An early Zanussi short. Fun fact: it’s called “Plane from Budapest” but the only arriving plane in the movie is from Amsterdam.
Quote:
Here we see short scenes from a random day at the airport. We have flying planes, landings, passport checking scenes, passengers waiting for their relatives. This documentary shows the ordinary but unique behaviors and reactions of the passengers and the airport maintenance staff.Read More »
Synopsis:
Itinerant masseur and master swordsman, the blind Zatoichi, is near the village of his teacher, Hikonoichi, so he decides to visit. He learns of Hikonoichi’s recent robbery and murder and the imprisonment of his virginal daughter, Osayo, in a brothel. Through friendship with Denroku, a local dice thrower and devoted father, Ichi uncovers an unholy alliance between the governor and the area strongman: among their scams is falsifying tax records to put farmers in debt, then forcing their daughters into prostitution at the boss’s brothel. With help from Denroku’s daughter, Otsuru, Ichi comforts Osayo until he can provoke showdowns with the villains and their henchmen.Read More »
Synopsis:
Blind swordsman/masseur Ichi (known as Zatoichi, or “Masseur Ichi”) angers a local yakuza gang when he defeats several of them in a wrestling match. When he finds that his long lost love Tane is nearby and romantically involved with a tough samurai in the employ of the gang, he remains in the village. Meanwhile, the young heir to the leadership is forced to confront his own fear and weakness when the gang insists he fight Ichi.Read More »
Synopsis:
Blind masseur and master swordsman, Zatoichi, is tired of killing. He journeys to his old village looking for peace, but is pursued by the brother of Boss Kanbei, a man he’s killed. Back home, Ichi connects with Banno, his teacher, who seeks prestige and has arranged for his younger sister, Yayoi, to marry into a wealthy samurai family. Ichi and Yayoi realize they are in love, but Ichi’s request for her hand meets with Banno’s derision. Ichi is also drawn into Banno’s plot to kidnap the son of a wealthy man, ostensibly to aid the Mito Goblins, a gang of thieves on the run; but Banno wants to keep the ransom. Ichi wants harmony and love, but can he escape a destiny of violence?Read More »
Synopsis:
Blind swordsman/masseur Zatoichi is pursued by the retainers of a lord who fear that he will reveal a secret weakness of their master. Returning to the village where a year before he had killed Hirate, a much-admired opponent, Zatoichi encounters another swordsman and former rival in love: his own brother. He must face in combat not only the pursuing retainers but his own flesh-and-blood.Read More »
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A coffin-dragging gunslinger and a half-breed prostitute become embroiled in a bitter feud between a Klan of Southern racists and a band of Mexican Revolutionaries.Read More »
Synopsis:
An impoverished blind masseur becomes a mercenary swordsman, to gain basic respect. The first of novelist Kan Shimozawa’s Zatoichi series: 26 films, a TV series and a play, all but two starring controversial singer/producer/director Shintaro Katsu. First of six Zatoichi films directed by Kenji Misumi. The shrewd Zatoichi targets a yakuza-controlled village, because war with a neighboring town’s smaller gang is brewing. The broke ex-masseur “Ichi” immediately wins big, by taking advantage of local bakuto’s cheating, after they scoff at his asking to join a dice game. The larger horde, who have been given carte blanche by the local governor, summoned Zatoichi. Zatoichi hates the fact that he’s become an outlaw, so he strikes up a friendship with the other gang’s honorable hired samurai, who has TB.Read More »
Synopsis:
An accident in the butchers shop leads Norman and Mr Grimsdale to the hospital where, after causing the normal amount of chaos, Norman finds Lindy, a little girl who hasn’t spoken or smiled since her parents were killed in an aeroplane accident. Norman decides to help.Read More »
Antar, son of prince Chaddad and a black slave mother, longs to be recognized by his father and win the love of his cousin, the princess Abla. In order to prove himself worthy, he undergoes all manner of obstacles and eventually becomes the greatest warrior in all Arabia.
There have been several Middle Eastern movies made about Antar, dating back to the silent era. In western cinema, Antar was played by Victor Mature in The Veils of Bagdad (1953) and by Kirk Morris in Anthar l’Invincibile (Anthar the Invincible) although these films re-imagined the character as a generic Caucasian hero with little relation to the historical figure. In this picture, Antar is portrayed by Egyptian actor Farid Chawki wearing “blackface” makeup and a nappy wig.Read More »