Hanzo the Razor (かみそり 半蔵, Kamisori Hanzō) is a fictional character featured in the trilogy of Japanese chanbara films of the same name. The films star Shintaro Katsu as the title character.[1] He also produced the trilogy through his own Katsu Productions.[2]
After the decline of Daiei at the end of the 1960s, Shintaro Katsu established his own independent production company in 1967 called Katsu Productions.[3][4] In 1972, Katsu Productions released the chanbara film trilogy with the Hanzo the Razor: Sword of Justice based on a gekiga by Koike Kazuo.[3]
The film series, about an incorruptible law enforcer during the Edo period, has a strong sense of justice which dictates his every move.[3] The film incorporates elements of exploitation film, and is highly sexual: Hanzo has an outlandishly large penis which is a recurring theme, and he uses it to interrogate women, usually by rape, to reveal a cases' hidden secrets and truths.[5]
Films
| Official English title | Japanese title | Japanese release date | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hanzo the Razor: Sword of Justice | 御用牙 (Goyōkiba) | 30 December 1972 | [4] |
| Hanzo the Razor: The Snare | 御用牙 かみそり半蔵地獄責め (Goyōkiba: Kamisori Hanzō jigoku zeme) | 11 August 1973 | [6] |
| Hanzo the Razor: Who's Got the Gold? | 御用牙 鬼の半蔵やわ肌小判 (Goyōkiba: Oni no Hanzō yawahada koban) | 9 February 1974 | [7] |
Recurring cast and characters
List indicator(s)
- This table only includes characters which have appeared in more than one film.
- A dark grey cell indicates the character was not in the film, or that the character's presence in the film has not yet been announced.
| Character | Film | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Hanzo the Razor – Sword of Justice | Hanzo the Razor – The Snare | Hanzo the Razor – Who's Got the Gold? | |
| Hanzo Itami The Razor | Shintaro Katsu[4][6][7] | ||
Crew
| Occupation | Film | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Hanzo the Razor – Sword of Justice (1972) | Hanzo the Razor – The Snare (1973) | Hanzo the Razor – Who's Got the Gold? (1974) | |
| Director | Kenji Misumi | Yasuzo Masumura | Yoshio Inoue |
| Producer(s) | Shintaro Katsu, Kozen Nishioka | ||
| Screenplay | Kazuo Koike | Yasuzo Masumura | |
| Composer(s) | Kunihiko Murai | Isao Tomita | Hideaki Sakurai |
| Director of photography | Jishi Makiura | Kazuro Miyagawa | Jishi Makiura |
| Editor(s) | — | Toshio Taniguchi | — |
| Ref(s) | [4] | [6] | [7] |
References
Footnotes
Sources
- Galbraith IV, Stuart (2008). The Toho Studios Story: A History and Complete Filmography. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-1461673743.
- Sharp, Jasper (2011). Historical Dictionary of Japanese Cinema. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0810875418.
