Goemon (2009) Biography, Plot, Box office, Reception.

Goemon (2009)

Goemon (五右衛門, Goemon) is a 2009 Japanese historical fantasy film written and directed by Kazuaki Kiriya. It is loosely based on the story of Ishikawa Goemon, a legendary outlaw hero who stole valuables from the rich and gave them to the poor. The film is a fictional account of Goemon’s exploits and his role during the final phase of Sengoku period, particularly the period leading up to the decisive Battle of Sekigahara. Like Kiriya’s previous film, Casshern, Goemon was filmed on a digital backlot, and made use of over 2,500 visual effects. Goemon was released in North America on DVD and Blu-ray Disc by Funimation on April 19, 2011, and features an English dubbed audio track. the movie has grossed US $14,455,019 in Box office worldwide out of US$9 million million budget.

Plot.

As a child, Ishikawa Goemon’s entire family was assassinated for political reasons. His mother sent Goemon away for safety minutes before he witnessed her death. Running away with his caretaker, they were attacked by bandits but he was saved by the great Oda Nobunaga. Goemon followed Nobunaga and Hattori Hanzō was assigned to train him in the ways of the shinobi (ninja) along with his martial brother, Kirigakure Saizō. After many years of training, Goemon was assigned to protect Oda’s niece, Princess Chacha. They developed feelings for each other, but status differences kept them apart and eventually she departed. Before leaving, Chacha gave Goemon her favourite fan as a memento.

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Oda rewarded Goemon’s faithful protection of Chacha by giving him his double-bladed sword. Meanwhile, Oda’s generals, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Akechi Mitsuhide, conspired to kill Nobunaga. The two made a secret written covenant, placing their signatures onto a black scroll. Mitsuhide, not trusting Hideyoshi, had his men hide the contract. After assassinating Nobunaga, Hideyoshi betrayed and killed Mitsuhide, took credit for slaying Nobunaga’s killer and became the next ruler of Japan. With Nobunaga dead, the two young ninjas parted ways for different pursuits: Saizo hopes to be elevated to Samurai status and chose to remain in service to Nobunaga house, but Goemon chose to leave and be free.

As a parting gift, Goemon broke his double-bladed sword in two and gave one-half to Saizo. Years later, Goemon became a master thief and something of a Robin Hood. Sarutobi Sasuke, an inexperienced bounty hunter, tried to arrest Goemon, but failed and became his private servant instead. During a festival, Goemon infiltrated and robbed a treasure repository that contained a mysterious box with foreign writing on it. Ishida Mitsunari, a high-ranking samurai under Lord Hideyoshi, tried to retrieve this box to destroy it, but Goemon escaped with it, leaving behind only his calling card: a red sticker with the Japanese character “Go” on it. Goemon, unaware of the value of the box, threw it away and distributed the gold to the poor.

Reception.

The film was nominated at the Asian Film Awards in 2010 for the categories of Best Costume Designer (Vaughan Alexander and Tina Kalivas) and Best Visual Effects (Takuya Fujita and Kôji Nozaki). According to Twitch Film, “Goemon is going to be a divisive film … It fits in well with their live action catalog of films like Shinobi: Heart Under Blade and yet it feels like a live action anime.” According to a DVD Verdict review by Paul Pritchard, Goemon “entertains with its combination of imaginative visuals and exciting action sequences, but leaves you wanting for more”. The Blu-ray Disc version was “highly recommended” by Blu-ray.com.