The Hidden Blade

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The Hidden Blade

R

2004

2h 12m

History

Drama

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84%

Tomatometer

32 Reviews

84%

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10,000+ Ratings

A lower-class samurai, named Katagiri, secretly loves Kie, a servant in his family's household. Eventually their perception of honor forces them to part, and he must turn his focus toward a disheartening task. His old friend, Yaichiro Hazama, has been fomenting rebellion against the government, and Katagiri must hunt him down and kill him.

Critics Consensus

A slow and steady samurai flick a la John Ford that brings emotions and psychology to an epic-scale adventure.

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Jeff Shannon

Seattle Times

A tenacious survival tale in which passionate lovers are held apart by outmoded traditions. How they overcome obstacles to happiness is what makes the film so dramatically engaging.

Rated: 3/4

Jul 14, 2006

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Wesley Morris

Boston Globe

Yamada's enormously enjoyable The Hidden Blade is a movie that deftly balances the obligations of samurai history with love story.

Rated: 3.5/4

Jul 14, 2006

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Ruthe Stein

San Francisco Chronicle

Reminders of feudal Japan are mixed in with a prescient glimpse into the country's future. The samurai will not be part of it, and The Hidden Blade poignantly shows what is lost in the name of progress.

Rated: 3/4

Jul 7, 2006

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Louis Proyect

rec.arts.movies.reviews

Second installment in Yamada's samurai trilogy. Once again the hero is unlike the super-warriors of the genre, but far more interesting.

Sep 7, 2008

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Kam Williams

Upstage Magazine

A character-driven, martial arts adventure more concerned with motivations than karate moves.

Rated: 2/4

Jul 7, 2007

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David Noh

Film Journal International

Hidden Blade works, then, as that rare, intellectually stirring historical pageant, but also as a deeply emotional, satisfying samurai movie, one of the crown jewels of the genre.

Mar 1, 2007

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Tran N

Tony Leung is a legend and Wang YiBo is the next generation. Superb acting on both parts with an intricate story.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/24/23

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Magic W

This is a movie that you need to pay close attention to the details in the first half hour of the movie. This is definitely a movie that you would like to rewatch. Tony Leung is indeed Tony Leung. He never disappoints!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

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Tony S

Made with the same formula, this is a clear rethread of Twilight Samurai but without enticing juxtaposition of the main character's mentality to his duties to a dying system. Hence no real interesting dilemma. Despite being well made, well acted and shot. The singular problem is that it's just not Twilight Samurai. It resonates way less. Hidden Blade double downs on showcasing of the coming of new age to replace samurai. No longer lingering in the background, it's very much upfront. And also provides most of the comedy in the film. That CGI shot however was embarrassing. It couldn't have been impressive back then and most importantly it's completely unnecessary.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/03/21

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Audience Member

I could not decide which is better, this film or The Twilight Samurai. Both stories are amazing and deeply moving. These are not action movies, so if you are looking for cheap thrills, you won't find it here. Instead, they are very well written stories that were written with historical accuracy.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/09/23

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Audience Member

The similarities to the love story in Twilight Samurai is there but the violent ending is awesome. Lovin this more than the Fujisawa's first film.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/13/23

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Audience Member

A truly beautiful film musing over the familiar Samurai themes of Honour, Courage, Loyalty and Justice. Not an action film, with the exception of a showdown, this film is a touching and beautiful story.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/15/23

Full Review

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Yôji Yamada

Director

Masatoshi Nagase

Munezo Katagiri

Takako Matsu

Kie

Hidetaka Yoshioka

Samon Shimada

Yukiyoshi Ozawa

Yaichiro Hazama

Tomoko Obata

Shino

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Critical Consensus: "Click" Doesn’t, Ahem, Click; "Waist" Isn’t Deep Enough

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Synopsis

A lower-class samurai, named Katagiri, secretly loves Kie, a servant in his family's household. Eventually their perception of honor forces them to part, and he must turn his focus toward a disheartening task. His old friend, Yaichiro Hazama, has been fomenting rebellion against the government, and Katagiri must hunt him down and kill him.

Director: Yôji Yamada
Producer: Takeo Hisamatsu, Hiroshi Fukusawa, Ichirô Yamamoto
Screenwriter: Yôji Yamada, Yoshitaka Asama
Production Co: Shochiku Co. Ltd.
Rating: R (Some Violent Material)
Genre: History, Drama
Original Language: Japanese
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Jun 23, 2006
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 19, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $38.1K
Runtime: 2h 12m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital