Episode #28 – The Twilight Samurai (黄昏清兵衛)
The Twilight Samurai (2002)
黄昏清兵衛 [Tasogare Seibei]
Directed by Yôji Yamada
Written by Yôji Yamada and Yoshitaka Asama
Based on the novel by Shûhei Fujisawa
Seibei Iguchi leads a difficult life as a low ranking samurai at the turn of the nineteenth century. A widower with a meager income, Seibei struggles to take care of his two daughters and senile mother. New prospects seem to open up when the beautiful Tomoe, a childhood friend, comes back into he and his daughters’ life, but as the Japanese feudal system unravels, Seibei is still bound by the code of honor of the samurai and by his own sense of social precedence. How can he find a way to do what is best for those he loves?
Cast
Hiroyuki Sanada – Seibei Iguchi
Rie Miyazawa – Tomoe Iinuma
Nenji Kobayashi – Chôbei Kusaka
Mitsuru Fukukoshi – Michinojo Iinuma
Hiroshi Kanbe – Naota
Miki Itô – Kayano Iguchi
Erina Hashiguchi – Ito Iguchi
Reiko Kusamura – Mother Iguchi
Ren Osugi – Toyotarô Kôda
Tetsurô Tamba – Uncle Iguchi
