BUSHIDO [GOBANGIRI]

XXXX (4 stars) - Japan Times

A ronin, Yanagida, is grieving the recent loss of his wife. Exiled from his hometown in Hikone, he lives with his daughter, Okinu, in a modest tenement in Edo. Despite his circumstances, Yanagida upholds his pride as a samurai. His only solace lies in playing Go, a 2,500-year-old strategy game he approaches with humility—an expression of his true character. Life seems peaceful until a wrongful accusation by an old clan acquaintance shatters his quiet existence, forcing him to take up his sword once more in pursuit of justice. This epic yet elegiac jidaigeki is both a call to the sword and the hankie. Inspired by a classic rakugo yarn.