TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Ketrivie It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

Bluebell Alcock Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Stretchington72 I think all the early zatochi movies are brilliant And this one is Surly one of the best in the series As per normal great acting and a great story with very convincing acting all round The end fight is probably one of the most poinent of any fights and the choreography and lighting is just to die for ...shintaro katsu for my money though is the best zatochi and one of the most engaging actors ever to play any roll especially considering the amount of time he spent on screen The TV series although not as great is worth delving in for as there are more than 100 episodes some great others not but all in all it still has the power to hook the viewer in I would say if you new to this series this wouldn't be a bad place to start . But any of the 26 movies are worth seeing as is the brilliant 2003 film

CCharlesIC **SPOILERS - but none that explain the whole film...An enigmatic samurai repeatedly crosses Ichi's path (with Zato sporting that new sword from the previous film) as the hero becomes saddled with, and attached to, an orphan. Along the way the audience is confronted by yet another morality question: Should the long arm of the law reach out with blind, unswerving justice or redemptive morality? The opening song is sung by Katsu-san himself, doing justice to the musicality instilled by his father. Another song is sung by the pop-singer Nakao Mie. This entry has brilliant cinematography, strong secondary stories, and excellent acting by supporting cast. The great evil in this film involves the use of "forbidden materials" to produce pornographic art - each piece worth a small fortune. The final showdown is considered one of the best of the series.The orphan boy Ryota is played by Saitô Shinya - according to the book World Filmography: 1967; page 423.

MartinHafer I love the Zatoichi movies, though I have found that because they made so many and the plots tended to blend together so often, it is hard to distinguish them apart. I would give all of them about the same score of a 7 or an 8--with a few exceptions (the return of the original in 1989 was a TERRIBLE and depressing movie, while the new Zatoichi movie starring Beat Takeshi is probably the best of any Zatoichi movies).Why did I like this one best? Well, first it was certainly different in that Zatoichi becomes involved in destroying an illicit pornography ring (albiet the pornography is on decorative plates)--apparently during that era, pornography was dealt with by DEATH! When Zatoichi gets pulled into this, he learns that the man he is seeking to help is being forced against his will to make this smutty art pottery. So, of course, Zatoichi helps the man escape from the evil warlord and all is well, right?! NOPE--and this leads to the single best confrontation in the history of these Zatoichi flicks. Zatoichi's refusal to turn this man over to the undercover agent for execution is something you shouldn't miss. I won't say more, but assure you this movie really delivers!

John Seal Saddled with one of the series more arcane plots, Zatoichi Challenged makes up for it by looking absolutely stunning. The colours are bright and crisp and full advantage is taken of the Panavision lens. Add in another great score from Akira Ifukube and you've got one of the best of the Zatoichi flicks.