Shogun Assassin

From J-Wiki

Shogun Assassin is a 1980 jidaigeki (period drama) film directed by Robert Houston. It was edited together from two earlier films in the Lone Wolf and Cub series from 1972 - Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance and Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart at the River Styx.

The film follows the story of Ogami Ittō, the former Shogun's decapitator who is forced to become an assassin after his wife is murdered and he is ordered to commit seppuku (ritual suicide). He goes on the run with his young son Daigorō, carrying him in a wooden baby cart rigged with weapons as they take assassination jobs.

Shogun Assassin was released theatrically in the United States on November 11, 1980 by New World Pictures. It gained a cult following, especially among grindhouse/exploitation film fans, due to its extreme violence and bloody action sequences.


When the wife of the Shogun's Decapitator is murdered and he is ordered to commit suicide by the paranoid Shogun, he and his four-year-old son escape and become assassins for hire, embarking on a journey of blood and violent death.

Many of the lines from this movie are sampled by hip-hop artist and Wu-Tang Clan member the GZA on his album "Liquid Swords".

This movie is watched by The Bride and her daughter at the end of Kill Bill vol ll