Member Tosh Posted February 2, 2008 Member Share Posted February 2, 2008 I watched the first Satan's sword the otherday and found it interesting compared to Sword of Doom, I'm a huge fan of Raizo Ichikawa but feel it's really unfair to compare him to the likes of Nakadai or Mifune, but I really feel Satan's sword lacks the dramatic depth of Sword of Doom which I think has to fall on the director, you don't get the emotional impact that Nakadai draws out of the character, I feel Sword of Doom is just overall a better movie in every way from acting/direction/fight scenes(especially the blow out final).Though I'm really interested in watching the other two films of Satan's Sword to see what I was missing, but feel it's a shame they couldn't make the other films to Sword of Doom. What does anyone else think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member vengeanceofhumanlanterns Posted February 2, 2008 Member Share Posted February 2, 2008 Tosh, if they made the sequels to Sword Of Doom w/Tatsuya Nakadai, as they had for Raizo and the director of Satan's Sword trilogy, there'd be no comparison in terms of the pure gravity of Sword Of Doom. Now, I appreciate Raizo just as much as I do Tatsuya, but I feel Tatsuya's natural presence fit the role more appropriately than Raizo's. This very well could be due to the director's lack of attention to pacing Satan's Sword action/storyline, and getting more of a morbid performance out of Raizo, which I have no doubt Raizo would easily deliver if prodded. I must add that the director for Satan's Sword was much more stylish in shootin his version of the story, I guess in colour it may just seem that way, but the first Satan's Sword pacing (if I'm remembering the right sequel) is very slow to deliver any fighting/duels. Also, the second and third Satan's Sword films were much more enjoyable to me, since I didn't have to contend with trying not to think of Sword Of Doom, in comparison to viewing the first Satan's Sword. I think the second and third were actually better paced than the first film anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Alex Posted February 2, 2008 Member Share Posted February 2, 2008 agree with vengeance 100%, the first satan's sword really suffers in the comparison, the next two are much more enjoyable. Sword of doom is superior without question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member KevinC Posted February 2, 2008 Member Share Posted February 2, 2008 Each version compliments the others. SOD puts more emphasis on the action scenes and the gloomy atmosphere. The Satan’s Sword version has more colorful cinematography. While Uchida’s Souls in the Moonlight, IMO, tells the overall story the best. I think most westerners will understand the themes of the story the best with Souls. Some of the special effects, although 1950’s era, help with the themes. Having all three versions is really the best way of getting the most of the original story. I own the original 1935 Inagaki version too, but that is not as important as the above three. I think for most people the other versions are nice just to see what probably would have been filmed after the end of SOD. The thing to keep in mind is SOD was filmed much later than Satan's. The real trick for a director of these series is to film it in a way for you to end up with some sympathy for the main character. Nakadai gives the most crystallized performance of them all. Whether Okamoto could have pulled that off with SOD we will never know. That’s the real tragedy of not seeing the rest filmed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member daisho2004 Posted February 2, 2008 Member Share Posted February 2, 2008 OK as for myself I'm more of a Raizo fan than Tatsuya Nakadai but as everyone said Sword of Doom was only 1 part of a 3 part movie don't get me wrong its a Great Movie but Satan's Sword is altogether a much better movie. It really gets into the depth of his character. And shows how Evil he really is. I would love to see a Legit Remastered version of this series. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Tosh Posted February 2, 2008 Author Member Share Posted February 2, 2008 Great replies guys! Yeah I hate to compare the two films but it's really unavoidable, I can see where I wont have that problem with the next two films and can't wait to see them. Vengence I think your right, I think the director could have gotten a deeper portrayal of the character out of Raizo as he's fully capable of delivering it as I've seen in his other films, but I can see where his style is coming from(more older Samurai film) and where it's going into the next two films. I tried googling some info on Souls in the Moonlight but couldn't find anything, after watching Satan's Sword trilogy I'd like to check it out next, does anyone have any links? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member KevinC Posted February 3, 2008 Member Share Posted February 3, 2008 Tosh, you may want to hold out for the complete remastered version of Souls. Samuraidvd has the first two if you search their site, and the third one should be due soon. However, if you just want to see a non-remaster of it, the NGN version has been around for a few years under a slightly different title Swords in the Moonlight. Same series of movies, but they changed the one english word everyone had known it as. That series I know has been on ebay and is on the trade lists. The closer to free you can get the NGN version the better. I need to sit down and rewatch the Raizo version on the remastered dvds that the club put out. From skipping through the dvds those looked really nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Mr. Vampire Posted February 8, 2008 Member Share Posted February 8, 2008 lol for me there is no comparison, I consider Raizo the better of the two in any instance. I found Sword of Doom just... boring. [ducks] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member vengeanceofhumanlanterns Posted February 9, 2008 Member Share Posted February 9, 2008 I couldn't find Souls (or Swords) In The Moonlight on either of Ebay or Samuraidvd's sites. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member KevinC Posted February 9, 2008 Member Share Posted February 9, 2008 http://www.samuraidvd.com/kontoku.asp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member vengeanceofhumanlanterns Posted February 10, 2008 Member Share Posted February 10, 2008 Thank you Kevin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member usagigoya Posted March 20, 2008 Member Share Posted March 20, 2008 I own the original 1935 Inagaki version too, but that is not as important as the above three. Is this one available on DVD with or without english subtitles? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member KevinC Posted March 20, 2008 Member Share Posted March 20, 2008 Is this one available on DVD with or without english subtitles? No. Eventually I am going to do a write up on my blog about it. I might post some clips of that version and some pictures along with the other movies. We are talking over 10 years ago now, but I use to have a website dedicated to the whole story. This was before the other versions were subtitled. Still, it is a very misunderstood story. It is not a revenge story as one my think from just watching SOD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member GwaiLoMoFo Posted March 24, 2008 Member Share Posted March 24, 2008 Sword Of Doom was a superior film to Satan's Sword 1. But it does fall short because it is incomplete. Tatsuya Nakadai is on a whole different level as an actor than Raizo (action & dramatic). Raizo's good, but Nakadai is just phenomenal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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