Okita Soji

October 28, 2008 · Filed Under fiction 

OKITA SOJI (1974)
imdb
alternate titles
Okita Soshi (Samurai Okita Soshi)
I’d like to state right off the bat that MANY fangirls will appreciate the casting choice of Okita. He is tall, rugged,
and has very beautiful eyes. Simply, he is a very manly Okita! Easily one of the best actors to portray Okita. Both Kondou and Hijikata are miscast.
I’ll mention some parts of the film which I found striking.
Shieikan is depicted as experiencing financial hardship (based on what the characters were eating). The future members of the Shinsengumi all
look as if they haven’t bathed for weeks.Mention of the popularity and spread of Tennen Rishin Ryu and moving in on the “turf” of other schools.
Kiyokawa Hachiro and Murakami comment on the Shieikan men “either they’re loyal to the Shogun or they’re dirt poor.” Serizawa Kamo is shown in a helmet splitting demonstration. Hijikata while in the Roshigumi “never in the Tokugawa history could this large a group of
ronin walk in public.” Kondo dreams of being a hatamoto. Hijikata dreams of forming the greatest army in Japan and Okita dreams of eating sweets in Kyoto. Assasination of Serizawa Kamo was shown briefly but in a pretty creative manner.Pretty graphic depiction of the torture of Furutaka Shuntaro (if you ever wondered how and where the
candles were stuck on the guy—well this is the movie which shows it).

The Raid on Ikedaya is very brief however the event gave the viewer a “first person” claustrophobic view. Unlike many well staged
depictions this film gives you a taste of fighting in the dark. The chase after Yamanami Keisuke has a unique twist. There was no Itou Affair to speak of—it was just another excuse for bloodshed for the filmakers.
There is a shift in tone when the film adopts an almost sarcastic/mocking tone with their take on Kondo Isami’s photograph and the last battles of the Shinsengumi.
If you can get past the 70s music, predictable love story, cliched metaphors, one nightmare sequence and shifting tone of the film you have atleast a decent film.

 

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