I am an avid lover of Japanese Exploitation cinema, especially from the seventies, and Kenji Misumi's "Goyôkiba" aka. "Hanzo The Razor: Sword Of Justice" of 1972 is a unique and utterly brilliant film, and an absolute must-see for any fan of exploitation made in Nippon, or cult-cinema lover in general. Sleazy, violent and full of ingeniously black humor, this cult-masterpiece ranks among my personal all-time favorites, and among the truly essential highlights of Exploitation cinema from the Land of the Rising Sun. The brilliant Shintarô Katsu (most famous for the role of Zatoichi, the blind swordsman whom he played in twenty-seven films) is Hanzo 'The Razor' Itami, the incorruptible constable of the lowest rank. Hanzo despises corruption and regularly mocks his superior officers for their weaknesses. The film is, alike most good exploitation films, the absolute opposite of political correctness. The incorruptible Hanzo's interrogation techniques include raping female suspects - who immediately give themselves up to him voluntarily once they have tasted his incomparable sexual powers. Hanzo is blessed with a giant penis, that he strengthens in bizarre rituals. He regularly submits himself to torture in order to become tougher and to improve his own interrogation techniques. He despises the swells and sees his profession in the service for the common people...The film features a lot of sleaze, as well as some pretty gory scenes of bloody violence. All this comes along with a super-cool jazzy/funky score and a great sense of macabre humor. Hanzo has sometimes been compared to the super-cool heroes of contemporary blaxploitation flicks - but he is better than that. Hanzo 'The Razor' Itami is the epitome of coolness, and easily one of the coolest (anti-)hero characters in motion picture history. Period. And nobody could have played this unique character even nearly as brilliantly as the great Shintarô Katsu, one of the most unforgettable stars of Japanese cinema. Yukiji Asaoka and Mari Atsumi are the yummy female cast that come to enjoy Hanzo's 'interrogation techniques'. I don't want to give too much away, but I can assure that this personal favorite of mine is a film that must be seen by any lover of cult cinema and exploitation or cineaste in general. "Hanzo" is brilliant Cult cinema at its finest. Brilliant, Unique and absolutely Essential! 10/10

Extraordinary Samuri/sex and blaxploitation (soundtrack) mix that is really something else. A unique experience which has borrowed from the West and slotted those elements into the more usual Japanese swords and honour and blood feature. Lots of blood spurts actually, lots of sex too, which leads us to Mr Hanzo's unique interrogation technique (ladies only). We have seen him apparently toughening up his tool early on in rather dramatic fashion - large stick to bash it and a sack of rice to sink it in and out of, but little do we consider what is afoot. Once he has his suspect, he subjects her sex and then stops. She pleads for him to continue and he begins to bargain for information! As if this is not enough the scene with the lovely lady suspended naked in a net which is lowered and raised whilst he lays beneath it seems far to incredible and then he begins to spin it! There is a similar sequence in the 1975 US sexploitation, 'Girl in a Basket' which until now I had thought quite original. Hey ho, must now catch up with the sequels.

Wow - I have seen many Japanese sword films, many weird sexual exploitation movies but this one - where it combines so many genres (plus a film score that Issac Hayes would be proud of)this film is an oddity but also lots of fun. Hanzo is a tough cop who refuses to follow orders from his superiors. He is tough, he tortures HIMSELF to become even tougher. The actor is a bit pudgy with a double chin but his eyes - he is the real deal. Intense, a real bad ass. Another way he toughens himself up is to slam his own male member with a cane and then have sex with a huge burlap bag of rice (makes me think twice of ordering rice in a Japanese restaurant)- then when he needs to "interrogate" female suspects and/or witnesses - he uses his toughened flesh "sword" to get the women to comply. Strange, weird. The violence goes from clumsy to very real. My film group really liked it.

In the first of a trilogy by famed Director of the "Lone Wolf and Cub" series, Kenji Misumi, Hanzo 'The Razor' Itami (Zatôichi himself, Shintarô Katsu) is an honorable Samurai. He will go after anyone corrupt, no matter how high up in society they are and isn't above rapeing women with his gigantic penis to get them to tell him what he needs to know (don't worry they all end up loving it and begging him not to stop). The training techniques to keep his penis in shape ALONE are worth the price of admission!! And with Hollywood currently being remake crazy, I glad to know that there are some films they wouldn't DARE touch. This film is greatness with it's extremely unPC humor. Plus it has an amazing kitsch '70's soundtrack. thats NEVER bad. The DVD available through HVE entertainment has at the 26 minutes and 13 seconds mark, about 25 seconds of missing audio and at 84 minutes and 15 seconds an uneven jump cut from a few missing frames. But they do mention that before the start of the movie. I'm just glad to have the Hanzo films on DVD at all. I wholeheartedly recommend this film, and the following two.My Grade: B DVD Extras: Merely Trailers for all 3 Hanzo the Razor filmsEye Candy: Both Yukiji Asaoka and Mari Atsumi show their heavy hangers, Mari bares her behind as well