Two films. Two names. One inspiration.
Coincidentally, Twitch is reporting on two upcoming Japanese films which both draw inspiration from the Zatoichi franchise. The first is Sonny Chiba’s directorial debut, Za Toichi, which will star Ginji Yoshikawa as a blind moneylender. Tokyo Graph adds that
The title can be read as “The Toichi,” where “toichi” is a common abbreviation of the phrase “tooka de ichiwari,” referring to illegal loans that charge 10% interest for every 10 days.
Chiba will be directing and writing under his newly created alias Rindo Wachinaga, although there is a possibility of him starring alongside Yoshikawa under his stage name (JJ Sonny Chiba). At a budget of approximately 200 million yen, the film is scheduled to begin shooting in April, with a target release date in fall.
The second film, Ichi, is a re-imagination of the original blind swordsman films and stars Haruka Ayase as the blind swordswoman. But aside from the eye appeal of Ayase, many are likely to be attracted by what, or rather who, is behind the camera: Fumihiko Sori of Ping Pong fame (although I enjoyed the 2002 film, I can’t quite understand all the commotion). Anyway, the official website for Ichi has gone live and with it, a teaser trailer (the teaser starts up automatically, but in case you miss it, just click the link to the right). It’ll be interesting to see how the two films compare. On one hand, you’ve got Sonny Chiba and on the other, a possibly very innovative recreation.
