fall into the specific category of Chanbara films. Sometimes used derogatorily, Chanbara refers to films that aren’t supposed to be profound exposés on the human condition. They’re supposed to be fun, first. The name is literally an onomatopoeia for the sound swords make when they’re clashing. The English equivalent would be like calling Michael Bay movies “Pew Pew Boom Boom” films. Well, sort of. The notable difference is that Michael Bay films lean fully into being fun, while the Zatoichi films have a surprising amount of substance. Being fun first doesn’t mean they can’t be deep second. So, yes, the Zatoichi films are Chanbara films, which means that in virtually every installment you can expect differing measures of fun and substance.

How then does Zatoichi fit into this genre? And what did he contribute to it? Quite well. And quite a bit. The first thing to understand about Ichi is that he is a blind swordsman, but not a blind samurai. He is yakuza. In a genre obsessed with the lore of the samurai, with the minimalist perfection of their aesthetic, with the elegance of their swordplay, with the nobility of their code, the Zatoichi movies serve as a necessary contrast. Necessary because the samurai couldn’t have been as perfect as their idealized image. They were human, after all. Likewise, of the films that explore yakuza protagonists, there are those that idealize yakuza, and then there are those like the Zatoichi movies that take a more subtle approach in exploring the relationships between common people, yakuza, nobility, and the samurai that serve nobility. 

The Blind Swordsman

Zatoichi’s, or Ichi’s, world is one of nuance. Innocent people sometimes act like scumbags, honorable people are sometimes corrupt, and the worst people in the world are sometimes tragically vulnerable. What’s more, Ichi's world challenges his ethos. Yes, he’s got a code. It’s his personal code, but it’s also informed by Ninkyodo—the Code of the Yakuza. (Yeah, I didn’t know they had a code either). This series thus asks the questions: 

What kind of society depends on people following their own codes? 

What does it mean to operate outside of the law if you still must obey a code?

What is the purpose of a code when we are all just trying to survive?

I won’t answer any of those for you. Even the movies only arguably do so. It’s more of a framing to keep in mind as you approach this series. Don’t worry; they usually keep it light and you’re going to have a ton of fun along the way.

Part of that fun is that Ichi doesn’t have to fall in line with the honorable samurai trope. He isn’t supposed to follow that code. He’s allowed to take the girl home. He’s allowed to haggle about money. He’s allowed to gamble and drink and sing and dance. But is he allowed to cry? Is he allowed to betray his code if it makes society better? Is he allowed to disappoint the most innocent of us? Questions you can only answer by seeing for yourself. 

Approaching the Series

Alright, enough pondering. Time to start watching. As of September 2024, the original 25 are streaming on the Criterion Channel, while the 26th movie is streaming on MUBI.

Zatoichi isn’t really serialized, with the exception of the first two installments. After that they settle into a comfortable rhythm of assuming someone everywhere’s got enough of a problem with the legendary blind swordsman that there always will be plot to mine. So don’t worry if you start in the middle of the series and hear a name you don’t recognize, seemingly calling back to prior events; assume those events happened off screen. Each movie will let you know who the characters are and why they matter.

First, some context for the series. The first 25 Zatoichi movies are the core series, released between 1962 and 1973. You then get the two unofficial Chinese films where Ichi crosses over into existing kung-fu movie IP. After the TV series, the franchise takes an eleven year long break before movie #26 in 1989, with Zatoichi as a much older man. Finally, fourteen years later, in 2003, you get an attempt at a franchise reboot, which is a remake of #4.

From here it just depends on how you want to approach the series. 

Do you want to start with the masterpiece? You sick fuck, yeah you do. I guess I can’t stop you.

• Watch #20, Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo

• Warning! You might not appreciate this movie as much if you haven’t seen Kurosawa’s Yojimbo (1961)

Do you only care about the two best ones?

• Add on #17, Zatoichi Challenged

Okay, but which other ones are solid?

Watch these in this order, from best to still-really-good:

• #3, New Tale of Zatoichi

• #26, Zatoichi

• #12, Zatoichi and the Chess Expert

• #15, Zatoichi’s Cane Sword

• #13, Zatoichi’s Vengeance

• #4, Zatoichi The Fugitive

There you go! Eight of the best, if that’s your style.

Alternatively you might prefer to discover the series in the most natural order, prioritizing the best, most representative stories, with space to eventually watch more if you want. In that case I’d say start with these eight, in this order:

• #1, The Tale of Zatoichi

• #2, The Tale of Zatoichi Continues

• #3, New Tale of Zatoichi

• #12, Zatoichi and the Chess Expert

• #15, Zatoichi’s Cane Sword

• #17, Zatoichi Challenged

• #20, Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo

• #26, Zatoichi

You’ve now got what you need in order to know the Legend of Zatoichi. Hopefully you enjoy this wonderful franchise as much as I have. 

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