Review of Zatoichi: The Last (2010) by Kinnon P — 12 Feb 2011

Hopefully not.

Supposedly the last in the now 29 Zatoichi movies, it's strong neither in lead performance, nor as a reinvention, nor as a competent chanbara film. Shingo Katori has a likeable presence but not the weight, or roguish charm for this long standing character, even the set pieces with him struggling for sound and step to strike out against, while missing footing, might be more realistic in style but it does nothing to play into how ferociously skilled the character should be.There's times he seems to be surviving by blind luck, rather than blind skill.

It's a case of miscasting a too young idol in what should have been a role for heavyweight charisma. There's a few scenes of note, but even the direction of the story makes little sense emotionally, and considering the cast around the center player is so good, this feels like a wasted opportunity and too much of a misstep. Katori is a good actor, but this is not a best suited role. Very disappointed. For the remakes Zaotichi by Kitano in 2003 remains the zenith, while Ichi in 2008 scores higher by at least being brave enough to flip the characters sexuality while remaining faithful to the core characteristics. This, alas, is a poor 3rd.