Shurayukihime (1973) Lady Snowblood

Directed by Toshiya Fujita

Starring Meiko Kaji, Toshio Kurosawa

Without doubt this film was the biggest influence and inspiration for Quentin Tarantinos Kill Bill, A revenge drama where a number of targets are tracked down one by one.

Set in the Meiji period Yuki was born in a prison, her mother died shortly after giving birth but not before asking another inmate to raise her daughter and train her as an instrument of revenge!

Revenge for what? Well Im certainly not going to put any spoilers except to say that she suffered heavy family losses and was roughly treated by a gang of three men and a woman. The mother had already dealt revenge to one of the gang before being imprisoned leaving three for her newborn child.

The comparisons with Kill Bill are multitudinous although Lady Snowblood doesnt have the black humour. It does have blood, unbelievable amounts of gushing/spurting liquid of the strangest hues and viscosities. The story is split into chapters, one for the build up and one for each of the intended victims, it also has a section of narration with each chapter relaying events and the thoughts of Yuki (Lady Snowblood) and some pretty dire 70s style film music as well.

So is it worth seeing? Id say its an above average film of its type, certainly far better than its sequel or Princess Blade. If you want to see the inspiration for Kill Bill, this is without a doubt the film.

Cheers Trev.

BBFC rated 18