The third Sword in the Moonlight film ends well.
This entry picks up after the second film with the murderous Ryunosuke Tsukue still working for the greedy lord planning to assassinate his rival. Plot complications include a young woman with a facial birthmark who brings a special sword to the villain, the circus performer who goes to work for the nice lord, and a prison break.
In the end, the film, like the last Satan's Sword movie, comes down to Ryunosuke Tsukue losing his mind during a storm. The payoff isn't as big as it is in the third Satan's Sword movie, yet I preferred this film's staging of the action. Once again there are some plot threads left hanging, but of the three adaptations of Daibosatsu Toge that I have seen (Sword of Doom and the three Satan's Sword movies being the others), I thought this one had the best conclusion.
The Satan's Sword trilogy remains my favorite adaptation overall because of director Kenji Misumi's direction (in the first two films) and Ichikawa Raizo's acting. Nonetheless, in spite of a hesitant start, I was won over by the Sword in the Moonlight movies.
This entry picks up after the second film with the murderous Ryunosuke Tsukue still working for the greedy lord planning to assassinate his rival. Plot complications include a young woman with a facial birthmark who brings a special sword to the villain, the circus performer who goes to work for the nice lord, and a prison break.
In the end, the film, like the last Satan's Sword movie, comes down to Ryunosuke Tsukue losing his mind during a storm. The payoff isn't as big as it is in the third Satan's Sword movie, yet I preferred this film's staging of the action. Once again there are some plot threads left hanging, but of the three adaptations of Daibosatsu Toge that I have seen (Sword of Doom and the three Satan's Sword movies being the others), I thought this one had the best conclusion.
The Satan's Sword trilogy remains my favorite adaptation overall because of director Kenji Misumi's direction (in the first two films) and Ichikawa Raizo's acting. Nonetheless, in spite of a hesitant start, I was won over by the Sword in the Moonlight movies.
