Japan Synopsis
座頭市と用心棒
With a price on his head, Ichi seeks tranquillity in a favorite village. Since his last visit, it has fallen prey to Boss Masagoro, the son of a merchant rumored to have stolen gold from the shogunate. The boss has hired Yojimbo as his hard-drinking enforcer, but Yojimbo is both a spy for the shogunate, trying to find the gold, and in love with the merchant's unwilling mistress, Umeno. Ichi hires on as the merchant's masseur and buys Umeno's freedom with his employer's own money. This embarrasses Yojimbo who withdraws from a pact with Ichi to stir up trouble between father and son and their gangs. As the two sides fight, Ichi finds the gold and sets up a final set of confrontations.
The 1969–1971 Japan Window
64 Japan films released in this three-year window, ranked here by audience rating. Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo sits at position #28.
Titles With Overlapping Themes
Films and series that share thematic tags with Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo. 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 1970s Japan Landscape
Catalog density by release year in the 1970s. Highlighted year (yellow) is when Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo premiered. 197 total titles in this decade from Japan.
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #2,756 of 4,579 Japan films indexed here (40th percentile by TMDB audience score).
Rating is -0.2 points below the Japan average of 6.9/10.
Among Japan Adventure productions specifically: #886 of 1,216 (top 73%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | Japan |
|---|---|
| Original Language | Japanese |
| Production Companies | Katsu Production, Daiei Film |
| Runtime | 1h 55m |
| Release Date | January 15, 1970 |
| IMDb | tt0066603 |