MovieChat Forums > Shogun Assassin (1980) Discussion > This movie is crap.

This movie is crap.

posted 18 years ago by drgonzo212
31 replies | jump to latest

This movie is crap. Basically a mesh of 6 really cool samurai movies mixed into one film that is utter trash and totally lacks the feel of the originals. Ignore the rave reviews of the people who just don't know any better. Robert Houston, "The director" is actually a washed up actor from the 70's. Ugh! Another example of Hollywood taking something great and regurgitating onto movie screens for retarded mass audiences to lap up. I noticed most people who remember watching this movie in the 80's are over rating this movie big time! I think perhaps they are not putting aside childhood nostalgia and voting based on that. I watched this in the 80's and I wasn't really impressed. However, when I saw the originals from the 1970's -I was blown away! That's also when I noticed that the English dubbed voices are horrid! Itto Ogami's voice/dialog in Shogun assassin is simply ridiculous. Look at the voice over cast -Sandra Bernhard??????? Jeez! What nonsense! The real voice of Tomisaburo Wakayama is powerful and his laugh is haunting and scary at the same time. I also love how the super hacks David Weisman and Robert Houston credit themselves as "writers". That makes me sick. Skip right over this mess and watch the Kozure Ôkami series instead!

[–] DiscoStu222 18 years ago

I think 'crap' is being a touch harsh.

I agree that there does seem to be an element of childhood nostalgia surrounding this flick, its a film myself and all my buddies talked about endlessly when we were kids. A pram with swords on the wheels, open wounds squirting blood 30 feet high and pantomine villains is always likely to impress young minds.

Whilst the editing is poor and gives the film a very disjointed, amateurish feel it does has an intruiging story, some decent acting and some great fight scenes.

This is hardly the top 250 flick that some crazed fan is campaining for but at the same time it isn't so bad as to be considered 'crap'.

A flawed but enjoyable 6 out of 10 movie perhaps ???

[–] dubstylecs 18 years ago

I gave it a ten. I think it is a masterpiece but not because of those 2 american hack directors. I agree with the rave reviews that it is possibly a top 250 movie. I have not seen the originals and I don't feel that I need to.

[–] gamera-7 17 years ago

Giving 10/10 to Robert Houston ?!?

That's a bit unfair to real directors like poor Akira Kurosawa who filmed much better things and who would never called himself a director for gluing bits of the original Kozure Ookami together. Very unfair to a lot of japanese directors in fact. You should be ashamed of yourself.

I defend drgonzo212's ideas and I am also touched by his/her honesty. Instead of betraying the spirit of the original series he comes here to denounce this insulting pot-pourit at the risk of being outnumbered. He/She is a true samurai who walks the road to hell. Now my little ninjas,go rent the real Kozure Ookami (in Japanese of course), unplug that phone and prepare lots of pop-corn. I can see a lovely action-gore weekend ahead.

...10 to Robert Huston... Robert Huston is nothing but a Godfrey Ho minus the cheese factor.

[–] telboyD 17 years ago

Every word of the dubbed movie is pure gold... and i have seen/adore all seven original movies in the series. I grew up with the vhs copy being played so many times that by now i could not even begin to estimate how many times i have seen SA - well over a thousand times being a conservative estimate. Alongside 'Clockwork Orange', 'Taxi Driver', 'Dawn of the Dead' and 'Evil Dead II' i give it the title 'coolest movie EVER' (from the days of VHS).

drgonzo212 - i really don't get you.

BTW - the reason i rented Shogun on VHS for was mainly down to the BBC's greatest film critic, Barry Norman whom, if i recall correctly, described it as something of a masterpiece on Film '82 all those years ago. They showed the scene on the boat with the Masters of Death and from that moment i was hooked. I also want to add that i'm not some numbnut - i have over 4500 films in my collection.

drgonzo212 - i really don't get you. 'Shogun Assassin' is a stone cold classic that (for many of us brought up being told that martial arts films began and ended with Bruce Lee) opened the door to the expansion of the genre and, ultimately, the discovery of the character of Lone Wolf and the long road that lay ahead.

[–] ApocalypseJack 17 years ago

THis movie was horrible, everything from the special effects to the story line. It was extremely unbelievable. And what's with all the captioning on the bottom, while don't they speak english and the chinese people can read their wacky language. IT was SOO predictable too. what a waste of an hour and a half of my life, and nirvana sucks

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[–] mailo-2 17 years ago

This has to be one of the best movies of all time. I have seen the originals and I think that they are great too. There is absolutely nothing crappy about this movie!

[–] ollie_445 17 years ago

I think that this is essentially a really good film...yeah, its a bit predictable but so many movies are, you can still just go along with it and enjoy all the violence and blood-splattering gore on offer. The music on the other-hand is great, so dark and atmospheric but one thing that gets on my nerves (about the movie itself as well as so many reviewers of it) is no one seems to mention the dubbing at all. Its terrible. I hear people say things like "the best dubbed movie I`ve ever seen"...so what? You dub a movie, you ruin it. You`d think that no one read subtitles back in 1980.

I enjoyed Shogun assassin and still do...9/10 for the film but two points deducted for the awful dubbing...7/10

[–] jcobb2 17 years ago

It was made from the first and second movies not all six.

You should quit trying pump yourself up by boasting about watching the originals. They are good movies but so is this one. All the movies have their faults too. The originals get just if not more ridiculous because of the massive number of opponents he goes against. Also how many extras can he add to the baby cart. It is more of a hand pushed tank after a while.

[–] Sc00by333 17 years ago

Shogun Assassin was a great "movie", just the feel they put into it made it seem really really odd in this great way. The music track, and the dubbing make it seem like something is hiding beneath this movie and it instantly made me go out and buy the entire series.

But the brutality and this basicly being most peoples introduction to the series or Japanese movies in general cannot be denied. That is why it gets great reviews.

[–] Birdzweredinoz6 17 years ago

You need to relax, and stop being so ignorant. This movie still introduced the series to America, and sparked interest in the actual Japanese films. I know it opened a door to my intrest in Japanese culture and film making. I agree. I own the entire series of Kozure Okami and it is fantastic. I have visited Japan and am learing the lauguage. This film, was part of sparking that when I was a kid. You are a moron. I feel sorry for you....and people who have to be around you.

By the way. You make a film three times....when you write it....shoot it....and edit it.....

Robert Houston WON an oscar for a Documentary...

The construction of this film took a lot of skill in editing....SKILL

Something you don't have.....except I guess if there is skill at being an idiot....

[–] bighand99-1 17 years ago

Can someone explain how Shogun Assassin was made? I haven't seen it and am confused about the argument. It is a combination of a bunch of other movies? Is that literal?

I watched the intro on Youtube and now I really want to see it. It looks like a great martial arts movie.

[–] jcobb2 17 years ago

It was made from the first two movies in the Lone Wolf and Cub series. Then is was dubbed in English and a synthesizer sound track was added.

Not the most accurate source but this might explain it better:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shogun_Assassin

Good luck and for what it's worth the DVD can be found in bargin bins now days.

[–] bighand99-1 17 years ago

thanks. I'll probably rent it from Netflix. Is it as good as the originals??

[–] jcobb2 17 years ago

Since it is taken from the originals I'd say yes. Others will argue but it's not bad. The originals that it was taken from fill in some of the empty spots this one has, well I didn't know they were there until I saw the originals.

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