IMDb > Kagemusha (1980)
Kagemusha
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotes
Overview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv schedule
Awards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage board
Plot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotes
Fun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQ
Other Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDesk
Promotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo gallery
External Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clips

Kagemusha (1980) More at IMDbPro »

Videos (see all 2)
Kagemusha (1980) -- Home video trailer for the Criterion Collection release of this film about a thief recruited to impersonate a warlord
Kagemusha (1980) -- Sinematurk - Trailer (Flash)

IMDb Holiday Movie Guide

Overview

User Rating:
7.9/10   10,497 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 8% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Masato Ide (writer)
Akira Kurosawa (writer)
Contact:
View company contact information for Kagemusha on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
6 October 1980 (USA) more
Genre:
Plot:
When a powerful warlord in medieval Japan dies, a poor thief recruited to impersonate him finds difficulty... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 19 wins & 3 nominations more
User Comments:
A grand spectacle of samurais and shoguns. more (68 total)

Cast

  (in credits order) (verified as complete)
Tatsuya Nakadai ... Shingen Takeda / Kagemusha
Tsutomu Yamazaki ... Nobukado Takeda
Kenichi Hagiwara ... Katsuyori Takeda
Jinpachi Nezu ... Sohachiro Tsuchiya
Hideji Otaki ... Masakage Yamagata
Daisuke Ryu ... Nobunaga Oda
Masayuki Yui ... Ieyasu Tokugawa
Kaori Momoi ... Otsuyanokata
Mitsuko Baisho ... Oyunokata
Hideo Murota ... Nobufusa Baba
Takayuki Shiho ... Masatoyo Naito
Kôji Shimizu ... Katsusuke Atobe
Noboru Shimizu ... Masatane Hara
Sen Yamamoto ... Nobushige Oyamada
Shuhei Sugimori ... Masanobu Kosaka
Kota Yui ... Takemaru
Yasuhito Yamanaka ... Ranmaru Mori
Kumeko Otowa ... Takemaru's Nurse
Tetsuo Yamashita ... Nagahide Niwa
Kai Ato ... Zenjiro Amemiya
Takashi Ebata ... Monk
Hiroshi Shimada ... Jingoro Hara
Yutaka Shimaka ... Jingoro Hara
Toshiaki Tanabe ... Kugutsushi
Yoshimitsu Yamaguchi ... Salt Vendor
Eiichi Kanakubo ... Kenshin Uesugi
Akihiko Sugizaki ... Noda Castle Soldier
Yugo Miyazaki
Masatsuga Kuriyama
Norio Matsui ... Tadatsugu Sakai
Jirô Chiba (as Jiro Yabuki)
Yasushi Doshida ... Kazumasa Ishikawa
Takashi Watanabe
Nobaru Sone ... Heihachiro Honda (as Nori Sone)
Eihachi Ito
Senkichi Ômura
Takashi Shimura ... Gyobu Taguchi
Kamatari Fujiwara ... Doctor
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Shû Nakajima
Francis Selleck ... Priest (as Francis Seleck)
Create a character page for: ?

Directed by
Akira Kurosawa 
 
Writing credits
(in alphabetical order)
Masato Ide  writer
Akira Kurosawa  writer

Produced by
Audie Bock .... assistant producer
Francis Ford Coppola .... executive producer: international version
Akira Kurosawa .... executive producer
Akira Kurosawa .... producer
George Lucas .... executive producer: international version
Tomoyuki Tanaka .... executive producer
 
Original Music by
Shinichirô Ikebe 
 
Cinematography by
Takao Saitô 
Shôji Ueda  (as Shoji Ueda)
 
Art Direction by
Yoshirô Muraki 
 
Costume Design by
Seiichiro Hagakusawa 
 
Makeup Department
Yoshiko Matsumoto .... hair stylist
Shigeo Tamura .... hair stylist
Junjiro Yamada .... hair stylist
 
Production Management
Akira Fujita .... unit production manager
Toshiaki Hashimoto .... production manager
Toshiaki Hashimoto .... unit production manager
 
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Ishirô Honda .... second unit director
Hideyuki Inoue .... assistant director
Takashi Koizumi .... assistant director
Fumiryo Okada .... chief assistant director
Takao Okawara .... assistant director
 
Art Department
Aki Saburagi .... assistant art director
Hatsumi Yamamoto .... property master
 
Sound Department
Ichirô Minami .... sound effects editor
Mamoru Yamada .... assistant sound recordist
Fumio Yanoguchi .... sound recordist
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Naomi Hashiyama .... still photographer
Satoshi Kurikihara .... assistant lighting technician
Tamio Matsuo .... assistant camera
Kazuo Miyagawa .... consultant: photography
Asakazu Nakai .... consultant: photography
Takeji Sano .... lighting technician
 
Editorial Department
Yoshihiro Iwatani .... assistant editor
Tome Minami .... negative cutter
 
Music Department
Kotaro Saito .... conductor
 
Transportation Department
Isamu Miwano .... transportation
 
Other crew
Audie Bock .... assistant to producer (international version)
Francis Ford Coppola .... presenter
Masa Furugawara .... scene shifter
Toshi Hasegawa .... horseback riding instructor
Shinobu Hashimoto .... production advisor
Hiroaki Honda .... acting office
Ishirô Honda .... directorial advisor
Ishirô Honda .... production coordinator
Ryu Kuze .... instructor: samurai etiquette
George Lucas .... presenter
Teruyo Nogami .... assistant to producer
Teruyo Nogami .... script supervisor
Donald Richie .... subtitle supervisor (US version)
Donald Richie .... subtitler (international version)
Takao Saitô .... production advisor
Tamihei Shirai .... horseback riding instructor
Ishirô Honda .... creative consultant (uncredited)
Michael Rich .... assistant to director (uncredited)
 
Crew believed to be complete


Production CompaniesDistributorsSpecial EffectsOther Companies
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Kagemusha (The Shadow Warrior)
Kagemusha the Shadow Warrior
Shadow Warrior
The Double
more
Runtime:
180 min | Argentina:162 min | USA:162 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Eastmancolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Filming Locations:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
This became the final feature film for one of director Akira Kurosawa's favorite actors, Takashi Shimura. Shimura would pass away in 1982. more
Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: Obvious bald caps on nearly every adult male character in the film. more
Quotes:
Shingen Takeda: Even with this resemblance, Nobukado, he is so wicked as to be sentenced to crucifixion. How could this scoundrel be my double?
Kagemusha: I only stole a few coins. A petty thief. But you've killed hundreds and robbed whole domains. Who is wicked, you or I?
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Brazil (1985) more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
20 out of 25 people found the following comment useful.
A grand spectacle of samurais and shoguns., 12 September 1999
Author: Shawn McKenna (srmckenna@hotmail.com) from Modesto, California

What happens to the doppelganger when the original dies? Does he flitter out of existence or does he find his own. Kagemusha (shadow warrior in Japanese) is the story of a thief who is to be hanged, but is saved by a warlord's brother, Katsuyori Takeda, because of a peculiar resemblance to the king Shingen Takeda. Tatsuya Nakadai brilliantly plays both roles of Shingen and the thief. The thief is trained to fill in as Shingen's double, a position previously played by his brother Katsuyori. Shingen receives a mortal wound during a siege and the Takeda Clan retreat. His dying wish is that he wants his death not to be known for at least three years. Kagemusha eventually acquiesces to the role of not just doubling for the king, but being a figurehead twenty-four hours a day.

The intimate circle of Shingen's family and guard knows about the double. They advise him about how to be like Shingen. He plays the part well. Shingen's son Nobukado, who knows that he is the double, is convinced that his father did this to spite him. Nobukado was passed over as king and that position was granted to Shingen's grandson and Nobukado's son Takemaru as soon as he reaches of mature age. Later in the film, we realize that Shingen did this because Nobukado is too aggressive and is not leader material, not to spite him. The backing of Kagemusha helped Nobukado's one great military victory. Nobukado would forever be in Shingen's shadow.

The relationships between the thief and the Lord's men make this a fascinating film. There is a rich tapestry of multidimensional characters. To some critics the action was too slow. It was not as fast paced as The Seven Samurai or Yojimbo. I think it is a mature film from a maturing director who would go on to direct another of my favorite films Ran. This film was nominated for two academy awards and would co-win the grand prize at the Cannes Film Festival. The juxtaposition between the titanic and minute is a favorite concept of Kurosawa. Stolid men have tragic faults. Beggars can be kings.

Kurosawa is one of the world's most famous directors. Yet in the 1980's, he did not get much respect from his home country Japan. He had not had released a film since 1975 -- the beautiful and brilliant Dersu Uzala and he was reportedly suicidal. This film would not have been made if it were not for George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola whom helped finance this film. Lucas has always been a big fan of Kurosawa. Star Wars was partially influenced by Kurosawa's film The Hidden Fortress. I am a big fan of Kurosawa too. His films always have the most beautiful cinematography, intricate plots and grand characters. Kagemusha is no exception.

Was the above comment useful to you?
more (68 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Kagemusha (1980)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
is this better or worsier than RAN majaco
Advise from Kurosawa's enthusiasts please jean_dave77
Blooper? (Possible Anachronism) ebm83
Why Hollywood music? bostonfilmfan
kurosawa's book to fund the film whitedogandharriet
Watch it on Hulu! boomdeay-1
more

Recommendations

If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
- - - - -
Shichinin no samurai Ran Kaidan The Last Samurai Mononoke-hime
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
Show more recommendations

Related Links

Full cast and crew Company credits External reviews
News articles IMDb Drama section IMDb Japan section
Add this title to MyMovies

You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.