13 Assassins

13 Assassins (originally Jusannin no shikaku) is a 2010 Japanese film directed by Takashi Miike. It is a remake of Eiichi Kudo's film of the same name, made in 1963 by the Toei studio, in which the leader of the group, Shimada Shinzaemon, was played by Chiezo Kataoka. In the newer version, Koji Yakusho took over the role. The story is set in 1844, in the years of decline of the Tokugawa shogunate. Lord Matsudaira Naritsugu commits atrocities that the shogun, his half-brother, covers up for him. The Minister of Justice Doi wants to prevent his promotion to the shogun's council and therefore hires the samurai Shimada Shinzaemon. A group of twelve samurai and one hunter then begins secretly preparing Naritsugu's murder. Miike said he wanted to avoid what most modern chanbara do: putting a love story or modern thinking into the plot. The final battle lasts 45 minutes; film critic Tom Mes wrote in Film Comment that few contemporary Japanese directors besides Miike could pull off such a scene. The film was produced by Sedic International and Recorded Picture Company. At the 2011 awards of the Japanese film academy, it converted four of ten nominations, for cinematography, lighting, art direction and sound. At the Asian Film Awards the same year, Miike was nominated for directing and Yakusho for best actor.

Martial arts in this work

Fight choreography

The fights were prepared by stunt coordinator Keiji Tsujii together with the action teams Japan Action Enterprise, Stunt Team Gocoo and Guys Entertainment. We did not find a separate sword master or action director in the sources. The actor Hiroki Matsukata, who plays Kuranaga Saheita in the film, according to Japanese sources taught the extras how to handle a sword, work their feet and move in combat. More than half of the thirteen actors playing the assassins, according to available reports, had no previous experience with fencing or horse riding. Miike avoided storyboards during shooting and filmed scenes without detailed preparation; he used computer effects only minimally. The film was shot from July to September 2009, over two months in the city of Tsuruoka in Yamagata Prefecture, and the action scenes alone took about three weeks.

People and martial arts

• Takashi MiikeDirector
• Koji YakushoActor — as Shimada Shinzaemon· Koryu Bujutsu (portrays the art on screen)
• Goro InagakiActor — as Matsudaira Naritsugu· Koryu Bujutsu (portrays the art on screen)
• Takayuki YamadaActor — as Shimada Shinrokuro· Koryu Bujutsu (portrays the art on screen)
• Hiroki MatsukataActor — as Kuranaga Saheita· Koryu Bujutsu (portrays the art on screen)
• Keiji TsujiiStunt coordinator

Awards

• Nominated · Asian Film Awards, Best Director (Takashi Miike) (2011)
• Nominated · Asian Film Awards, Best Actor (Koji Yakusho) (2011)
• Won · Japan Academy Prize, Best Cinematography (2011)
• Won · Japan Academy Prize, Best Lighting (2011)
• Won · Japan Academy Prize, Best Art Direction (2011)
• Won · Japan Academy Prize, Best Sound Recording (2011)