Zatōichi (2003 Film)
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Zatōichi (2003 Film)
(released in the US as ''The Blind Swordsman: Zatoichi'') is a 2003 Japanese Jidaigeki action film, directed, written, co-edited by and starring Takeshi Kitano ("Beat" Takeshi) in his 11th directorial venture. Kitano plays the role of the blind swordsman. The film is a revival of the classic ''Zatoichi'' series of samurai film and television dramas. It premiered on 2 September 2003 at the Venice International Film Festival, where it won the prestigious Silver Lion for Best Director award, and went on to numerous other awards both at home and abroad. It also stars Tadanobu Asano, Michiyo Okusu, Yui Natsukawa, Guadalcanal Taka, Daigoro Tachibana, Yuko Daike, Ittoku Kishibe, Saburo Ishikura and Akira Emoto. Plot The film's plot follows a traditional theme, with Zatoichi (a blind swordsman) coming to the defense of townspeople caught up in a local yakuza gang war and being forced to pay excessive amounts of protection money. Meanwhile, Zatoichi befriends a local farmer and her gam ...
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Takeshi Kitano
is a Japanese comedian, television presenter, actor, filmmaker, and author. While he is known primarily as a comedian and TV host in his native Japan, he is better known abroad for his work as a filmmaker and actor as well as TV host. With the exception of his works as a film director, he is commonly known by the stage name . Kitano rose to prominence in the 1970s as one half of the comedy duo ''Two Beat'', before going solo and becoming one of the three biggest comedians in the country. After several small acting roles, he made his directorial debut with 1989's '' Violent Cop'' and garnered international acclaim for '' Sonatine'' (1993). He was not widely accepted as an accomplished director in Japan until ''Hana-bi'' won the Golden Lion in 1997. In October 2017, Kitano completed his ''Outrage'' crime trilogy with the release of ''Outrage Coda''. He is also known internationally for hosting the game show ''Takeshi's Castle'' (1986–1990) and starring in the film '' Battle Ro ...
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Reboot (fiction)
In serial fiction, the term "reboot" signifies a new start to an established fictional universe, work, or series. A reboot discards continuity to re-create its characters, plotlines and backstory from the beginning. It has been described as a way to "rebrand" or "restart an entertainment universe that has already been established". Another definition of a reboot is a remake which is part of an established film series or other media franchise. The term has been criticized for being a vague and "confusing" "buzzword", and a neologism for remake, a concept which has been losing popularity since the 2010s. William Proctor proposes that there is a distinction between reboots, remakes and Retroactive continuity, retcons. Origin The term is thought to originate from the computing term ''reboot'', meaning to restart a computer system. There is a change in meaning: the computing term refers to restarting the same program unaltered, while the term discussed here refers to revising a n ...
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Geisha
{{Culture of Japan, Traditions, Geisha {{nihongo, Geisha, 芸者 ({{IPAc-en, ˈ, ɡ, eɪ, ʃ, ə; {{IPA-ja, ɡeːɕa, lang), also known as {{nihongo, , 芸子, geiko (in Kyoto and Kanazawa) or {{nihongo, , 芸妓, geigi, are a class of female Japanese performing artists and entertainers trained in traditional Japanese performing arts styles, such as dance, music and singing, as well as being proficient conversationalists and hosts. Their distinct appearance is characterised by long, trailing kimono, traditional hairstyles and {{transliteration, ja, oshiroi make-up. Geisha entertain at parties known as {{transliteration, ja, ozashiki, often for the entertainment of wealthy clientele, as well as performing on stage and at festivals. Modern geisha are not prostitutes. This misconception originated due to the conflation of Japanese courtesans ({{transliteration, ja, oiran), {{transliteration, ja, oiran reenactors, the extant {{transliteration, ja, tayū, and prostitutes, who ...
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Protection Money
A protection racket is a type of racket and a scheme of organized crime perpetrated by a potentially hazardous organized crime group that generally guarantees protection outside the sanction of the law to another entity or individual from violence, robbery, ransacking, arson, vandalism, and other such threats, in exchange for payments. The perpetrators of the racket may protect vulnerable targets from other dangerous individuals and groups or may simply offer to refrain from themselves carrying out attacks on the targets, and usually both of these forms of protection are implied in the racket. Due to the frequent implication that the racketeers may contribute to harming the target upon failure to pay, the protection racket is generally considered a form of extortion. In some instances, the main potential threat to the target may be caused by the same group that offers to solve it in return for payment, but that fact may sometimes be concealed in order to ensure continual patron ...
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Gang
A gang is a group or society of associates, friends or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over territory in a community and engages, either individually or collectively, in illegal, and possibly violent, behavior. Definition The word "gang" derives from the past participle of Old English ''gan'', meaning "to go". It is cognate with Old Norse ''gangr'', meaning "journey." It typically means a group of people, and may have neutral, positive or negative connotations depending on usage. History In discussing the banditry in American history, Barrington Moore, Jr. suggests that gangsterism as a "form of self-help which victimizes others" may appear in societies which lack strong "forces of law and order"; he characterizes European feudalism as "mainly gangsterism that had become society itself and acquired respectability through the notions of chivalry". The 17th century saw London "terrorized by a ...
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Yakuza
, also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the term ''yakuza'' is gangster, meaning an individual involved in a Mafia-like criminal organization. The ''yakuza'' are known for their strict codes of conduct, their organized fiefdom nature and several unconventional ritual practices such as ''yubitsume'' or amputation of the left little finger. Members are often portrayed as males, wearing "sharp suits" with heavily tattooed bodies and slicked hair. This group is still regarded as being among "the most sophisticated and wealthiest criminal organizations". At their height, the ''yakuza'' maintained a large presence in the Japanese media and operated internationally. At their peak in the early 1960s, police estimated that the ''yakuza'' had a membership of more than 200,000."Police of Japan 2 ...
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Akira Emoto
is a Japanese actor. Career In 1999, he won the Japanese Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in ''Dr. Akagi''. He also won the award for best supporting actor at the 7th Hochi Film Award for ''Dotonbori River'' and '' Hearts and Flowers for Tora-san''. Personal life His wife is the actress Kazue Tsunogae, and he is the father of the actors Tasuku Emoto and Tokio Emoto. Selected filmography Film Television Honours *Medal with Purple Ribbon are medals awarded by the Government of Japan. They are awarded to individuals who have done meritorious deeds and also to those who have achieved excellence in their field of work. The Medals of Honor were established on December 7, 1881, and we ... (2011) * Order of the Rising Sun, 4th Class, Gold Rays with Rosette (2019) References External links * * 1948 births People from Chūō, Tokyo Living people Japanese male film actors Japanese male television actors Male actors from Tokyo Recipients of the Med ...
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Saburo Ishikura
Saburo Ishikura (石倉 三郎 ''Ishikura Saburō'', born December 16, 1946 in Kagawa, Japan) is a Japanese actor that has acted in several movies directed by Beat Takeshi. He has also appeared in a few of Takeshi's recent films which include ''Zatoichi'' (2003) as Boss Ogi and ''Asakusa Kid'' (2002). He has also made guest appearances in Gaki No Tsukai Batsu Games. Specifically 2008's Newspaper Agency as a man in a oversize bag and 2009's Hotel in a golf bag. Filmography Film * ''Soreike! Gateball Sakura-gumi'' (2023) Television *'' Aoi'' (2000), Aoyama Tadatoshi was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the early Edo period. Biography Tadatoshi was the son of Aoyama Tadanari, a Tokugawa vassal of the Sengoku period who was born in Mikawa Province. Tadatoshi, like his father, was a Tokugawa vassal, and was famous for ... References External links * 1946 births Actors from Kagawa Prefecture Living people Japanese male actors People from Kagawa Prefecture People from T ...
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Ittoku Kishibe
, born , is a Japanese actor and musician. Career He originally entered show business as the bassist for the Japanese rock bands, The Tigers and Pyg, but later switched to acting. The veteran of over 115 films, he won the Best Actor Japanese Academy Award for ''The Sting of Death'' in 1991, and was nominated for the Best Supporting Actor award in 1994. He appeared in Toshiyuki Morioka's ''Jokyo Monogatari'' in 2013. Selected filmography Films Television * '' Ashura no Gotoku Part2'' (1980) * ''Kenpō wa Madaka'' (1996), Toshio Irie * '' AIBOU: Tokyo Detective Duo'' (2000-2011) * '' Boushi'' (2008) * ''Fumō Chitai'' (2009) * '' Doctor X'' (2012 - 2021) * ''Shiroi Kyotō is a 1965 novel by Toyoko Yamasaki. It has been adapted into a film in 1966 and then five times as a television series in 1967, 1978, 1990, 2003, and 2019. The 1966 film was entered into the 5th Moscow International Film Festival where it won a S ...'' (2019) References External links * 1947 bir ...
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Daigoro Tachibana
Daigoro Tachibana (橘 大五郎 ''Tachibana Daigorō''), birth name Daisuke Isayama (諌山 大輔 ''Isayama Daisuke'', born 27 January 1987) is one of Heisei era's celebrated onnagata and taishū engeki actor. He is branded as the ''Taishu Engeki-kai Purinsu'' (大衆演劇界プリンス, ''Taishu Engeki's Prince'') with the alias " Taishū engeki-kai no Nyūhīrō Tensai Onnagata" (大衆演劇界のニューヒーロー 天才女形, '' Taishū engeki's New Hero Genius Onnagata'') and best remembered as ''Osei'' in Takeshi Kitano’s ''Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman'' (2003). He is one of the taishū engeki stars to have become a professional enka recording artist. Early life Tachibana was born into a family of stage actors, particularly in taishū engeki which translates to "theater for the masses" or “working-class Kabuki” in Oita Prefecture. His troupe,'' Tachibana Kikutarou Gekidan'', was founded by his grandparents and it was inherited by his uncle. At the age o ...
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Michiyo Okusu
Michiyo (written: 道世, 道代, 路代, 真世, 充代, 通世, 迪与, 美千代, 実千代, 美智代, 美知依, 美知代, 三千代 or みちよ in hiragana) is a unisex Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese manga artist *, Japanese actress *, Japanese baseball player *, Japanese singer and actress *, Japanese synchronized swimmer * Michiyo Fukaya (1953–1987), American poet and activist *, Japanese singer-songwriter *, Japanese high jumper *, Japanese volleyball player *, Japanese actress *Michiyo Kikuta, Japanese manga artist and creator of Mamotte! Lollipop is a Japanese shōjo manga series written and illustrated by . It was serialized in the magazine ''Nakayoshi'' and published by Kodansha in Japan between February 2003 and July 2005. The story revolves around female protagonist Nina Yamada, ... *, Japanese actress and voice actress *, Japanese singer and voice actress *, Japanese actress *, Japanese politician *, Japanese footb ...
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Silver Lion
The Silver Lion ( it, Leone d'argento, also known as Silver Lion for Best Direction) is an annual award presented for best directing achievements in a feature film at official competition section of the Venice Film Festival since 1998. The prize has been awarded irregularly and has gone through several changes of purpose. Between 1953 and 1994, the award was given infrequently to a number of films as second prize for those nominated for the Golden Lion. At various times, the Silver Lion has also been awarded for debut films, short films, and direction. Silver Lion for Best Direction (1990–present) Multiple winners The following received two Best Director awards: Defunct awards Silver Lion Prize (1953–1994) From 1953 to 1957, the Silver Lion was awarded to a number of films nominated for the Golden Lion as a second prize. Since 1988, the Silver Lion has been given to one or more films nominated for the Golden Lion. * 1953 ** '' Little Fugitive'' by Raymond Ab ...
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