Bloodtype Online

    This excellent film is set in feudal Japan during the time of the samurai.  It tells the story of a clan that administers a small fief on behalf of the Emperor.  The clan has turned a blind eye to the corruption and crime that takes place in one of the small villages that they are responsible for.  In exchange for being allowed to operate without interference the crime lords who run the town give them a cut of the profits, which helps the impoverished fief’s financial situation.  The Emperor has already sent three honorable samurai to the fief to serve as the magistrate (think sheriff), but all three have been forced to resign by the local officials.  It seems that the officials have no intention of allowing anyone to interrupt the flow of money from their criminal allies.  So the Emperor turns to a samurai named Koheita Mochizuki to clean up the fief and put an end to the illegal activities.  Koheita is also known as Dora-Heita (aka. Alley Cat) which, while meant to be an insult, is a nickname that Koheita embraces.  In spite of his reputation and nickname everyone in the fief is confused by Dora-Heita’s actions when he arrives.  He insults the elders of the clan, never shows up to the magistrate’s office, and carouses with the criminals all night long.  The consensus is that he is incompetent and that the Emperor has given up trying to clean up the fief, but as the movie unfolds we the audience see the method to his actions.  In the end Dora-Heita finds an honorable solution that eluded those magistrates who came before him.   

    I think that Dora-Heita may be one of my favorite movies ever and is definitely my second favorite samurai movie!  While the story isn’t really any different from most of the samurai movies it does have a few interesting things in it that other films from the genre don’t.  The first and most notable is the movie’s humor.  The title character of Dora-Heita is an honorable samurai with a modern sensibility.  When it is required he can be very traditional and austere as his post as magistrate and social standing as a samurai.  But he quickly tires of the proper etiquette and literally removes the mantel of office as quickly as his duties allow him to.  This also sets up the incredibly witty dialogue between Dora-Heita and the officials from the ruling clan.  The lead characters in samurai films are normally mysterious characters with a tortured past that are on some path of redemption.  Many times, as in the Lone Wolf and Cub series, they are really seeking out a good honorable death to put them out of their misery.  But this movie is different because between the story and dialogue the character of Dora-Heita is more human and well defined than any other samurai character I’ve seen on the big screen.  Additionally the actor, Koji Yakusho, who portrays the character, does a wonderful job in the role.  He brings a depth to the character that makes it all the more realistic.   

    As much as I love this movie I can understand that some fans of the genre may be disappointed with Dora-Heita.  When you sit down to watch a samurai movie you expect lots of swordplay and stylized action sequences.  Towards the end there is one action sequence between Dora-Heita and a building full of thugs.  I expected that this would be where everything would be resolved, but again the movie surprised me.  After all of their thugs are dead Dora-Heita gets to the 3 crime bosses and tells them to meet him the next morning!  This leads to an ending that is far more satisfying and appropriate for this movie. 

    As a movie Dora-Heita wasn’t at all what I expected.  The movie is more about character and dialogue than it is about action sequences.  To turn a phrase the movie is more wordplay than swordplay.  I highly recommend that everyone check out this movie.