Here, Zatoichi is hired to give a massage to a powerful political official who, he discovers, is mentally ill, a secret that the nobleman's retinue is determined to keep at any cost. An impoverished blind masseur becomes a mercenary swordsman, to gain basic respect. He must face in combat not only the pursuing retainers but his own flesh-and-blood. ZATOICHI #2 Directed by Kazuo Mori • 1962 • Japan THE TALE OF ZATOICHI proved so popular that a follow-up went into production the same year. The Tale of Zatoichi Continues (1962) Returning to the village where a year before he had killed Hirate, a much-admired opponent, Zatoichi encounters another swordsman and former rival in love: his own brother. Afraid that word might leak out, a group of assassins is hired to kill Zatoichi. “The Tale of Zatoichi Continues” is, in a way, a film about guilt and regret. Kazuo Mori ACTION-ADVENTURE-movie JAPAN 1962 cast: Shintarô Katsu, Yaeko Mizutani, Masayo Banri aka(s): Zoku Zatôichi monogatari, O Conto de Zatoichi Continua, The Return of Masseur Ichi description: The blind masseur and swordsman, Zatoichi, learns of a powerful political figure's secret and is qui The first of novelist Kan Shimozawa's Zatoichi series: 26 films, a TV series and a play, all but two starring controversial singer/producer/director Shintaro Katsu. A direct follow-up to The Tale of Zatoichi (also in 1962, which shows how fast this second film was made, albeit with a different director in Kazuo Mori), The Tale of Zatoichi Continues follows the titular blind masseur-cum-swordsman as he learns a secret about a powerful lord.. Zatoichi feels guilt-ridden for killing Hirate, with whom he shared a mutual admiration with, and regrets losing the one man he wanted to be friends with. Quand Zatoichi découvre que le seigneur qui l'embauche souffre d'une folie qui si elle était révélée au public ruinerait son empire et les samourais qu'il emploie, Zatoichi devient un homme recherché pour le secret qu'il détient.