Films featuring Japanese swords

[Shere Khan]

In addition to the already mentioned, i suggest these for gunto:

- Isoroku, 2011

-Empire of the sun, 1987, by Steven Spielberg

- The Eternal Zero (永遠の0), 2013

- Otoko-tachi no Yamato (男たちの大和), 2005

- Fire on the plains (野火, Nobi), 1959, by Kon Ichikawa, and the remake, 2014, by Tsukamoto

- Sea Without Exit ( 出口のない海), 2006

 

And i think there are some scenes also in

- The Eight Hundred, 2020

- Hacksaw Ridge, 2016

- Onoda 10.000 Nights in the Jungle, 2021

But i still haven't seen these last 3

 

 

 

 

 

[Kolekt-To]

"Onoda" film is not available yet in the U.S. I've seen the trailer - looks good!

[PNSSHOGUN]

There are some Gunto shown in the Bridge over the River Kwai, another great film. From memory the Japanese colonel erroneously has a general tassel, probably an original one as well. 

[Bruce Pennington]

On 8/5/2021 at 3:23 AM, IJASWORDS said:

Don't forget Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence. A perfect '98 mounted Gunto. 

I finally ordered my own copy and am watching (half-way through, now)!  Sorry I waited so long to get it!!!  LOTS of swords, that look real.  Escort team that brings Celliers to POW camp were wearing Type 19s.  I think I saw a Type 32 in the HQ building.  I'm bothered by Sgt Hara's sword.  It looks like a Rinji seishiki (handle wrapped in white), though it could be an old family sword.  A few of the 98s have black-painted saya, not usual for 98s, though not rare. 

[PNSSHOGUN]

It looked like a family sword to me. The detail in that film is very good, one of the best war movies made.

[Kolekt-To]

53 minutes ago, Bruce Pennington said:

I finally ordered my own copy and am watching (half-way through, now)!  Sorry I waited so long to get it!!!  LOTS of swords, that look real.  Escort team that brings Celliers to POW camp were wearing Type 19s.  I think I saw a Type 32 in the HQ building.  I'm bothered by Sgt Hara's sword.  It looks like a Rinji seishiki (handle wrapped in white), though it could be an old family sword.  A few of the 98s have black-painted saya, not usual for 98s, though not rare. 

I've been watching and ordering a lot of WW2 movies recently, and that movie is on my list to watch. Glad you guys mentioned it!

[Alban L]

On 8/12/2021 at 7:56 AM, Kolekt-To said:

"Onoda" film is not available yet in the U.S. I've seen the trailer - looks good!

 

Just seen in France, very good indeed. Not so long movie even if nearly 3 hours !

But for swords, army gunto only seen at the very begining, seems they have not kept it after the first days/weeks in Lubang.

[PNSSHOGUN]

In the book he mentions wrapping it carefully early on and hiding it in a hollow tree, it was in very good condition when he eventually surrendered. Very much looking forward to seeing the movie, glad it is long.

[robinalexander]

16 hours ago, Bruce Pennington said:

 I'm bothered by Sgt Hara's sword.  It looks like a Rinji seishiki (handle wrapped in white), though it could be an old family sword.  

 

Bruce I haven't seen Merry Xmas Mr Lawrence for quite a few years but from memory, the habaki/saya fit on Sgt Hara's sword wasn't that great.  Maybe no chuso, but  I recall the blade came half way out of the saya in one tense early scene and it stayed half way out for a little longer than was comfortable.... for me anyway. 

 

I couldn't help thinking that it could have been one of those things that unfortunately occurs when shooting of a movie but, for whatever reason, the director decided to leave it in.  Maybe it was not an uncommon occurrence and therefore made it more factual and realistic???

Rob

 

[Bruce Pennington]

7 hours ago, robinalexander said:

the blade came half way out of the saya

Yes, Rob, I remember that part!  Sort of reinforced the idea that these were real gunto, as a couple of mine would do the same if inverted.

[Bruce Pennington]

Can someone trade the poster on the wall?  Still watching “merry Christmas mr lawarence.”

[MHC]

Here is another one, originally titled "The Coast Watcher".

Mark

 

[Kiipu]

16 hours ago, Bruce Pennington said:

Can someone trade the poster on the wall?

 

Do you mean translate?  If so, the translation below is via Wikipedia.

八紘一宇 = hakkō ichiu = eight crown cords, one roof.

Hakkō ichiu

[Bruce Pennington]

How very interesting!

”Hakkō ichiu (八紘一宇, "eight crown cords, one roof" i.e. "all the world under one roof") or Hakkō iu (八紘爲宇, Shinjitai: 八紘為宇) was a Japanese political slogan meaning the divine right of the Empire of Japan to "unify the eight corners of the world". This slogan formed the basis of the Japanese Empire's ideology. It was prominent from the Second Sino-Japanese War to World War II, popularized in a speech by Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe on January 8, 1940”

[SteveM]

Here is a ww2 sword with the slogan Hakkō Ichiu inscribed on the nakago. Close-up of the nakago. 

 

http://kako.nipponto.co.jp/swords3/KT326157.htm

[BANGBANGSAN]

4 hours ago, SteveM said:

Here is a ww2 sword with the slogan Hakkō Ichiu inscribed on the nakago. Close-up of the nakago. 

 

http://kako.nipponto.co.jp/swords3/KT326157.htm

Steve

Very cool!

[PNSSHOGUN]

Wow, great sword. It has a very rare variant of tassel I haven't seen on a field grade rank before:

 

 

[Bruce Pennington]

Thanks @SteveM!

 

And another example of a Wakase Co. set of fittings!

 

http://www.nipponto.co.jp/upload/img95/2903_26.jpg

[Gassan]

movie
Japan's longest day

 

 

Toshiro Mifune and others
Japanese actor All Stars

 

August 15, 1945

Accept the Potsdam Declaration, a secret story on the eve of the end of the war

[Bruce Pennington]

Here’s one being used in Apple TVs “See”. The kabutogane looks quite accurate, if a prop.  Can’t get enough details about the rest. 

[BANGBANGSAN]

Bruce

I watched that show, the handle of Baba Voss's word seems very long

[BANGBANGSAN]

On 8/17/2021 at 8:22 AM, PNSSHOGUN said:

In the book he mentions wrapping it carefully early on and hiding it in a hollow tree, it was in very good condition when he eventually surrendered. Very much looking forward to seeing the movie, glad it is long.

Here is 小野田宽郎‘s Gunto

 

[Bruce Pennington]

More pics from the "See" show.  Wrap actually looks like it has alternating folds.  It has an IJA menugi.  Tsuba is all wrong, as is the fuchi.  As a prop, they did a darn good job.

 

 

[Kolekt-To]

Are there any movies (perhaps an Indian film?) that feature the British Indian Army fighting in Burma (or India - Imphal, Kohima) during WW2, and that feature actual Indian actors in authentic uniforms?

[PNSSHOGUN]

"Objective, Burma!" is a classic made in 1945, right on the heels of the real campaign.

[Kolekt-To]

Thanks John! I'll look for that. I imagine there's also a few gunto in some of the scenes.

[PNSSHOGUN]

It's been a long time since I watched it, can't recall any specific scenes with Gunto.

[Bruce Pennington]

On 8/4/2021 at 7:13 PM, Kolekt-To said:

"Kill Bill"

Geoff,

Had to touch base on this one, as I just sat down and re-watched this brilliant piece of work!!!  What a masterpiece!  Perfect mash-up of the Spaghetti Western and old Japanese Samurai super-hero movies!  Something the modern Western movies have been dancing around for decades, Tarantino stopped pretending and blended the 2 genres with a modern flair.   Really loved it! Ha!

 

Caught a flash of a Type 98 with tassell (movie prop, I'm sure) carried by one of the Crazy 88 soldiers:

[Lareon]

There's a couple shown briefly in "empire of the sun" I don't have a screen capture though I just remember seeing them

[Dave R]

 Just to say, you will very, very rarely (nay never)see a real sword of any type on a film set, for the simple reason that you can not unload them! Commonly you get three types of sword, the "Hero" sword (often a steel blade) for close ups and exposition, the on set sword in fibreglass, and the stunt fight scene sword in rubber. 

 On a Japanese set it's usually a wooden tsunagi with a foil wrap because of licensing AND on set safety. In many scenes, no blade at all and a blade is CGI'd in in post production. In "Azumi" they used no-blade swords for fight and cutting scenes, and when the star got hit with a tsuka  all filming halted, and she was applauded for continuing later in the day!

 Even with this accidents happen, Sandahl Bergman lost a finger to a fibreglass sword in Conan, because the wrong sword went on set, it was supposed to be a safe rubber blade.

 I plead special interest here.