I loved Twilight Samurai and was very excited to see Yoji Yamada's new film, The Hidden Blade. It did not disappoint. It was another great samurai movie and love story. Movies like this are rare nowadays. It made me wonder - who is this Yoji Yamada?
Since I had not heard of him before, I was hoping he would be a bright young director who also understands the beauty and style of the Kurosawa-type samurai movie. Then I could look forward to decades of these great movies.
Unfortunately, he is over seventy. I should have known. The movies are old school and you can feel the wisdom of a forgotten past in each scene. I hope he lives to be 200.
I recommend the The Hidden Blade for everyone, but it is a must-see for samurai film lovers like me.
To read more, see Uffe Stegmann's review, which also talks about the "gritty, realistic feel" of both movies.