Samaritan Zatoichi is the nineteenth film in the franchise about the blind masseur, skilled swordsman and lowly yakuza. In this movie, Zatoichi reprises his work as yakuza to earn some money. Initially hired as observator, he ends up fighting and killing a man who owes his boss money. However, it is soon revealed that his boss is only interested in the victim's sister and wants to force her to become the servant of a government official in order to convince said official to attribute some land to him. Zatoichi deeply regrets his actions and decides to protect the deceased man's sister. She is initially reluctant to be protected by the man who slayed her brother but since the greedy boss, an ambitious punter and the owners of a brothel are out to get her, Zatoichi's skills end up being very welcome to help her.
There are multiple elements that make Samaritan Zatoichi stand out. First of all, this is one of the few times when we actually see Zatoichi work as yakuza. Moreover, the film shows the gentle man's dark side as Zatoichi is not only shown killing an innocent man but also not paying rent for his hotel room and cheating at a dice game. That's why the film's title is somewhat misleading as this movie is one of the very few to show Zatoichi's weaknesses. Another great element is the relationship between Zatoichi and the dead man's sister that changes from hatred over doubt to affection in the young woman's case. The acting performances are particularly great in this film.
Maybe there are a few too many characters and parties in this film as a stronger focus on the relationship between the blind yakuza and the grieving woman could have made a very good movie even excellent. The middle section of the film is a little bit plodding. The fight scenes are solid but not as impressive and memorable as in other movies of the series.
Still, Samaritan Zatoichi is of great interest for collectors and fans of old date because it shows a different side of the unique main character. The character's darker side and his relationship with the grieving woman make this film stand out very positively. Since this nearly innovative approach is quite unusual for the series, I wouldn't recommend this movie to newcomers. If you want to discover a more traditional take on the blind swordsman, go for the franchise's earlier films.
