Now shipping from Goodie Emporium is Eureka’s Blu-ray (Region B) for Shogun’s Samurai (aka Yagyu Clan Conspiracy or Intrigue of the Yagyu Clan), a 1978 film from Kinji Fukasaku (The Green Slime, Battle Royal).
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 (Lone Wolf and Cub), Hiroki Matsukata (Cops vs. Thugs) and the incomparable Shinichi “Sonny” Chiba (Fighting Fist) 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.
Features:
- Limited edition [2000 copies]
- Limited O-card slipcase featuring new artwork by John Dunn strictly exclusive to this edition only
- Limited edition booklet featuring new writing by on the film by Jonathan Clements
- 1080p HD presentation from a 4K restoration by Toei
- Uncompressed original Japanese mono audio
- Optional English subtitles, newly revised for this release
- Echoes of the Present: Kinji Fukasaku’s Jidaigeki Cinema – new video essay by Japanese cinema expert Joe Hickinbottom
- Original theatrical trailer
This title is now available at The Goodie Emporium, a U.S.-based online store that currently has many Import Shaw Brothers/Golden Harvest/martial arts DVD/Blu-ray movies in-stock – with New titles being added regularly!
Watch the Trailer:
OK but far from a masterpiece, sorry.