It’s hard not to be nostalgic for things like Saturday Cult Movie nights on SBS with Des Magnan with the type of movies I’d get exposed to on free to air TV growing up as a teenager. The Lone Wolf And Cub series tended to get played a lot, and I think I’ve only seen two out of the six-film series, which has had a long influence on other movies including Road To Perdition and Kill Bill most obviously. Based on a Japanese manga, Lone Wolf And Cub has an unbeatable hook: a surly samurai wanders the land with his baby son in a cart, seeking revenge for the clan that killed his wife and betrayed him, all the while fighting assassins and assailants in bountiful sprays of blood. With the boxset from Criterion Collection at my disposal, I began the journey with the first film, Lone Wolf And Cub: Sword Of Vengeance (1972). What a way to introduce your anti-hero, ready to kill a baby at the behest of the shogun. As the trusted executioner, Ogama Itto (Tomisaburo Wakayama), performs his duties impassively with skill. Yet his world is turned upside down by the Yagyu ‘shadow’ clan who frame him for treason and murder his wife in order to take his lofty position. This is explained through flashback as Ogama travels the road with his son, Daigoro, accepting deadly missions for payment. Brutal and bloody, there is poetry in motion with the choreography of the sword fights and the creative ways Ogama dispatches his enemies. Beautiful scenery contrasts with heinous violence, moving along in a clip with its expedient pace, clocking in under 90 minutes. A surprise attack in flowing water, a duel at sunset, a respite in hot springs, and a massacre in a village square. All the while, at the centre of everything is a surly, unshaven, pissed-off looking dude, with Wakayama’s magnificent presence, and an endearing child looking up to him. Directed by Kenji Misumi and written by Kazuo Koike, who created the manga along with other famous titles like Lady Snowblood and Crying Freeman. Recommended.
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