THE DRIFTING AVENGER (Koya no Toseinin)

1968 - Color - 107 min. - REMASTERED ANAMORPHIC WIDESCREEN (16:9)

Starring: TAKAKURA Ken, SHIMURA Takashi

Directed by: SATO Junya


Turnabout is fair play as the first Japanese version of an American Western brings a different feeling to this film.  Considered high camp, this early look at the work of filmmaker Sato Junya from 42 years prior to making his mark with The Sakurada Gate Incident. Location filming was done entirely in Australia.

This is a Japanese “Western” set in the U.S. during the cowboy era.  After marauding bandits kill his parents a Japanese immigrant takes up the six-shooter to hunt down the murderers. The first Japanese movie to be shot in Australia, it uses the wide open spaces to good effect.  This is an early work from Sato Junya, the  filmmaker who directed SAKURADA GATE INCIDENT.  The movies were filmed 42 years apart, and they could not be more different.