Japan Synopsis
座頭市
Older, wiser but still a wandering loner, the blind, peace-loving masseur Ichi seeks a peaceful life in a rural village. When he's caught in the middle of a power struggle between two rival Yakuza clans, his reputation as a deadly defender of the innocent is put to the ultimate test in a series of sword-slashing showdowns.
The 1988–1990 Japan Window
110 Japan films released in this three-year window, ranked here by audience rating. Zatoichi: Darkness Is His Ally sits at position #73.
Titles With Overlapping Themes
Films and series that share thematic tags with Zatoichi: Darkness Is His Ally. Number on each card indicates how many keywords overlap.
Other Titles From Katsu Production
Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance
★ 7.5 · 1972
Shogun Assassin
★ 6.9 · 1980
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart at the River Styx
★ 7.3 · 1972
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart to Hades
★ 7.2 · 1972
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart in Peril
★ 7.4 · 1972
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart in the Land of Demons
★ 7.3 · 1973
The 1980s Japan Landscape
Catalog density by release year in the 1980s. Highlighted year (yellow) is when Zatoichi: Darkness Is His Ally premiered. 280 total titles in this decade from Japan.
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #3,304 of 4,579 Japan films indexed here (28th percentile by TMDB audience score).
Rating is -0.5 points below the Japan average of 6.9/10.
Among Japan Action productions specifically: #1,291 of 1,714 (top 75%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | Japan |
|---|---|
| Original Language | Japanese |
| Production Companies | Katsu Production, Shochiku |
| Runtime | 1h 56m |
| Release Date | February 4, 1989 |
| IMDb | tt0202152 |