zatoichi

i've seen the japanese film zatoichi at greenbelt last year. lest i mix it up with the tom cruise-starrer the last samurai, i'd rather not delve into the movie's plot. there was just something that struck me which came towards the end of the film. zatoichi (was that his name?) was an old blind masseur. his remaining functional senses were keen. he was a gambler and very good at it. he walked around the village alone with eyes closed guided by his walking stick that converted to a sword in times of peril which he used masterfully and with the agility of a young man, to maim or kill his opponents. he outwitted and slain his greatest nemesis by agreeing to a duel only in total darkness. well, at least that's how i remember it. but don't trust my memory. i'm only good at remembering people who deceive me.

anyway, what was interesting was the revelation towards the end of the movie that zatoichi was not blind at all. or was he really? after all the battles he fought and routing all his enemies he decided to drop his stick, opened his eyes and walked. then he tripped over a tiny rock and fell flat on the ground. isn't it ironic?

(so why after over a year am i writing about it now? i don't know, just some thoughts that entered my mind the past days. don't even know if it has any relevance to the discoveries i've made the past days, and still discovering more. i'm just typing whatever comes into my mind right now not forgetting the fact that the past week was extra galling for me.)

i was wondering if zatoichi chose to be blind as a form of discipline so he could sharpen his other senses. i remember that in the last samurai, when tom cruise was being trained to become one, he was also told to sense everything without seeing. but on the other hand it could be that zatoichi pretended to be blind so he could deceive his adversaries. he feigned his strength so he could keep the element of surprise crucial in battles; made his opponents less alert and vigilant. yeah, it could be that. then when he thought he had already outsmarted everyone he slackened. opened his eyes and revealed himself. then he made one single mistake, that was to fail to see that a tiny rock could bring him down.