Kagemusha: The Shadow Warrior

Akira Kurosawa takes us on a journey through a gloriously reconstructed feudal Japan for an introspection on the reality of power and identity in his 1980 return to the samurai genre, Kagemusha.

As an aging ruler named Shingen passes on, his dying wish is for his death to be concealed for three more years until the army can overtake a strategic city. The estate’s principal retainers bring in a ragged petty thief to pose as a double for the late ruler, with only those closest to him aware of the hoax. The kagemusha (double), after being rescued from a death sentence, is reluctant to lose his identity for a warlord. After a change of heart, and learning that he really has no other options, the kagemusha is taught the finest details of the late ruler’s mannerisms, speech, and relationships. He must fool everyone, even a long-time doctor and Shingen’s mistresses and grandson, or the enemies will learn the truth and take down the estate. Through the kagemusha’s experiences of pretending to be powerful, being treated as a king and master of war, he learns what it is like to be the ruler but yet it is all false, and all the decisions are being made by the generals. It must have been a rather bizarre feeling for the kagemusha, but he knew he had a role to fulfill and everything was depending on him to be convincing enough.

**SPOILERS AHEAD**

During all of this, the Shingen’s son, Katsuyori (Kenichi Hagiwara), is feeling bitter and mocked at not being chosen as the next heir to the estate, so he does all he can to compensate for this. Starting battles with neighboring rival cities and undermining the cover-up of Shingen’s death by putting the kagemusha on the spot in front of the soldiers are just a few of the tactics the son resorts to in order to usurp the role of heir. In the end, the kagemusha blows his cover and is exiled from the estate leaving Katsuyori as the new ruler. Unfortunately, Katsuyori proves correct his father’s decision to overlook him for heir when he leads the entire army into a suicide massacre just out of strict defiance to Shingen’s war strategies. This sequence is based on a historical battle known as the Battle of Nagashino. A “Greek Tragedy,” by it’s very definition, is powerful and doesn’t end well for the protagonist. Kagemusha hits that mark, and hard. You may not cry, but if you don’t feel a little bad for all those soldiers and horses then you simply weren’t paying attention and need to watch it again.

As always, Kurosawa’s use of color is unparalleled and serves to evoke the most interesting of emotions with precision timing. Notable actor Tatsuya Nakadai plays two roles in the film; that of the dying warlord and his double. His performance is so convincing that, were the viewer unaware that he is the same person, someone could easily be convinced the roles were filled with two different men. The supporting cast is more than effective but the best performance is given by Tsutomu Yamazaki, who plays Takeda Nobukado, the samurai commander and the former occasional stand-in for Shingen.

George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola are credited as executive producers but are also responsible for the restoring of more than twenty minutes of footage that has never been seen before by the western audiences. The Criterion Collection Blu-ray includes commentary from Lucas and Coppola, a short documentary on the reconstruction of the piece for the western release, and a lengthy booklet containing an essay on the film and Kurosawa’s own storyboard paintings. A fascinating and beautiful edition to an epic of both intimate introspection and grand scope.

Some critics say that Kagemusha isn’t Kurosawa’s strongest piece. I’d like to submit to the reader that even on a bad day, Kurosawa is heads above the rest. Kagemusha has won six cinematic awards and was nominated for another five more. Sounds like a show-stopper to me. Kagemusha is a must-see/must-own film for any Asian cinema fan. Whether you like samurai films or not, there is plenty for anyone to enjoy in this epic landmark flick.

Screen caps: (click to enlarge)