The colossally popular Zatoichi films make up the longest-running action series in Japanese history and created one of the screen’s great heroes: an itinerant blind masseur who also happens to be a lightning-fast swordsman. As this iconic figure, the charismatic and earthy Shintaro Katsu became an instant superstar, lending a larger-than-life presence to the thrilling adventures of a man who lives staunchly by a code of honor and delivers justice in every town and village he enters.
26 films
The Tale of Zatoichi
1962
The Tale of Zatoichi Continues
1962
New Tale of Zatoichi
1963
Zatoichi the Fugitive
1963
Zatoichi on the Road
1963
Zatoichi and the Chest of Gold
1964
Zatoichi's Flashing Sword
1964
Fight, Zatoichi, Fight
1964
Adventures of Zatoichi
1964
Zatoichi's Revenge
1965
Zatoichi and the Doomed Man
1965
Zatoichi and the Chess Expert
1965
Zatoichi's Vengeance
1966
Zatoichi's Pilgrimage
1966
Zatoichi's Cane Sword
1967
Zatoichi the Outlaw
1967
Zatoichi Challenged
1967
Zatoichi and the Fugitives
1968
Samaritan Zatoichi
1968
Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo
1970
Zatoichi Goes to the Fire Festival
1970
Zatoichi Meets the One-Armed Swordsman
1971
Zatoichi at Large
1972
Zatoichi in Desperation
1972
Watching
Zatoichi's Conspiracy
1973
Zatoichi: Darkness Is His Ally
1989
Kimiyoshi Yasuda (Director) · Kei Hattori (Screenplay)
Shintarō Katsu
Zatoichi
Yukiyo Toake
Omiyo
Takashi Shimura
Sakubei
Eiji Okada
Shinbei
Kei Satō
Magistrate
Yoshio Tsuchiya
Shobei
Rie Yokoyama
Yuri
Tatsuo Endō
Boss Iwagoro
Shiro Kishibe
Ruffian
Goro Kumon
Naoyuki Asahina
Tamotsu Fujiharu
Takaji Fukui
Gen Takamori
Yūji Hamada
Kuniko Ishii
Virgin Farmgirl
Hiroshi Kanda
Masayoshi Kikuno
Nobue Matsuoka
Yuzo Miyashita
Tokio Oki
Yuko Ota
Osamu Sakai
Gen
Shoroku Shimada
Teiko Takeda
Yūsaku Terashima
Yahei
Saburo Ukita
Mitsuo Watanabe
Takeshi Yabuuchi
山村聪子
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Zatoichi, the famed blind swordsman, returns to his home village for the first time in many years. He is befriended by Omiyo, who had the same wet-nurse as Zatoichi. He also encounters a boyhood friend, Shinbei, who is now wealthy and appears not to remember Zatoichi. Shinbei seems to be interested in repaying the villagers' debts, but is, in reality, manipulating the ownership of a now valuable rock quarry. Zatoichi learns of the subterfuge and confronts his old friend, who has a score of yakuza swordsmen backing his play.
