I saw this film a while ago, and thought that I should comment on it, now that it appears to have been "discovered" outside Japan.
Many have critised Mibu Gishiden (When the Last Sword is Drawn), but I think that seeing the film from the POV of Japanese people might change their opinions.
The film is very melodramatic, and manipulative, and perhaps if I didn't live in Kyoto, and work next to Mibu Temple (Yes, where the Shinsengumi (the Mibu ro) often were), I would also be more dismissive of this film. But I have seen Kyoto's fascination for the tragedy of the Shinsengumi, and their futile battle against an unstoppable chain of events. I have seen walked past pachinko palours where battles were fought, and ate in restaurants where people were killed, and sword marks still remain in beams of wood. I have ridden the subway, just a metre away from a crazy fan that only went outside when dressed and fully armed in true Shinsengumi fashion.
Perhaps without all of this, I would have dismissed the film in favour of Yoji Yamada's films at the time, and also WTLSID is overly overdrawn. But it is the insight into history, and the exploration into the passions and lives of these historical characters that really makes the film memorable. See it if you can.
Many have critised Mibu Gishiden (When the Last Sword is Drawn), but I think that seeing the film from the POV of Japanese people might change their opinions.
The film is very melodramatic, and manipulative, and perhaps if I didn't live in Kyoto, and work next to Mibu Temple (Yes, where the Shinsengumi (the Mibu ro) often were), I would also be more dismissive of this film. But I have seen Kyoto's fascination for the tragedy of the Shinsengumi, and their futile battle against an unstoppable chain of events. I have seen walked past pachinko palours where battles were fought, and ate in restaurants where people were killed, and sword marks still remain in beams of wood. I have ridden the subway, just a metre away from a crazy fan that only went outside when dressed and fully armed in true Shinsengumi fashion.
Perhaps without all of this, I would have dismissed the film in favour of Yoji Yamada's films at the time, and also WTLSID is overly overdrawn. But it is the insight into history, and the exploration into the passions and lives of these historical characters that really makes the film memorable. See it if you can.