At first glance, the film is quite similar to the predecessor "Twilight Seihei", but it further criticizes the samurai society at the end of the shogunate, and the portrayal of small characters is more in-depth. The protagonist in the play always retains the spirit and sentiment as a samurai, but eventually abandons his samurai status. Certain entertainment elements have also been added to the film, and the final duel scene that has been carefully designed is even more exciting.
The original work of Shuhei Fujisawa itself created a gorgeous historical stage, and director Yoji Yamada not only inherited this characteristic, but also used vivid methods to make all the characters appear on the stage with distinctive personalities. The male number one, Nagase Jungmin, performed well. The characters in the play are complex, not only have a straightforward appearance but also a complicated inner world, which injects real soul into the characters, and this is highlighted in every detail of his lines and performances. Matsu Takako plays the leading role of the peasant woman Xihui. With her unique fresh temperament and years of deductive experience, she can easily show the glamorous temperament of Xihui's poverty. In addition, the other characters of the film are also very successful, both good and evil, and their respective performances are in place. The same is the end of the Shogunate period, and it also tells the lives of civilians in the end of the Shogunate, but the film is obviously better than "Twilight Seibei". The love between men and women created by the film is even more moving. Personally, at least, "Twilight Seihei" does not have such a tear-jerking moment like this film.
This "The Hidden Blade" takes the "Uisaka Domain" in the changing tide of the late Tokugawa era as the stage. It tells the story of the subordinate samurai Suzura, who has a special skill, is involved in the torrent of fate, and his love for the commoner daughter beyond his identity. The film not only shows the most common side of the samurai, but when it shows the relationship between men and women, the understatement is like extinguishing an oil lamp and burning with passion. It is not until the end that Zongzang shows love to the maid silk, which makes the audience feel happy. The whole story tells like a clear spring, especially the detached emotion between Katagiri Suzura who is a samurai and silk who is a commoner. Compared with those romance films that are dry in three minutes, the emotions of the two show amazing restraint. It is difficult for the director and the actors to fall in love with the accumulation of a trickle of emotion. The director not only compliments this relationship to the point where it is in the woods, but also makes the film inadvertently reveal a touch of homesickness.
