I had totally forgotten about Zatoichi until I saw some of the other reviews. But there were no similarities btw the two films, and I don't think there were supposed to be either. So this film stands on its own merits (or lack thereof).Ichi starts off kind of weak, with some hokey dialogue. But the hokey dialogue does play off as somewhat endearing btw Toma, the insecure samurai trainee and Ichi, the cold and bleak musician. The story and the relationship btw Toma and Ichi are developed decently, so we are kept interested in the movie throughout. However, the film's pacing is rather clunky and some of the symbolic imagery and the profound dialogue isn't set up well and comes across rather forced. It's almost as if the director is making up for plot holes by inserting random bits of poetic images and dialogue that aren't set up well and don't make that much sense.The action is more or less decent, but the climactic fight scenes are too short and simplistic. All in all, it's not a great action film, not a great romance, and not a great drama, although it aspires to be all three. It's a film that's OK for killing time with, but I wouldn't set aside any part of your day with it.

I wasn't really hyped for this movie but still looked forward for it. Since it's directed by the same guy that directed "Ping Pong" which is one of my favorite Japanese movie. It really isn't good as "Ping Pong" and lacked elements that made that movie great. But this film is still watchable despite the really manga influenced style of it all, even if it worked for the movie "Ping Pong". Everything just seemed a bit too crisp and clean for this type of movie, even if they wanted to modernize it a bit. If the movie was suppose to be a comedy than it's understandable but it's not. The movie wasn't as engrossing as expected but it was still sort of entertaining watching the blind female swordsman cut down bandits although the movie is a bit too vivid and colorful in a negative way. The script just wasn't as sharp as it should have been and the characters weren't all that interesting. If at least the direction would have been better it could have had potential to be a great movie, but the direction of it all wasn't that great. This movie was a bit of a disappointment and maybe this director should just do another manga adaptation with a good and engrossing story. Another thing that got annoying is how the villains are always way too over the top and it gets a bit irritating to watch, but than again they are obnoxious and annoying to the point I actually liked watching them get sliced and diced. There really isn't anything that stands out from this movie and nothing special.3.2/10

Swordplay movies can come with pretty high standards, and the kind of production that might have been forgiven with 50s and 60s epics have to be rethought as we approach modern treatments. Fact is, ICHI is a fairly traditional version of the Blind Swordsman, though Haruka Ayase has a one-two punch of strong acting and good lucks. Dressed in rags, glowering, and compelling, Ayase is entirely convincing. Takao Osawa has winning chemistry with co-star, playing the drifter who had accidentally blinder his mother years before.The swordplay sequences are shot in mixed slow and regular motion, digital blood spurting everywhere. Despite the carnage, her blade is always clean, her fingernails perfectly manicured, and always looking breathtaking under the worst of situations. ICHI is not, however, about realism; it's an adventure-romance, and anyone looking for complete accuracy will be disappointed. The real problem comes with the villains - Riki Takeuchi, usually good with pulp roles, overdoes his role as baddie - a fault that's shared by other antagonists. The most satisfying swordplay yarns have original writing along with thrilling fights, but ICHI only the second part of the formula. As a result, the story is agreeable albeit rather ordinary.

I haven't seen the original films in the '60s and '70s, but I watched the 2003 Zatouichi starring "Beat" Takeshi, which was a very strong film.This remake starring Ayase Haruka has its share of improvements, but just as many shortcomings.Sori Fumihiko's direction, as with "Ping Pong", was wonderful. Cinematography was very beautifully done, and the slow motion in action sequence for dramatic effect was spontaneous and enjoyable.One thing that really impressed me was the music. I saw the name "Lisa Gerrard" under musical scores in the opening credit. My first impression was, "huh? A Japanese jidaigeki with foreign sounds? Unthinkable!" But it turned out to be incredibly dramatic and accommodated every scene perfectly.Unfortunately, I can't say the same about the casting. Ayase Haruka was really beautiful and cool as the blind assassin, but she was hopeless in a particular singing scene, and some other 'everyday' scenes. I can't help but to notice how blood wasn't spilling all over her face like the 2003 version. An inevitable consequence of an idol film. Nakamura Shidou as the villain was outright horrible. He severely overacted and made the film feel incredibly cheesy. Although I'm a huge fan of Kubozuka Yousuke, I must admit his presence was too modern for an edo-period film like this. He just seemed out of place, talking like a modern teenager. Only Oosawa Takao fit the role and delivered a decent performance.I guess most of the blame should be placed on the script, which not only set the tone of each character (that the actors were not capable of...), it failed to illustrate the most important feature of the character Ichi. When I watched the 2003 version, what impressed me about the character was that he can be so deadly even though he was blind, merely using the sound of opponent charging and feeling of enemy presence. This remake, however, completely failed to show how the character was strong as she was, and also ignored the weaknesses, such as the scene where the crowd was making a lot of noise, but she was still able to easily defeat her opponent.The movie had nice action and few touching scenes, but plagued by miscasting and a weak script that also over-dramatized the story. Not nearly as good as the 2003 version in my opinion, but still fun enough to watch.