Zatoichi

The blind swordsman Zatoichi arrives in a town and finds the local yakuza extorting the people. His path crosses that of two geisha siblings looking for revenge for their murdered parents, and the two reckonings converge on the same gang. Takeshi Kitano directed, wrote, co-edited and played the lead. The strangest decision is at the end: the townspeople perform a tap dance number, executed by the Japanese troupe The Stripes. Immediately after, Zatoichi trips over a rock and says: even with my eyes wide open, I can't see anything. Kitano worked here with Keiichi Suzuki rather than his usual composer, saying he needed percussion-driven music that suited the action. On 2 September 2003 it won the Silver Lion for Best Director at the Venice Film Festival, and it took the People's Choice Award in Toronto. It grossed 23.8 million dollars in Japan. Rotten Tomatoes sits at 87 percent, with critics calling it colourful, rich with action and wonderfully choreographed. Who it is for: viewers who like samurai films and Kitano playing inside a genre. Who it is not for: anyone attached to the classic Zatoichi series. Kitano pulls the character into his own manner and the tone shifts on purpose.