Goyokin
Encyclopedia
is a 1969 jidaigeki
film co-written and directed by Hideo Gosha
. Set during the late Tokugawa era, the story follows a reclusive ronin
who is trying to atone for past transgressions. In 1975 it was remade as a Western film, entitled The Master Gunfighter
.
for the Sabai clan. A nearby island, Sado
, boasts a rich gold mine which provides plentiful riches for the Tokugawa clan. When one of the gold ships sink, the local farmers recover some of the gold, intending to return it to the Tokugawa clan. However, Magobei's clan master, Rokugo Tatewaki, takes the gold and slaughters the farmers so they cannot report the gold stolen. Magobei is appalled. He promises not to report Rokugo to the shogunate in exchange for Rokugo 's promise to never do so again.
However, three years later, assassins sent by Rokugo's retainer, Kunai, come for Magobei, who is living in Edo
. He realizes that Rokugo intends to steal more gold and slaughter more innocents. So Magobei returns to Sabai to face his former master. Rokugo hires another ronin, Samon Fujimaki, to kill Magobei, but Magobei eventually wins him over. Also, along the way, Magobei meets a young woman, Oriha, who survived the original slaughter. She and her brother, Rokuzo, join him on his way to Sabai.
At Sabai they learn that Rokugo intends to move a bonfire, which serves as a warning to passing ships against dangerous rocks, so that a gold ship will hit the rocks and sink. After recovering the gold, Rokugo intends to slaughter the peasants who help him in this endeavor. The combined efforts of Magobei, Samon, Oriha, and Rokuzo result in the correct bonfire being lit, the fake bonfire being put out, and the innocent peasants' lives being saved. Thus the gold-bearing ship evades the rocks. In a final showdown, amid falling snow
, Magobei slays Rokugo, but is wounded by one of Rokugo 's throwing knives.
Jidaigeki
is a genre of film, television, and theatre in Japan. The name means "period drama" and is usually the Edo period of Japanese history, from 1603 to 1868. Some, however, are set much earlier—Portrait of Hell, for example, is set during the late Heian period—and the early Meiji era is also a popular...
film co-written and directed by Hideo Gosha
Hideo Gosha
was a Japanese film director.Among his most famous films are Goyokin and Hitokiri, released in 1969, and The Wolves, released in 1971. His most famous film in the West is Sword of the Beast, released by Criterion....
. Set during the late Tokugawa era, the story follows a reclusive ronin
Ronin
A or rounin was a Bushi with no lord or master during the feudal period of Japan. A samurai became masterless from the death or fall of his master, or after the loss of his master's favor or privilege....
who is trying to atone for past transgressions. In 1975 it was remade as a Western film, entitled The Master Gunfighter
The Master Gunfighter
The Master Gunfighter is a film released in 1975, written and produced by Tom Laughlin, who also played the lead as Finley. It is commonly believed Laughlin also directed the film, using the name of his son, Frank Laughlin, as a pseudonym. He had used his children's names in various forms as...
.
Plot
Magobei Wakizaka is a samuraiSamurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
for the Sabai clan. A nearby island, Sado
Sado, Niigata
is a city located on Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture, in the Chūbu region of Japan. Since 2004, the city has comprised the entire island, although not all of its total area of 855.26 km2 is urbanized...
, boasts a rich gold mine which provides plentiful riches for the Tokugawa clan. When one of the gold ships sink, the local farmers recover some of the gold, intending to return it to the Tokugawa clan. However, Magobei's clan master, Rokugo Tatewaki, takes the gold and slaughters the farmers so they cannot report the gold stolen. Magobei is appalled. He promises not to report Rokugo to the shogunate in exchange for Rokugo 's promise to never do so again.
However, three years later, assassins sent by Rokugo's retainer, Kunai, come for Magobei, who is living in Edo
Edo
, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...
. He realizes that Rokugo intends to steal more gold and slaughter more innocents. So Magobei returns to Sabai to face his former master. Rokugo hires another ronin, Samon Fujimaki, to kill Magobei, but Magobei eventually wins him over. Also, along the way, Magobei meets a young woman, Oriha, who survived the original slaughter. She and her brother, Rokuzo, join him on his way to Sabai.
At Sabai they learn that Rokugo intends to move a bonfire, which serves as a warning to passing ships against dangerous rocks, so that a gold ship will hit the rocks and sink. After recovering the gold, Rokugo intends to slaughter the peasants who help him in this endeavor. The combined efforts of Magobei, Samon, Oriha, and Rokuzo result in the correct bonfire being lit, the fake bonfire being put out, and the innocent peasants' lives being saved. Thus the gold-bearing ship evades the rocks. In a final showdown, amid falling snow
Snow
Snow is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by...
, Magobei slays Rokugo, but is wounded by one of Rokugo 's throwing knives.
Cast
- Tatsuya NakadaiTatsuya Nakadaiis a Japanese leading film actor.He became a star after he was discovered working as a Tokyo shop clerk by filmmaker Masaki Kobayashi during the early 1950s...
as Magobei Wakizaka - Kinnosuke Nakamura as Samon Fujimaki
- Tetsurô Tanba as Rokugo Tatewaki, Magobei's childhood friend, brother-in-law, and clan master
- Yôko Tsukasa as Shino, Magobei's sister and Rokugo's wife
- Ruriko AsaokaRuriko Asaokaborn 2 July 1940 in Xinjing, Manchukuo , is a Japanese actress.- Filmography :* * * Alone on the Pacific aka Alone Across the Pacific...
as Oriha - Isao Natsuyagi as Kunai
- Ben HiuraBen Hiurais a Japanese actor and voice actor affiliated with the Seinenza Theater Company. He is the Official Japanese dub-over voice artist for Robin Williams.-Television animation:*Master Keaton *Shin Lupin III...
as Rokuzo
External links
- Review at Kung Fu Cinema
- Review at SaruDama Goyokin at the Japanese Movie Database