The Ambush

1h 55m 1970

Brief Synopsis

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In the Edo period, a nameless ronin accepts an assignment to go to a mountain pass and wait. Near the pass he stops at an inn where a collection of characters gather, including a gang set on stealing shogunate gold that's soon to come over the pass. When the Ronin's assignment becomes clear, to help the gang, he's ordered to kill the inn's residents, including a woman he's rescued from an abusive husband. He's reluctant to murder innocent people; then he learns that the gold shipment is a trap and he's part of a double cross. How he sorts through these divided loyalties tests of his samurai honor, and perhaps of his love for a woman.

Cast & Crew

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Hiroshi Inagaki

Director

Toshiro Mifune

Yojimbo

Shintaro Katsu

Gentetsu

Kinnosuke Nakamura

Heima Ibuki

Ruriko Asaoka

Okuni

Yujiro Ishihara

Yataro

Film Details

Also Known As
Incident at blood pass, Machi-buse
Genre
Action
Drama
Release Date
Jan 1970
Premiere Information
Los Angeles opening: 18 Dec 1970
Production Company
Mifune Productions
Distribution Company
Toho Co.
Country
Japan

Technical Specs

Duration
1h 55m
Sound
Mono
Color
Color (Eastmancolor)
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
2.35 : 1

Synopsis

Yojimbo, a masterless samurai, is hired for a mysterious task at the Sanshu Pass. On his way there, he rescues Okuni, a beautiful but ill-treated woman. Because of the danger of his mission, he leaves her at an inn on the Mikuni Pass in Shinshu, now a path for fugitives from the law. Gentetsu, a doctor living in a barn behind the inn, is secretly the head of a Shogunate band planning to attack a clan of samurai carrying gold through the pass. Yojimbo sides with the samurai and in a fierce fight kills every man in the Shogunate band.

Director

Hiroshi Inagaki

Director

Cast

Toshiro Mifune

Yojimbo

Shintaro Katsu

Gentetsu

Kinnosuke Nakamura

Heima Ibuki

Ruriko Asaoka

Okuni

Yujiro Ishihara

Yataro

Mika Kitagawa

Ichiro Arishima

Yoshio Tsuchiya

Ryunosuke Yamazaki

Jotaro Togami

Chusha Ichikawa

Heima Ibuki

Crew

Kyu Fujiki

Screenwriter

Toshiro Mifune

Executive Producer

Ichiro Miyakawa

Screenwriter

Yoshio Nishikawa

Executive Producer

Hideo Oguni

Screenwriter

Masaru Sato

Music

Hajime Takaiwa

Screenwriter

Kazuo Yamada

Director of Photography

Film Details

Also Known As
Incident at blood pass, Machi-buse
Genre
Action
Drama
Release Date
Jan 1970
Premiere Information
Los Angeles opening: 18 Dec 1970
Production Company
Mifune Productions
Distribution Company
Toho Co.
Country
Japan

Technical Specs

Duration
1h 55m
Sound
Mono
Color
Color (Eastmancolor)
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
2.35 : 1

Quotes

Trivia

Notes

Released in Japan in April 1970 as Machi-buse. Subtitle: Incident at Blood Pass.

Miscellaneous Notes

Released in United States Winter December 18, 1970

Released in United States Winter December 18, 1970

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