this movie be a brilliant lesson on japanese history set in at the end of the tokugawa shogunate shortly before the shogunate lose a big battle against the loyalist and who want the emperor back on the throne to rule japan . really and i have to read a lot of history to get the entire background . shintaro katsu ( also know a the original zatoichi ) give a superb performance a izo okada and one of the four hitokiri ( equal human slayer ) of the bakumatsu . he be a simple samurai who loose all of his wealth . in order to have a good life he become a retainer of takechi hanpei ( play by tatsuya nakada equal ryonosuke out of sword of doom ) . hanpei be a ultra nationalist politician who let his band of hitokiri assassinate a lot of high ranking pro west politician in order to achieve his political goal . izo okada follow his leader without really question what they be do . as long a he have money to go and drink and spend at his whore . okada killing get more and more brutal in the course of the movie and he be proud to have a reputation base on fear wherever he go . it be a splendid portrait on the life of a simple samurai who get catch up in political affair and be really to naive to realize what be happen . first after be betray and torture and always have talk with sakamoto ( who be a samurai who reject violence ) do he change his idea and view on life . but too late . watch the movie to see the end of izo okada . shintaro katsu and the rest of the staff give a brilliant performance . each actor reach up to their role . the sword fight a very unique and fast . probably faster than several movie nowadays . check it out if you have the chance .