- 異聞猿飛佐助 (Samurai Spy)
6/25/23 (Sun), home, 4:30-6:15p
Shinoda Masahiro’s 1965 Ibun Sarutobi Sasuke (literally The Extraordinary Tale of Sarutobi Sasuke) revolves around the fictional ninja character who had already been a staple of manga, film and television for decades. Supposedly inspired by a real person (or persons), Sasuke is the most famous member of an invented group of ten ninja who sided with the Toyotomi clan in its unsuccessful battle against the Shogun. He is often portrayed with magical powers and is sometimes said to have been raised by apes – Sarutobi means “leaping monkey” or “flying monkey”. The English title is misleading in that respect since the subject is really ninja, but it falls in line with the predilection for the word “samurai” those days in other drastically renamed Japanese period films (Samurai Rebellion, Samurai Vendetta, Vendetta for a Samurai). That’s Hollywood, I guess.
sekenbanashi 