Shinbei Legend of the Eight Samurai

Shinbei

'Legend of the Eight Samurai'

Set in feudal Japan this action /adventure epic is an entertaining mix of martial arts and ghost story, with witches, samurai warriors and a princess thrown in for good measure. When the Satomi clan are murdered by the immortal and evil Lady Tamazusa and her son Motofuji from the Hikita clan, the only one left is the Princess Shizu. They must find her and kill her in order to fulfill their wicked destiny and gain ultimate power. The only ones standing between the princess and certain death are a group of eight ninja who are brought together by fate to protect her. Each warrior is entrusted with a round crystal, which 100 years earlier Princess Fushi of the Satomi clan, vowed would protect one of her descendants and end Tamazusa's evil curse. Dosetsu (Sonny Chiba), and the other heroes must escort Princess Shizu to her Uncle's castle in Mushashi for safety, but on the way she meets Shinbei (Hiroyuki Sanada), a young failed ninja, which complicates matters a great deal. From there on, the heroes, armed with little more than sheer determination, swords and a magic bow, must battle phantom warriors, a witch and her son, and giant snakes in order to save Shizu. .
	In a buoyant mood, the excitable Shinbei arrives home, causing havoc and frightening the people as his horse gallops around the small village, and he shouts for them to bring him the young girls.
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Shinbei's mood soon quietens when he is told that his father had died after he ran away. He gallops out of the village and into the woods.
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	With his father dead, Shinbei is at a loss as to what he should do next. He had left his village, intent on making his father proud of him by becoming a Ninja. He had failed in his quest, and returned home too late.
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He spots someone running through the woods and making their way to a nearby house. He decides to investigate.
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	He gives the young boy some food and asks where he is from. He doesn't get much information, and soon sends the boy away.
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As the boy walks away, Shinbei realizes that it's a girl, disguised as a boy. He gives chase.
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	Having caught her, he rubs the dirt off her face and confirms that she's a girl. She struggles against him, but he's too strong.
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Suddenly Shinbei is pushed away by Dosetsu and his friends. He is surprised to see them, and gets ready to fight.
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	He doesn't get very far, and is momentarily knocked out by a hit from Dosetsu, who will stop at nothing to protect Shizu from anyone, including amorous young men!
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Shinbei hides in a tree as soldiers pass by underneath. He listens to them discussing Princess Shizu and the reward offered for her capture.
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	Determined to make his fortune, and achieve standing in the community, Shinbei prepares a trap to capture Shizu, so that he can claim the reward offered for her.
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With the trap set, he is convinced that it's just a matter of time until he is made a great lord at the castle, which will make life a great deal easier for him.
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	He then sees a woman standing before him, she seems very strange and asks Shinbei lots of questions as if she knows who he is. He decides that she is some sort of goblin and that it is time to leave, so he runs for it.
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Safely away from the strange woman, Shinbei hides in the forest, but still checks to see if she is following him.
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	Then he comes across an old woman lying on the floor in the forest. He goes to see what is the matter with her. When he turns the body over he sees that it is the decomposed body of an old woman. He screams and runs again!
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Later that day as he lies in wait for the princess and her companions to pass, Shizu falls into his trap. Whisking her away, he is delighted that he has caught her, and can now turn her in at the castle in order to claim the reward.
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	Having fought, and pushed Shinbei over a cliff, Shizu is dismayed to find that she has also fallen, and is now hanging on a rope and dependent on Shinbei helping her back up, or falling to her death. Shinbei takes great pleasure in teasing her and rubbing her head with his foot! She refuses to apologize to him for pushing him over the cliff.
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Having helped Shizu back up the cliff, in order to get his reward money, Shinbei leads her tied up towards the castle. They hear some sounds coming from the nearby village.
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	Shocked, they discover that Motofuji's soldiers have left the villagers dead. It seems that everyone has been massacred.

They find a survivor, an old lady, who is close to death. She tells them that Motofuji's soldiers had massacred the people in the village because they had given the Satomi princess shelter there on the previous night.
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	Shizu is mortified when she realizes that the people have died because of helping her to fight off a demon sent by Tamazusa. She blames herself for their deaths and slumps down onto the floor in tears as the weight of her burden washes over her.
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Shinbei hears the soldiers coming back, and he quickly pulls Shizu along to take cover in the woods and out of harm's way.
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	They see two small children running along the road; the soldiers taunting them with their spears. Shizu tries to break free to offer her life in exchange for the children's. Shinbei keeps her quiet and tied to the tree, suspecting that her surrender would not save the children.
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As the children are chased down by the soldiers' horses, he decides to try and help them, but his task is impossible, and he is knocked down by the charging horses.
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	Shizu runs to see if Shinbei is alright. He is fine, but they soon discover that the children have been killed under the horses hooves as the soldiers deliberately murdered them.
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Shizu is distraught, and finds it difficult to handle the fact that the infants died because of her. Shinbei is touched by the depth of her feelings for these children.
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	The severity of the situation touches Shinbei deeply, and for the first time he realizes what evil is going on in the castle. Shizu asks him to untie her, so that she can clean the children and bury them.
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Together they carry the children to a nearby stream and bury them beside it. Shinbei puts a rock on their graves in order to calm their spirits. The event seems to have quelled his exuberance and rowdiness.
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	A bunch of people turn up. Shizu tries to calm them, and offers to go to the castle to turn herself in, but Shinbei realises that they don't care about that - they are poor, and simply after the reward money that they would get for her.
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The angry mob are in no mood to listen, and Shinbei makes ready to defend Shizu. The soldiers arrive again, he decides that the best course of action on this occasion is to run. They find an entrance to a cave and throw themselves into that. The villagers are afraid to follow.
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	Shizu has grazed her knee in the fall, so Shinbei takes care of her wound. She asks him why he helped her to escape, he says that he doesn't know.
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Cave dwellers appear and threaten to kill them unless they leave. Remembering the legend of Princess Fushi, Shizu plays the flute, which does indeed calm the cave dwellers. Two of the cave dwellers take them further into the cave.
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	There they find Dosetsu, Daikaku, Keno and Shino. They discover that the two the cave dwellers also have a crystal each, and so are part of the group of warriors destined to protect Princess Shizu. Shinbei listens, and is very sceptical of the story.
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Having rudely told them that he doesn't believe in the power of the crystals, Shinbei is threatened by Dosetsu and told to leave. He considers fighting, but Shizu asks that he go away and leave her alone. It is obvious that she doesn't want him to go, but she fears for his safety if he stays. She gives him Princess Fushi's flute as a keepsake.
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	Shinbei watches as the troupe leave. He determines that he will follow Shizu, and see what happens. He is no longer interested in the reward money, but in the girl herself.
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Shino and Daikaku retrace their steps to intercept Shinbei, who they feel is a threat to Shizu's safety. They challenge him and are about to shoot him when he throws himself over a cliff.
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	Battered and bruised by his fall, Shinbei lies hurt on the ground. He finds Shizu's flute and throws it away in disgust, as he thinks that she has sent the ninjas back to kill him.
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Convinced that Shizu is responsible for his plight, he feels betrayed and very hurt. He goes to find the flute, and as he thinks of what has happened to him, the soldiers find him and take him to the castle to Lady Tamazusa and Motofuji.
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	He realises that Tamazusa is the woman that he saw in the forest. She tells him that he is her reincarnated son, and that the mark of flames on his wrist proves that, since she and Motofuji also have the same mark after they were burned alive by the Satomi clan 100 years earlier.
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Shinbei is stunned to hear this, and doesn't want to believe it. He looks around the castle and sees the same mark all around the place.
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	Tamazusa tells him to listen to her heartbeat and that of the spirit, which beat in unison with his heartbeat. She tells him the history of their family, trying everything to coax him to her side.
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Finally she takes him to the eternal pool, promising him immortality and great power. She tells him to remember his previous life.
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	Shinbei resists, and begins to play Shizu's flute. The sound of the flute seems to cause physical pain to Tamazusa, and her powers dissipate. Motojuji however, seems less affected by it, and stabs Shinbei.
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Tomasuza is furious that Motofuji has wounded Shinbei, but he is unrepentent, and orders the wizard to change Shinbei's blood and skin, so that he is a more worthy brother to him.
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	Possessed of an evil spirit, thanks to the wicked wizard, Shinbei attacks the ninja warriors and tries to kill Shizu. She implores them not to kill Shinbei and for him to stop attacking them. He accuses her of ordering his death earlier that day, but she denies it and apologizes to him for what happened to him.
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A sudden flash of blue light throws Shinbei into the air and then unconscious to the ground. Shizu is relieved to find that he is not dead. The warriors leave Shizu alone with him, knowing that he is no longer a threat.
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	Shizu cradles Shinbei in her arms and when he begins to regain consciousness, she shakes his arm to try and revive him. She notices a blue glow in his hand.
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They watch in amazement as Shinbei's hand opens to reveal the eighth crystal. Shinbei is the eighth ninja warrior destined to protect Shizu. She also notices that the evil mark of the Hikita clan flame has gone from his wrist.
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	They are both immensely relieved to discover that Shinbei is no longer connected to the Hikita clan. They embrace and kiss.
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They make love, oblivious to any dangers around them.
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	As they lie dozing in each other's arms, they hear a strange hissing sound and see a luminous mist coming ominously towards them.
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A demonic serpent appears through the mist, heading towards them. As he tries to help Shizu, Shinbei is thrown roughly against a wall by the snake. It then coils itself around Shizu, lifting her and flying away with her in its deadly grip.
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	Shinbei chases after Shizu, but is helpless to do anything. In a panic, he rushes back to look for the others.
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The eight samurai look on in horror as they see that Motofuji and Lady Tamazusa have the unconscious Shizu in their grasp.
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	The ninjas listen to Dosetsu as he outlines the plans to rescue Princess Shizu. A crystal is placed in each of the statues of Fushi's burial chamber, and then Fushi appears in a blue glow and tells them to give Shizu a magic bow and arrow, which will destroy the Hikita clan.
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Dosetsu tries to use the bow but can't. As Fushi had said, only Shizu can use it, as it is meant for only a descendent of Princess Fushi to use. Dosetsu hands the bow to Shinbei telling him that he must be the one to live in order to give the bow to Shizu when they reach her.
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	The heroes ride at full speed to get to the castle before Shizu can be killed. They know that their time is short and they fear that they may be too late to save her.
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Shinbei and Dosetsu stand ready to take on more opponents. Shizu calls to Shinbei.
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	One by one the ninja heroes are killed, taking several of their enemies with them. As he fights to the death, Dosetsu throws the scroll into the castle, which unleashes Fushi's curse on the soldiers. Shinbei is then left to fight on his own.
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Shinbei heroically fights through the guards and soldiers in his attempt to kill Tamazusa and Motofuji and rescue Shizu.
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	Right... who's next?! (No more story bit here - I just like this photo!!).
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Shinbei defiantly yells at Tamazusa to go to hell.
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	Shinbei fights his way like a whirlwind through the remaining soldiers, cutting his way towards Shizu. (And they failed this guy as a ninja?!!!)
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Shinbei rushes for Lady Tamazusa and buries his knives deep in her chest. The knives seem to have no effect on her, and she remains alive.
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	Stunned, Shinbei realizes that he cannot kill the evil Tamazusa as she is immortal. He fights Motofuji and strikes him with the magic bow, killing him.
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Shinbei remembers that Shizu must be the one to fire the magic bow, so he hands her the weapon and tells her to shoot it at the evil spirit. The arrow finds its target, piercing the Lady Tamazusa to the statue of the wicked spirit. She withers into a skeleton and then the castle begins to fall down around them.
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	As the castle crumbles, Shinbei and Shizu manage to escape down the stream, only just missing the explosion that destroys the castle. They cling to each other in the water, as they watch the carnage around them.
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Shinbei delivers Shizu safely to her uncle's castle. She tells him that she wants to stay with him.
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	Choked with tears, he tells her that she must go and to remember that she is not his alone.
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Shinbei watches sadly as Shizu walks away to join her uncle's family in their castle. He cannot bear to stay around any longer, so he leaves.
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	Up in the hills, Shinbei's heart is heavy as he prepares the graves for the seven dead ninjas - his fellow crystal bearers. He places rocks on each of the graves to calm their souls, then anoints each statue.
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He hears someone calling to him, and turns around in surprise.
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	He is amazed to see Shizu riding at a gallop towards him. He runs towards her, unsure as to why she has come looking for him, as it is her duty to stay with her clan.
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Shizu runs into Shinbei's arms and adamantly tells him that she wants to stay with him and to be with him wherever he goes. Shinbei points out that she can't stay, as it is her destiny to be a princess and to lead the Satomi clan.
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	Shinbei and Shizu are surprised to hear the voices of Dosetsu and the other crystal bearers telling them not to hesitate, but to go and find happiness and love; to go away together and not to look back.
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The spirits of the seven dead ninjas continue to call to Shinbei and Shizu to not hesitate and to leave and run away together, Shinbei finally accepts that they can do just that.
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	Happy and exuberant once again, Shinbei gallops off into the distance with Princess Shizu at his side.
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A happy ending as Shizu escapes her future as a princess, and rides off to share a future with Shinbei.
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