Samurai Rebellion
Encyclopedia
Samurai Rebellion is a 1967 Japanese film directed
by Masaki Kobayashi. Its original Japanese title is Jōi-uchi: Hairyō tsuma shimatsu (上意討ち 拝領妻始末), which translates approximately as "Rebellion: Result of the Wife Bestowed" or "Rebellion: Receive the Wife".
of Japan
, Isaburo Sasahara is a vassal
of the daimyo
of the Aisu clan. Sasahara is the most skilled swordsman in the land, whose only rival in ability is his good friend Tatewaki Asano (Tatsuya Nakadai
). Isaburo is in a loveless marriage with a shrew of a woman. One day one of the daimyo's advisors orders Isaburo's elder son Yogoro (Takeshi "Go" Kato
) to marry the daimyo's ex-concubine, Ichi (Yoko Tsukasa), even though she is the mother to one of the daimyo's sons. With much trepidation, the family agrees. In time, Ichi and Yogoro find love and happiness in the marriage and a daughter Tomi is born.
In the meantime, the daimyo's primary heir dies, and he orders his ex-concubine to rejoin his household to care for their son and heir. The family refuses, but Ichi is tricked into the castle by Isaburo's younger son, and her husband and father-in-law are ordered to commit seppuku
for their insolence and insubordination. Isaburo counters that he will comply only if the heads of the daimyo and his two primary advisors are brought to him first.
Isaburo sends his younger son and wife away and dismisses his household servants. With his elder son he prepares for battle, removing the tatami from his house to prevent slipping in the blood that will be spilled and removing the house's walls to allow for more space for combat.
The daimyo's steward, accompanied by a platoon of 20 samurai
, brings Ichi to the Sasahara house and tries to force her at spear point to renounce her marriage to Yogoro and join the daimyo's household. The daimyo also "graciously" offers to commute Isaburo and Yogoro's sentences to permanent confinement in a shrine outside his castle. Not only does Ichi refuse to join his household, she throws herself onto a spear instead of abandoning her husband. Her husband goes to her side and is killed with her in his arms. His father, enraged, kills the steward's entire party, killing the steward last as he attempts to flee.
Burying the dead couple, Isaburo now decides to take his case with Tomi to the Shogun
in Edo
regardless of the consequences to his clan. Tatewaki, who is guarding the gate, cannot permit Isaburo to pass, and a climactic duel follows with his good friend. Isaburo is the victor, but assassin
s hidden nearby cut Isaburo down with musket fire. In his dying breath, he laments that no one will ever know the love story of Yogoro and Ichi, which had inspired him, an otherwise obedient vassal, to rise against his clan and lord. He beseeches Tomi to be a good and kind woman like her mother, and to seek out a fine and kind husband like her father. As Isaburo dies, we see Tomi's wet-nurse comforting the baby: she has been secretly following him. Presumably, the legend begins.
, is performed almost exclusively on traditional Japanese instruments, including shakuhachi
, biwa
, and taiko
.
in 1967. At the 1968 Kinema Junpo Award it won Best Director (Masaki Kobayashi), Best Film (Masaki Kobayashi), Best Screenplay (Shinobu Hashimoto
). At the 1968 Mainichi Film Concours it won Best Film (Masaki Kobayashi).
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
by Masaki Kobayashi. Its original Japanese title is Jōi-uchi: Hairyō tsuma shimatsu (上意討ち 拝領妻始末), which translates approximately as "Rebellion: Result of the Wife Bestowed" or "Rebellion: Receive the Wife".
Plot
In the Edo periodEdo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Isaburo Sasahara is a vassal
Vassal
A vassal or feudatory is a person who has entered into a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. The obligations often included military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain privileges, usually including the grant of land held...
of the daimyo
Daimyo
is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...
of the Aisu clan. Sasahara is the most skilled swordsman in the land, whose only rival in ability is his good friend Tatewaki Asano (Tatsuya Nakadai
Tatsuya Nakadai
is a Japanese leading film actor.He became a star after he was discovered working as a Tokyo shop clerk by filmmaker Masaki Kobayashi during the early 1950s...
). Isaburo is in a loveless marriage with a shrew of a woman. One day one of the daimyo's advisors orders Isaburo's elder son Yogoro (Takeshi "Go" Kato
Takeshi Kato
was a Japanese gymnast and Olympic champion.-Olympics:Kato competed at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City where he received a gold medal in team combined exercises, and a bronze medal in floor exercise....
) to marry the daimyo's ex-concubine, Ichi (Yoko Tsukasa), even though she is the mother to one of the daimyo's sons. With much trepidation, the family agrees. In time, Ichi and Yogoro find love and happiness in the marriage and a daughter Tomi is born.
In the meantime, the daimyo's primary heir dies, and he orders his ex-concubine to rejoin his household to care for their son and heir. The family refuses, but Ichi is tricked into the castle by Isaburo's younger son, and her husband and father-in-law are ordered to commit seppuku
Seppuku
is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. Seppuku was originally reserved only for samurai. Part of the samurai bushido honor code, seppuku was either used voluntarily by samurai to die with honor rather than fall into the hands of their enemies , or as a form of capital punishment...
for their insolence and insubordination. Isaburo counters that he will comply only if the heads of the daimyo and his two primary advisors are brought to him first.
Isaburo sends his younger son and wife away and dismisses his household servants. With his elder son he prepares for battle, removing the tatami from his house to prevent slipping in the blood that will be spilled and removing the house's walls to allow for more space for combat.
The daimyo's steward, accompanied by a platoon of 20 samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
, brings Ichi to the Sasahara house and tries to force her at spear point to renounce her marriage to Yogoro and join the daimyo's household. The daimyo also "graciously" offers to commute Isaburo and Yogoro's sentences to permanent confinement in a shrine outside his castle. Not only does Ichi refuse to join his household, she throws herself onto a spear instead of abandoning her husband. Her husband goes to her side and is killed with her in his arms. His father, enraged, kills the steward's entire party, killing the steward last as he attempts to flee.
Burying the dead couple, Isaburo now decides to take his case with Tomi to the Shogun
Shogun
A was one of the hereditary military dictators of Japan from 1192 to 1867. In this period, the shoguns, or their shikken regents , were the de facto rulers of Japan though they were nominally appointed by the emperor...
in Edo
Edo
, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...
regardless of the consequences to his clan. Tatewaki, who is guarding the gate, cannot permit Isaburo to pass, and a climactic duel follows with his good friend. Isaburo is the victor, but assassin
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
s hidden nearby cut Isaburo down with musket fire. In his dying breath, he laments that no one will ever know the love story of Yogoro and Ichi, which had inspired him, an otherwise obedient vassal, to rise against his clan and lord. He beseeches Tomi to be a good and kind woman like her mother, and to seek out a fine and kind husband like her father. As Isaburo dies, we see Tomi's wet-nurse comforting the baby: she has been secretly following him. Presumably, the legend begins.
Cast
- Toshirō MifuneToshiro MifuneToshirō Mifune was a Japanese actor who appeared in almost 170 feature films. He is best known for his 16-film collaboration with filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, from 1948 to 1965, in works such as Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood, and Yojimbo...
as Isaburo Sasahara - Yōko Tsukasa as Ichi Sasahara
- Go KatoGo KatoGo Kato was born February 4, 1938, in Omaezaki, Shizuoka, Japan. He is a Japanese entertainer, and actor.-TV Dramas:*Sosa Kenji Ukon Makoto no Satsujin Chosho...
as Yogoro Sasahara - Tatsuya NakadaiTatsuya Nakadaiis a Japanese leading film actor.He became a star after he was discovered working as a Tokyo shop clerk by filmmaker Masaki Kobayashi during the early 1950s...
as Tatewaki Asano - Shigeru Kôyama as Geki Takahashi
- Masao Mishima as Sanzaemon Yanase
- Isao YamagataIsao YamagataIsao Yamagata was a Japanese film actor. He appeared in 64 films between 1951 and 1984.-Selected filmography:, lit...
as Shobei Tsuchiya - Tatsuyoshi Ehara as Bunzo Sasahara
- Tatsuo Matsumura as Masakata Matsudaira
- Takamaru Sasaki as Kenmotsu Sasahara
Music
The music, by Tōru TakemitsuToru Takemitsu
was a Japanese composer and writer on aesthetics and music theory. Largely self-taught, Takemitsu possessed consummate skill in the subtle manipulation of instrumental and orchestral timbre...
, is performed almost exclusively on traditional Japanese instruments, including shakuhachi
Shakuhachi
The is a Japanese end-blown flute. It is traditionally made of bamboo, but versions now exist in ABS and hardwoods. It was used by the monks of the Fuke school of Zen Buddhism in the practice of...
, biwa
Biwa
The is a Japanese short-necked fretted lute, often used in narrative storytelling. The biwa is the chosen instrument of Benten, goddess of music, eloquence, poetry, and education in Japanese Shinto....
, and taiko
Taiko
means "drum" in Japanese . Outside Japan, the word is often used to refer to any of the various Japanese drums and to the relatively recent art-form of ensemble taiko drumming...
.
Awards
Rebellion won the Fipresci Prize (Masaki Kobayashi) at the Venice Film FestivalVenice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
in 1967. At the 1968 Kinema Junpo Award it won Best Director (Masaki Kobayashi), Best Film (Masaki Kobayashi), Best Screenplay (Shinobu Hashimoto
Shinobu Hashimoto
Shinobu Hashimoto is a Japanese screenwriter, director, producer, and was a frequent collaborator with Akira Kurosawa.He has won some 16 awards for his writing including a succession of Blue Ribbon Awards particularly in the 1960s....
). At the 1968 Mainichi Film Concours it won Best Film (Masaki Kobayashi).