Naruto hichô

In some measure, and especially nearer the beginning, there's a certain air of casualness in the craft of the picture - or maybe even carefree abandon - that amounts to a sense of playfulness, or perhaps fantastical whimsy. This is reflected in the consistent lighter flourishes in Ichiro Saito's generally dynamic, dramatic score (especially music cues during scene transitions), as well as in dialogue and scene writing, but also even in fight choreography, which doesn't always come across with all due authenticity. 'Naruto hicho' quickly feels very distinct from Teinosuke Kinugasa's most famous, more direly serious-minded pictures, even as it demonstrates the same wonderful attention to details like costume design, set design and decoration, and props and weapons. Kohei Sugiyama's cinematography, similarly, is just as rich and vivid as in the director's other films.

And still none of this compares to narrative writing that from one scene to the next feels curiously disjointed for too much of the length. Many characters are introduced, but their alignments, motivations, and indeed the essence of their identities are left unclear for too long; each subsequent moment to greet our vision often seems disconnected, to one extent or another, from both the prior and the next. Why, even the climax seems to arrive with an abruptness that makes me pause and wonder, in the very instant that blades clash, how we got to this precise point from the preceding scenes. All these disparate parts do gel into a cohesive whole, but only slowly, and without perfect clarity or coherence - and with the sensation less of a period action-drama, and more of the samurai equivalent of a boisterous Hong Kong kung fu flick.

There's a lot going on here, for better and for worse. Even minding every indelicacy and idiosyncrasy, however, overall 'Naruto hicho' is entertaining. I admire the cast's performances, even if some relationships between characters or reactions as written feel forced and less than genuine. Though not always successful in their realization, the concept of fight scenes are enticing. Kinugasa once more illustrates a keen eye in arranging shots and scenes at large. Despite the fractured jumble of the plot as it presents, Eiji Yoshikawa's story is compelling, and worthy; I think the rendition that we get perhaps impresses as abbreviated, as though the saga before us should actually have played out in a feature at least 50% longer so as to allow each component of the tale to be expanded more fruitfully. And still, the movie we get feels overlong - yet through the confusion, the narrative is duly engaging.

Having watched a few of Kinugasa's other films and absolutely loved them, I wish I could say that I viewed 'Naruto hicho' with equal favor. I repeat myself, but though the story bears engrossing drama, it's the persistent inarticulate disunity in the screenplay penned by the director himself with Minoru Inuzuka that most deserves critique here. If my words are a mixture of contradicting thoughts, it's only a reflection of how the film is likewise marked with a sharp duality of both value and disadvantage in nigh every element. Ultimately I like this, and find it enjoyable - but it could and should have been more readily satisfying than it is. For its flaws, 'Naruto hicho' isn't essential, and you needn't go out of your way to watch it - but all the same, if you have the opportunity, it's nonetheless worth checking out.

There's goings-on in Awa. A beautiful lady Koga ninja is looking for revenge. Another beautiful lady is looking for her father. A brilliant samurai is wearing a wicker helmet like a wastepaper basket that conceals his identity. He claims to be a monk, but acts like a spy. The chamberlain is planning rebellion again the shogun, while his master, supposedly in charge of the rebellion, sleeps a lot, and then practices his victory dance. The chamberlain's son is mostly interested in trying out his fancy new somersault maneuver to chop people in half. As the movie advances, an unseen character becomes central to all their issues. He is a prisoner somewhere in a cave. His name is Koga Yoama.

Teinosuke Kinugasa directs a beautifully shot color epic with some major stars of the era: Chikage Awashima, Kazuo Hasegawa, Raizô Ichikawa are in the cast, and others. Yet the deliberate mystery of what the heck is going on at the beginning is off-putting. If we assume that samurai movies in Japan held the same thrall on the public as westerns in the United States, then this is definitely an A Samurai picture. Yet just as there were A westerns and B westerns -- and if you wanted to push it you could call some of the Monogram and PRC efforts C or even D westerns -- then clearly there were levels of excellence in Samurai pictures, determining their budget, publicity and popularity. In the US, a John Ford western, or the occasional westerns of William Wyler or Howard Hawks were great pictures, just like the samurai flicks of Kurosawa or Mizoguchi. Then there were A westerns, like THEY DIED WITH THEIR BOOTS ON or some of the Paramount color flicks in the 1950s, followed by the stuff for the Saturday Matinee crowd: Tim Holt, or Red Ryder or Hopalong Cassidy. Good stuff at its best, fun for the fans, and cinematic junk food.

This movie strikes me as an A Samurai picture. It clearly had a major budget, major stars, major director, great sets and everything that indicated it would play at the major houses for a while. Yet it lacks so much. It lacks humor. It lacks any sense of nobility. It has a plot cobbled together from pieces enough for four or five different movies, to make sure that there's something for everyone. Bring the whole family! Yet that makes it lose focus. Who is it about? What is it about? What is accomplished?

It's watchable from beginning to end. With that talent and budget, that's hardly surprising. In the end, it's an entertaining show. Unfortunately, in the end, it's nothing more.

Veteran director Kinugasa Teinosuke and aging matinee idol Hasegawa Kazuo achieved world fame with the award-winning jidai-geki "Jigokumon" (Gates of Hell, 1953). After this, they continued to work together extensively, and one of those collaborations is "Naruto hichô" (Secret of Naruto, 1957). As was the case with "Gates of Hell", the best thing about "Naruto" is the color cinematography by Sugiyama Kohei. The broad, fresh tones of the colored landscape really help history feel lived - although this is fiction - and help the film stand out among other jidai-geki films.

But even if you want to, "Naruto" is not an easy film to invest yourself in. I'm not going to spoil anything about the narrative, but the film has to do with people going undercover, characters having hidden motivations and secret missions, and people wanting revenge. The opening of the film is confusing, because it throws so many characters your way without explaining who they are, what they are doing, and which characters are they allied with. It honestly feels like you missed the first 30 minutes or so. I get it that it's a mystery, and by the end of it, everything is made clear. But for myself, a little bit more background - maybe a short narration? - would have given a better understanding of what kind of a film I was in for.

Still, there is more merit than just colors. The film has a nice all-star cast. Hasegawa is charismatic, though in this stage of his career not quite as fast in the action sequences as the young Raizo, for whom he is supposed to be an equal match. Women get to have at least decent amounts of action in this too. I was most surprised that Awashima Chikage is in this film, apparently playing a ninja. She usually plays such polite, classy ladies...

Not one of Kinugasa's best films for sure, but worth a watch, especially for genre fans.

Famous Kabuki actor-turned-movie-star Kazuo Hasegawa plays the Shogun's secret agent Gennojo Norizuki going undercover as a Buddhist priest to investigate a plot against the Torinaga Shogunate in the Awa Prefecture, which has since been named the Chiba Prefecture.

On Gennojo's mission, he's confronted with Yone Igaya (Fujiko Yamamoto) who desires to take vengeance on Gennojo for killing her father. Her attentive servant, Morihei (Naritoshi Hayashi) is close behind her.

There is also a young swordsman named Ryutaro Inui (Raizo Ichikawa) who has left his father's dojo to become a kendo instructor at another dojo. Ryutaro quickly recognizes the talent of Gennojo and challenges him to a dual. Reuters's cousin, Ofuku (Satoko Minami) is in love with him, but this character isn't very drawn out.

There is also a ninja woman, Otsuna (Chikage Awashima) who has been trained with the same school as Gennojo that is in Awa in search of her father, Koga Yoami who has been imprisoned for many years in the mountains for knowing the plot. Old Yoami has been writing down about the plot in his own blood.

In the Awa castle, Lord Awa has been insane for years. His plots against the Shogun have been molded by Yakeya Sanmi, with the knowledge of the Chamberlain Izu Waki (Osamu Takizawa) and the other prefect leaders.

Can Gennojo uncover the plot and stop the people involved?