1966 • Japan • Directed by Hideo Gosha

Isao Natsuyagi stars as Kiba, a charismatic ronin who wanders into a small town and ends up ensnared in a local conflict that becomes increasingly treacherous. After dispatching a pair of highway criminals seen robbing a courier wagon, Kiba agrees to assist a beautiful blind woman who runs the local shipping company. Double- and triple-crosses ensue, illustrated with savage but economical violence courtesy of famed director Hideo Gosha (Three Outlaw Samurai, Violent Streets). The result is a lean and mean triumph of samurai cinema, cementing Gosha's status as a master of the genre.