The Toho Company
A Tokyo Films Production
7th Year of Meiji Era (1874)
Tokyo Prison, Hachioji, Kanagawa Prefecture
Yuki...
You were born for vengeance. Poor child...
A child of the netherworld.
SHURAYUKI-HIME LADY SNOWBLOOD
Move it! Out of our way, woman!
Who do you think you are?
Do you realise he's Genzo Shibayama, the Asakusa Senryo Gang leader?
- It doesn't matter! Just kill her! - Bitch!
- What are you, an assassin? - Little bitch!
Don't kill her.
- Make her tell us who hired her. - Yes, sir.
Who are you? Tell me!
Who ordered you to come after me?
Who are you?
Revenge.
For who?
For all those helpless people that have suffered thanks to you.
Woman...
Who the hell are you?
Lady Snowblood.
Produced by Kikumaru Okuda
Original story by Kazuo Koike and Kazuo Kamimura
Cinematography by Masatoshi Tamura Art Direction by Kazuo Satsuya
Snow falls like a funeral
F or the dead morning
Stray dogs howl in the distance As she walks
The sound of her 'geta' Piercing the air
Starring:
Meiko Kaji
Toshio Kurosawa, Masaaki Daimon
Miyoko Akaza, Takeo Chii, Noboru Nakaya
Justice and mercy
Tears and dreams
Yesterday and tomorrow
Words that have no hold On her now
The woman who has immersed herself in the River of Vengeance
Gave herself up long ago
Directed by Toshiya Fujita
Chapter One." Vengeance Binds Love and Hate
Over 20 years have passed
European ideas of social progress that once greatly unsettled the people
are becoming widely accepted
Still, provincial disputes continue unabated,
as do unfair practices by mercenary plutocrats and businessmen,
and actions taken by corrupt officials seeking only to benefit themselves.
Self-indulgent, rich men and women grow in number,
while the pleas of poor peasants remained unanswered.
At this time, there lived a woman of the netherworld.
Everyone knew of her ﬂowery beauty,
burned a raging desire to hunt down her enemies.
People say, what cleanses this world of decay is not pure white snow,
but the stained fiery-red snow of the netherworld.
Pardon me...
I would like to see Lord Matsuemon.
Where can I find Lord Matsuemon, your leader?
Come with me.
Come on, come on!
Pass it around!
Pass it around! Pass it around!
Anything that comes here gets passed around!
That's the law of our band!
Pass it around! Pass it around!
The goddess of sex has arrived for us!
You think you're tough?
Kill this bitch!
Stop!
Stop! Stop it!
Fool! Idiot!
How dare you!
How dare you act like stray dogs in heat, you fools?
- But, Boss... - Idiot!
This lady is a very important guest of mine.
As you know, that ruthless bastard Genzo Shibayama
This lady is the one who killed him!
I was told that you make your living as an assassin, Miss.
Yet, looking at you, I cannot imagine you hurting a fly.
Tell me, Miss Shurayuki, what is it that you seek?
Lord Matsuemon...
I would like to request your assistance in finding these individuals.
Banzo Takemura, Gishiro Tsukamoto, Okono Kitahama...
All three of them
seem to be from the Koichi Village, in Aimi, Shimane Prefecture.
Now, Koichi Village... that's where I grew up.
It has taken me a whole year to ascertain that very fact.
But tell me why?
You're familiar with the Blood Tax Riots that occurred in the 6th year of Meiji?
The Blood Tax Riots? I can't say that I don't know of them.
These three exploited that situation
and swindled large sums from the villagers of Koichi,
by running a draft-exclusion scam.
Then they disappeared without a trace.
I do not know all the details,
but I heard that there were four culprits, not three.
Yes, sir.
Of the four, Tokuichi Shokei, is now dead.
He was killed.
I beseech you, sir. Please find those three men.
I hear you, but without knowing what they look like,
That's not true. I believe that you can do it, sir!
It should be possible to find many people who know of them.
Your clan is spread widely across the entire nation,
and if you were to use your many connections, I know you could succeed!
I don't believe that it is impossible.
But what exactly are you after?
The 6th year of Meiji?
I doubt that you'd even been born then.
It can be said that karma can stain the unborn.
'All young men of the nation, as of their 17th birthday,
"By November 10th, all family heads must register"
"their sixteen-year-old boys with town officials."
"Upon reaching the age of 20,"
"all such men will be inducted into the military…”"
Going back over twenty years ago,
in March of the sixth year of Meiji,
the nation is first draft mandate was enacted by the Cabinet.
The new government sought strength through militarism,
believing that the modernisation of Japan must be based
However, the peasants did not consider it to be a reasonable measure,
and soon their discontent exploded in riots.
The end to these uprisings was nowhere in sight.
Destruction, robbery, arson and other acts of rebellion continued Without end.
Many strange rumours circulated,
the most famous being about the "Men in White".
These men in white were said to be the pawns of the new government,
who killed conscripts and collected their blood for sale to foreign nations.
This is where the first chapter of the tragedy begins.
6th Year of Meiji Era (1873), June
Koichi Village, Aimi District, Shimane Prefecture
Shiro!
Let go of me! Mummy!
Look at him, he's wearing white!
- He's the new government man! - Kill him!
Don't be ridiculous, I'm...
I'm the new school teacher, I've just moved to this village!
Shut up! Die!
GISHIRO TSUKAMOTO
BANZO TAKEMURA
TOKUICHI SHOKEI
Dear!
OKONO KITAHAMA
This is unthinkable!
How could this be?
Dear! Dear!
Then you ought to go.
There is nothing to pre vent you from walking your path.
Reverend
I must thank you for all these years of training.
I am disheartened because I have not been able to repay you.
Don't be ridiculous.
You have a destiny that needs to be realised.
Forget joy, forget sorrow, forget love and hate,
except for vengeance, these must be forgotten.
And thus, there should be no sadness in you.
A child of the netherworld ought not talk like that.
How many times you've scolded me by calling me that!
THE GRAVE OF SAYO KAJIMA
THE GRAVE OF TORA KOBAYASHI
You are a child of the netherworld
You are not a being of this earthly realm.
A beast, a devil, one whose disguise is human.
One so evil that even Lord Buddha cannot save you.
Be strong, Sayo! Be strong!
But I've never seen a birth this difficult.
If it goes wrong, Sayo could die.
I... I don't care if I die!
But at least save my baby! Please, Otora!
This isn't good. The baby's overdue and it's twisted around.
It doesn't matter!
At least save my baby! My baby!
You don't even know whose child you're bearing!
Should my... Should my baby be stillborn...
if that should happen, Otora, I'll kill you!
But tell me, why did the four of them commit such a hideous crime?
For profit.
"For profit"?
They told the people that draftees could be excused from service
by paying them a sum of 270 yen.
Thus the y swindled the villagers out of tens of thousands of yen.
After splitting the money among themselves,
they ﬂed from the village as planned.
Shokei Tokuichi; Who desired my body,
took me along with him to Tokyo.
In Tokyo, Tokuichi opened a little restaurant.
I did as I was told and waited for the right moment.
I killed Tokuichi.
I was in the midst of hunting down the remaining three,
when I was arrested.
Three more vengeances remain.
But I've been sentenced to life in prison.
I can no longer exact my revenge with my own hands.
Then, you mean for this newborn child to...?
That's why you kept saying you wanted a strong boy?
Otora...
But that's all right, because it was true.
Because I wanted a child so much...
A I the women is prison in Ichigaya,
and after I arrived here,
I acted like a mad bitch in heat.
I wantonly seduced men, one after another.
I knew this made you look upon me with disgust.
For me, there remain things left undone.
My vengeance cannot be denied.
So I must let this child wreak my vengeance for me.
I will die so my spirit can be embodied in her.
That's the only method of vengeance I have left.
Otora...
I beseech you.
Okiku, take care of this child.
You were born for vengeance, poor child.
But, Yuki...
you must avenge us without fail.
Your father, your elder brother...
and me.
Yuki... my...
- Sayo? - Sayo!
Some time later, Otora Mikazuki was released.
She took care of the baby with the help of Dokai
Being a child of the netherworld
Yuki received severe training from Dokai
Weighing down her little shoulders were sad thoughts of vengeance,
but despite this, Yuki endured great hardships and survived the training.
15th Year of Meiji Era (1882)
YUKI KASHIMA, AGE 8
Stretch out your hands and feet. Don't get thrown out, Yuki!
- Yes, sir! - Here we go.
Yuki!
Stand up! Stand up, Yuki!
Yuki!
Do it again!
You must not become dislodged until the barrel stops naturally!
You were not born as a human child.
You were born a child of the netherworld
devoting your own life to avenge another's death.
You must never forget that this is your duty.
Feel like a beast. Become like a beast.
What are you looking at? Look into my eyes!
You must look me in the eyes!
Fool! Stand up!
What's the matter with you?
Come on now!
Come on!
What's that face for? Step out! On your feet!
A I long last.
A I long last, I've managed to come this far…
dear mother.
Though born and raised as a child of the netherworld
human compassion was never absent from her heart.
Unforgettable memories of her mother overwhelmed her with sadness.
Yet her journey of vengeance was far from over.
This day marked the 20th anniversary of her mother Sayo's passing.
"Chapter Two-" Crying Bamboo Dolls of the Netherworld'
A few days later,
Banzo Takemura, one of the villains she sought, had been located.
Forgive me, I'm always making you work so hard.
Not at all.
There are so many orders, I can't keep up with demand.
Is that so?
They're selling that well?
- You saw me? - Why...?
It doesn't matter. They won't sell anyway.
I made it.
Here.
Kobue. Kobue Takemura. Why?
Goodbye.
HAMA
Here's your three yen, as usual. Please count it.
It's correct.
Here.
Take it.
Your customer for tonight is a prefectural officer.
He's a very important client of mine too.
So we expect the best from you.
I know that.
Is that you, Kobue?
- It's you fellows. - Who did you think it was?
You don't look too well.
We're here today representing the house of Hamakatsu.
It doesn't look like Kobue is home yet.
She's out selling her wares.
She's probably shopping on her way back home.
Look...
Open your eyes, will you?
Do you really think that people are buying her bamboo basket dolls?
You fool.
Your daughter, you see, throws everything she makes into the sea.
Do you really want to know where that money comes from?
Eighty yen in all.
The due date passed a long while ago.
You're kidding me?
It's all your fault to begin with.
You're forcing her to sell herself!
Poor thing!
She has to do it to pay for her drunkard father's booze and medicine.
Quiet! Kobue would never do such a thing!
Watch the dice.
- Place your bets! - Bets, please!
Isn't that woman the travelling gambler?
Yes, sir. Apparently, she's from Sanshu. An independent.
She's known as Oyuki. Lovely looking...
- She sure gets me going. - She's no ordinary wallflower.
- It's number one! - One!
Number one!
Banzo?
- Deal me a card. - Next round!
Watch the dice!
- Bets, please! - Place your bets, please.
- Number four. - Four!
Number four!
Next game!
Watch the dice.
- Bets, please. - All bets!
Watch the dice.
Next round!
Watch the dice.
Bets, please! All bets in!
- No more bets! - Score!
Hold it!
Takemura... we need to talk.
Forgive me.
I can't do that.
Spare me.
There's no hurry. First, we'll torture him.
Please forgive me! You can have Kobue.
Too late for that!
You bastard...
Please wait.
As a professional, it's my fault for not detecting his cheating.
- Allow me to pay compensation. - It's none of your concern!
Out of the way!
What the hell's going on?
What do you want, stranger?
I beg of you, sir.
I must ask you to spare this man's life, no matter what the cost.
Don't tell me you knew he was cheating!
Well, in any case...
- Masa! Kame! Let him go. - But Boss...
We mustn't concern ourselves with trivialities like this!
Thank you, sir.
You bastard!
Next time you show up, forget about being thrown into the sea,
I'll out you up and feed you to the pigs, you bastard!
Oh?
What brings you here?
If something happens, you should go to Tokyo.
Okiku Tajire, who lives in Ueno, can put you in touch with me.
Thank you, but I can't leave my dad here.
You're still here?
I owe you for what you did for me.
But it wouldn't really matter anyway whether I lived or died.
If it weren't for my daughter...
By the way, why did you save my life?
Because we have a little business to settle, Banzo Takemura.
Shall we go?
Go? Where to?
Who are you?
I've come to take you to where you truly belong.
Come now, it's time to start your journey of death.
Who...?
Who on earth are you?
What do you want with me?
Are you scared, Banzo?
I bet you are.
A man like you has memories too gruesome to be able to forget.
What are you talking about?
A long time ago,
you lived in the village of Koichi.
You and Gishiro Tsukamoto,
Okono Kitahama and Tokuichi Shokei, the four of you,
You raped his wife for three days and nights.
I know nothing! I know nothing about it!
Look closely at my face.
Does this face not remind you of a woman that you raped?
My name is Shurayuki.
There was a woman who died in jail, died cursing you.
I am the daughter of Sayo Kashima.
It was wrong! It was wrong of me!
I've never been able to forget it, even to this day! Please!
Where is Gishiro?
Where is Okono?
I don't know! I really don't know!
Please forgive me! Please spare me!
I will neither forgive nor spare you!
I beg you!
Don't kill me. Don't slay me.
I beg of you, don't kill me!
I beg you!
If I die...
what will happen to my daughter Kobue?
Please!
For Kobue's sake...
All life is transitory, but the virtues are eternal.
The sea assaults the shore,
as if reﬂecting Yuki's innermost feelings.
The path continues on this journey of vengeance.
"Chapter Three." Umbrella of Blood, Heart of Strewn Flowers
THE GRAVE OF GISHIRO TSUKAMOTO
TAJIRE
It's just unfortunate.
When we heard from you that Gishiro had died...
she didn't want to believe it, no matter what I said.
But now that she's seen his tombstone with her own eyes,
what else can we do?
It's frustrating, isn't it?
If only...
If only we'd searched for him much earlier...
When did he die?
Three years ago.
It was said that Gishiro was involved with foreigners smuggling opium.
Yuki had just come to me then for training in pickpocketing.
The training I have received from the Master and from you, Auntie,
it's all so that I can personally avenge my mother's death.
Gishiro was the leader of the four villains...
killing him with the sword of vengeance for my mother.
Oyuku
Be strong.
You still have one more wrongdoer to face!
Lord Matsuemon...
I beseech you,
please try to find Okono Kitahama as fast as you can.
I have my men working on it, but there's only so much we can do.
Looking for someone?
We meet at last. I've been looking everywhere for you.
- What for? - I'd like you to explain something.
That tombstone, it belonged to a Gishiro Tsukamoto, did it not?
- There's nothing I can tell you. - I doubt that's true...
You shredded the flowers left as an offering.
Not something one would do without good reason.
You must have had something against that man.
- That is no business of yours. - My name's Ryurei Ashio.
I publish a cheap rag called The People's Paper.
I write novels too.
If something catches my attention, I'll sniff out the truth.
If I find some leftover meat, I'm doing well.
Stop pestering me from now on.
Why?
Your curiosity might cost you your life.
- Is that a threat? - Take it how you like.
I'm known to people as the "man of threats".
I use my newspaper as a weapon and I'm feared as a blackmailer.
So when somebody threatens me, that makes me even more curious.
What is it that you want?
Don't think I'm trying to threaten you.
I just seek the truth.
Leave me alone.
NETHERWORLD
LADY
"SHURAYUKI-HIME"
BY RYUREI ASHIO
Long ago, in the 6th year of the Meiji Era,
a gruesome and hellish tragedy befell an innocent family.
They were victims of a blood-chilling plot.
Time has passed, but who will exact vengeance?
Time has passed, but what dark deed remains unavenged?
Whose soul is filled with turbulent karma?
Knowing neither forgiveness nor compassion she seeks out her enemies,
leaving their corpses Without a second glance.
Her name was Shurayuki, the child of vengeance.
Indeed...
The person who told Ryurei Ashio about you was certainly me!
But why, sir?
I just cannot understand why you did that, Master.
Don't you see?
It's bait, to lure out the one villain that remains: Okono Kitahama.
Matsuemon's men are not without their limits.
However, should Ryurei's novel become widely read,
I'm certain that Okono will read it.
And when she does, she will surely take action.
And that will be the moment when you can destroy her.
Besides,
I've come to really like this Ryurei fellow.
He's using his talents as a writer
to express his hostility and malice towards the political system.
He may be a rogue,
but I feel he's the ideal man to write your story, a tale of the netherworld.
But will Okono Kitahama take action?
Will she reveal herself?
Wait and see. Be patient.
Yuki, you must not rush things.
If you must endure a moment of peace and tranquility
when the winds of carnage do not blow the snow of the netherworld,
then Lord Buddha will not punish you.
From Mount Kazusa, looking deep into the valley
A little child picks up a pebble...
Born to settle an old score. Born to seek vengeance.
Yet, listening to the children sing, she could not he(0 but be moved.
As she continued on her lonely path,
the glimmers of the past grew fainter.
This is fiction, to make it interesting reading, right?
No. I've written nothing but the truth.
- So it's the truth? - The absolute truth.
Then... Oyuki killed my father.
Just who are you?
I'm... Banzo Takemura's daughter.
This is awful! Just awful!
So now we have another woman seeking vengeance.
Born under unlucky stars.
Both you and her.
Wait!
There's no way you could possibly understand how I feel!
I understand!
I do understand.
Are you Ryurei Ashio?
Yes. What do you want from me?
Because your Lady Snowblood story seems so real,
the people have become confused and riotous, so we must question you.
Accompany us to headquarters!
- There's no way... - Silence! Take him!
Who's that?
Kobue Takemura.
Kobue? Takemura?
You must be Banzo's...
Then what brings you here?
The authorities have arrested Ryurei Ashio.
I never knew there was a police station there,
inside a restaurant called Kagetsu.
Wait! Wait a second! Wait, I said!
Take that!
You bastard! Get up!
You scum!
Come on, out with it!
Where's Shurayuki?
I spent a considerable amount of time reading the story in your paper.
Clearly, it's based on a real event.
There's no way someone who didn't know Shurayuki could've written it!
So you've revealed yourself, as expected.
So the money you pocketed from that ruthless murder 20 years ago
has paid for this shady little hideout of yours, eh?
- How very nice for you. - Silence!
Tell me! Tell me!
I don't know! I'm not in touch with her.
You stubborn fool!
Don't hold back when you beat this scum!
We'll make you suffer a lot more!
Suffer!
That's enough. Hold off for the time being.
- But... - He's no good to us dead.
- We'll use him as bait. - Bait?
Exactly. No doubt Shurayuki will show up soon.
She's here!
So you've come, Shurayuki. I've been waiting for you.
- We meet at last. - That's right.
I deliberately acted just as you expected I would.
A Thunder-sand bomb!
Hold your breath!
Okono...
Has she escaped?
It's all done now, Oyuki, your vengeance, everything.
It's all over. Forget it now.
Can the netherworld's snow, soaked in bloody carnage, regain its purity?
You were born in a jail, a child of vengeance...
How can you live like a normal human being, Oyuki?
I do remember...
from the moment I was born.
I remember everything I saw.
I can still picture it all before my eyes.
That's why my mother's vengeance is my own.
This revenge... is mine.
Chapter Four...
Just as I thought... you're alive after all.
I'd hoped that I was only imagining it.
Why?
- Why did you fake your death? - Who are you talking about?
If you're talking about a wretch named Gishiro Tsukamoto, he's dead.
- He died in a shipwreck 3 years ago... - Not true!
Gishiro is alive. He's here, right in front of my eyes!
Yes, the boat you were on did sink.
However, as the police were after you for opium smuggling,
the shipwreck provided you with a wonderful opportunity
to fake your own death!
You survived and continued to engage in shady dealings.
You haven't changed a bit since you escaped my clutches 10 years ago.
Why have you come here?
To make you forget.
To forget about Gishiro Tsukamoto, and the man you now see.
You must forget them all.
Your story about Shurayuki has come to an end.
It's all over with Okono Kitahama's death.
Are you threatening me? That's typical of you.
No. Just giving advice.
Let me tell you something.
These days I'm mostly involved in trading weapons.
Even the government can't buy weapons without my involvement.
I believe that Japan will soon be at war.
Japan is preparing its forces for conflict,
I don't have time for some silly, twenty-year-old tale of vengeance.
The building where I conduct my business is the Rokumeikan.
It's supposed to be the place where we negotiate with foreign powers
and debate the use of Western ideas to modernise our society.
But what really goes on there
are nightly parties for the elite members of our society
who indulge themselves in self-gratification and hedonism.
But society is changing.
And I Will float with the tide,
all the time harvesting more money and power!
It's fine to be concerned with justice and upholding principles,
yet it all amounts to nothing more than empty words.
Forget newspapers and all that!
If you feel like it, come and work for me.
I severed ties to you many years ago.
Very well. But let me say this...
Don't stick your nose in places where it's not welcome. Stay out!
That's my final advice, from the bottom of my heart.
Ryu...
- Gishiro is alive. - What?
He was just here.
- That man in the rickshaw... - Wait! Please wait!
He won't get away. I swear I'll finish him!
And listen, there's one more thing I have to tell you.
Gishiro is...
Gishiro Tsukamoto is...
my father.
When I found out that one of the scum you sought was my own father,
what kept me going was that I thought he was dead.
If it weren't for that, I couldn't have written your story of carnage.
However, when Okono Kitahama was killed,
That's why I couldn't tell you. There was no way...
I won't be writing any more tales of Shurayuki.
I can't write it anymore.
However...
Chapter Four. The House of Joy, The Final Hell.
CHARITY MASQUERADE PARTY
Wait!
Stay out! That's my final advice, from the bottom of my heart.
Damn it!
That's typical of him.
It doesn't matter if someone dies, as long as his hands remain clean.
No matter what happens, he'll have his way.
Ryu!
Gishiro Tsukamoto... I will kill you.
It's all I've thought about for these last twenty years.
Yes. It's all about to end.
Oyuki! Don't worry about me.
Do it! Do it!
Yuki! Hurry!
Hurry!
An eye for an eye!
Snow falls like a funeral
F or the dead morning
Stray dogs howl in the distance As she walks
The sound of her 'geta' Piercing the air
She walks on, Weighed down by karma
Her bull's-eye umbrella Embracing the darkness
The woman who walks this path in life
Gave up her tears Long ago
The End