TOHO CO., LTD.
A TOKYO EIGA CO., LTD. PRODUCTION
SAYO KASHIMA TORA KOBAYASHI
DOKAI
They defeat injustice in heaven's name
Our soldiers, brave and loyal without peer
Sent off with our cheers
They depart the fatherland
Bravely vowing
Not to return alive unless victorious
At home you are men of accomplishment
Abroad you are warriors, loyal and brave
In September of Meiji 38 (1905),
the Russo-Japanese War came to an end.
The dead and wounded numbered 370,000.
It was a gruesome victory,
but it established a firm foundation
for the empire's capitalist system.
Nonetheless, postwar inflation was severe
and the voiceless people
quietly nursed a pent-up rage.
In those days there was a woman
wandering aloof from it all, fixated on her journey of vengeance.
Her name was Yuki Kashima, WANTED FOR MURDER
also known as Lady Snowblood.
Lady Snowblood, stop resisting arrest!
Don't let her get away! She's just a woman!
What are you doing?
Attack!
Don't let her escape!
After her!
Stop!
It'll heal in a few days.
It was just a pine cone.
Why so wound up? You'll just wear yourself out.
Produced by KIKUMARU OKUDA
Original Authors KAZUO KOIKE and KAZUO KAMIMURA
Screenplay by NORIO OSADA and KIYOHIDE OHARA
Cinematography by TATSUO SUZUKI
Production Design by YUKIO HIGUCHI
Music by KENJIRO HIROSE
Sound by NOBORU KAMIKURA
Edited by OSAMU INOUE
Lady Snowblood!
You won't get away this time!
Attack!
Starring
MEIKO KAJI
YOSHIO HARADA
KAZUKO YOSHIYUKI SHIN KISHIDA
KOJI NANBARA RINICHI YAMAMOTO
TORU ABE
SHUNSUKE MIZOGUCHI AKIRA HAMADA
MASASUKE HIROSE
JUZO ITAMI
Directed by TOSHIYA FUJITA
Attack!
LADY SNOWBLOOD — LOVE SONG OF VENGEANCE
Defendant: Yuki Kashima.
Charge: Murder for hire in various locales,
leaving a total of 37 dead.
These were savage acts
for which you show no remorse.
Neither heaven nor man can forgive these deeds.
You are therefore sentenced to death by hanging.
March 14, 1906.
Justice Seiichiro Tanno, Supreme Court of Japan.
Does the defendant have anything to say?
No.
This is a special prison for female inmates.
Behind those red brick walls is Yuki's birthplace.
On a night when four feet of snow fell on Tokyo,
Yuki came into this world,
a child of destiny, bearer of a vendetta.
The day of Yuki's execution has arrived.
Why did you save me?
Where are you taking me?
So you're Lady Snowblood...
cold and beautiful, as befits your name.
I've dropped the "blood" from my name.
Then what's left?
Just muddy, melting snow.
Snowblood...
life on the run has exhausted you, and you've given up the sword.
But for you there's no such thing as peace.
It's your fate to live in a hell of murder and demonic savagery.
Who are you?
Who I am...
has no bearing on the fact that I saved your life.
I'll ask you to repay the favor
with your skilled blade.
I see.
You don't mind leaving your debts unpaid.
Suit yourself.
In that case...
do you wish to leave now?
I won't stop you.
All that awaits you is endless flight.
Hunted by assassins and by the police,
roaming like a dog!
Until the day...
when you face the gallows again.
Our target is a man named Ransui Tokunaga.
He advocates the violent and seditious ideology of anarchism.
I'd like you to watch him for a month.
I'd also like you to search his house for something.
A confidential document.
Japan won and Russia lost!
Russia's battleships all got tossed!
RANSUI TOKUNAGA
Dear.
Our new maid is here.
Just a moment.
Hello. I'm Ransui Tokunaga.
My name is Yuki.
As you can see, we're rather poor,
so we can't really afford a maid.
But my wife is frail, so I hope...
we can work something out.
Rather than kindness
From someone
Whom I detest
I would prefer
Cruelty from you
IS REVOLUTION COLLECTIVISM?
Aya...
forget all about the past.
I want to have your baby...
Is the world a dream
Or an illusion
I'm alone in prison
Yuki.
Yes, sir!
Bring me some water.
Yes, sir!
He really seems to like you.
That was good.
I may be an anarchist,
but I'm even more of a lech.
Sir...
THE TREASON INCIDENT ONE YEAR LATER
BY RANSUI TOKUNAGA
Oh, it's just you.
I have a lot of... shall we say, enemies.
Sorry. Please don't take it the wrong way.
By the way, I'm going out later.
I'd like you to come along.
Yes, sir.
We're being followed, sir.
The police are always watching me.
Those dogs!
Follow me.
Giving them the slip is one of my amusements.
And the place we're headed now
is somewhere I don't want them following us.
These are my comrades' graves.
They were brutally murdered one year ago
on charges of treason.
This cemetery is meant for dogs and cats.
Slandered as traitors,
they were buried here like animals, without funerals.
Why did you bring me here?
I wanted you to pay your respects too...
Miss Snowblood.
Your real name is Yuki Kashima,
also known as Lady Snowblood.
You've been frantically searching my house for something:
a top-secret document that has the government on edge.
You probably mean to kill me as well.
Your taskmaster is Seishiro Kikui, head of the secret police
and top man in the intelligence apparatus.
What's their mission?
To kill every last revolutionary who threatens
peace and order in the "divine land" of Japan.
They're a shadow police force, a shadow army.
Why did you keep me on if you knew all that?
TRAITORS' GRAVES
The secret document you seek...
is indeed in my possession.
It's right here, in fact.
Let me tell you a story about garbage.
A factory worker named Yoshizawa once lived around here.
Poor young workers
are like garbage in society's eyes.
Paid low wages,
he was exploited from morning to night,
one shitty day after another.
One day he took all his pent-up alienation
and put it into a bomb.
Last February...
he blew up the Kagurazaka police box
and was arrested.
This "bomb devil" caused a stir, but he was soon forgotten.
But Kikui of the secret police figured
he'd use the young man to his advantage.
He made Yoshizawa give false testimony
that he'd been part
of an anarchist conspiracy, a dry run for an attempt
to assassinate the emperor.
These lies were concocted by Kikui
and the attorney general, Kendo Terauchi.
They'd been waiting for a chance
to crack down on anarchists.
Twelve of my comrades were imprisoned,
tried in secret without legal counsel,
and executed immediately.
Then Yoshizawa,
who alone knew the truth,
was also murdered by Kikui.
By all rights,
they should have come after me first.
But I was recuperating from consumption
in my hometown.
For better or worse, only I survived.
That exploit earned Kikui his current position,
and Terauchi rose to Justice Minister.
But Yuki...
someday I will bring them down!
I may have no power,
but I have one weapon left — this!
It's something Yoshizawa wrote.
He left it with his mother —
a detailed record of his conversations with Kikui and Terauchi.
If the conspiracy is proven to have been a fabrication,
Kikui and Terauchi's triumph gets blown to hell.
That's why these pages...
frighten them more than any bomb.
I see.
So she's betrayed us.
I thought I understood her.
I thought she was tired of that life.
That's Ransui Tokunaga for you.
He fanned the embers of revenge within her
into a raging fire!
Kikui, the situation is critical.
Three days from now in Shiba Park,
the anarchists and the proletarian federation
are opening their national solidarity rally.
Ransui intends to give a bombshell speech
and make the document public.
The press will jump on it, and the public will be furious.
If we're not careful, there will be riots,
and the cabinet will collapse.
Just what the hell is the secret police doing about it?
Your Excellency...
there's no need to worry.
If need be, we can arrest Ransui, and that will be that.
There's no way he'll show his hand before the rally,
and we have no grounds to arrest him, do we?
We do, sir.
We'll use the woman.
Darling, please be careful.
No need to worry.
I've got the best bodyguard in Japan with me.
Disturbing rumors have been going around about today's rally.
Already?
Wait till you see the papers.
A terrific bomb is about to explode
that will turn this country upside down.
I want you to hold on to this.
Should anything happen to me,
give it to Dr. Shusuke Tokunaga
in Samegabashi in Yotsuya.
He's my younger brother.
Shusuke Tokunaga.
Very well.
Halt!
Ransui Tokunaga and Yuki Kashima...
you're under arrest!
Under arrest?
May I ask on what charge?
I don't recall breaking any of our fine laws!
That's a lie! That woman is Lady Snowblood!
You know she's Yuki Kashima, an escaped convict.
You've been harboring her. Arrest them!
Let me go!
Yuki, run!
Never mind me! Run!
Stop!
Don't let her get away! Fire!
Fire!
Over there!
There were three slums in Tokyo at the time:
Shinami in Shiba, Mannencho in Shitaya,
and Samegabashi here in Yotsuya.
The residents did various things:
There were day laborers, rickshawmen, stable boys,
ragpickers, and criminals of every sort.
Left behind by changing times and the prosperity of victory,
the dregs of society lived here as they pleased.
There was no end to their poverty and humiliation,
yet they lived with stubborn pride and brash audacity.
While many drifters found their way to this slum,
the police rarely ventured
inside this sort of extraterritorial zone.
Hey, Sekiguchi...
what happened to your Order of the Golden Kite?
It got on my nerves. I pawned it for booze money.
Unpatriotic bastard!
Takichi, what about yours?
Mine?
It's a good memento, so I hid it away.
No one can get at it.
Where is it?
See?
See that? That's the real deal!
Speaking of booze money,
if our next shakedown goes well, we'll be rich!
Great! Then let's split for Manchuria again!
We'll drink some of that hard booze!
Cute girls everywhere!
We'll fuck 'em with our medals!
Where is... Shusuke Tokunaga's clinic?
Where is... Shusuke Tokunaga...
Why do you need to see —
How do you feel?
You!
Look at that.
The bleeding's stopped.
You'll be fine.
So you're —
That's right. I'm Shusuke Tokunaga.
Fate is mysterious, eh?
Looking for the document?
I have it.
No, don't try to move yet.
But...
the police arrested Ransui.
He's in the antigovernment movement.
He's prepared to face the consequences.
Does it hurt?
You can't do anything in your condition.
Right now get some sleep.
Just sleep.
- What's going on? - Just wait a minute.
- What's it say? - Let me see it!
Takichi, did you read the whole thing?
This is huge.
Just one of these pages could topple the government.
Strikes, police stations in flames —
the country is already in turmoil.
One scrap of this thing could set off major riots.
Is that right?
What are you gonna do, Doc?
Ransui Tokunaga, why are you protecting Yuki?
Even if you wither and starve, you're a famous anarchist...
and defying authority and fighting us like this
is for your cause.
But why Yuki? She's nothing but a killer!
You wouldn't understand.
Sometimes murder is justice...
and is done for a reason.
In your eyes, Yuki and I are venomous insects,
but we're two of a kind, and we won't betray each other.
Son of a bitch!
Still think you're so smart? Stupid bastard!
Nothing yet? He's more stubborn than I thought.
If he's too much for the police, we can take over.
My organization is better at this sort of thing.
Hold on. The Snowblood case is under police jurisdiction.
I don't care about Snowblood!
What matters is that secret document.
But —
The most important thing here
isn't capturing a single killer
but safeguarding law and order in our nation.
Torture him to death if necessary.
So what if a single anarchist is tortured to death?
Nobody will say anything.
Kill me if you want!
I'll never tell you a thing!
Fine!
Pigheaded ass!
Where's Yuki?
Where's Snowblood?
Spit it out! Where's Snowblood?
Where is she?
Go home. This is no place for you.
No, I'm staying with you!
Go home! They have no qualms about killing me.
Why? Because you let Yuki escape?
There.
- Is Ransui still with the police? - I wouldn't know.
Why don't you go try to save him?
Why are you here? You need something?
I know I shouldn't have come
after all that happened.
But right now...
you're the only person I can turn to.
My legs brought me here as if on their own.
Sorry, but there's nothing I can do for you.
Yes, there is.
You're the only one who can save him.
How?
By turning Yuki in to the police?
You came all the way here to tell me that?
I never dreamt that Yuki would be here...
but —
- Forget it. Go home! - Darling...
your brother —
I have no brother!
You still hate us.
You'll never forgive us, will you?
Forgive you? What are you talking about?
Take a good look around you!
They're all garbage!
That one's willie is hanging out.
What's not to like?
So I don't give a shit about the past!
Go home.
I'm just an extortionist.
Your husband...
wanted to use that document to change society.
I'm different.
I'll use it to rob those pompous pigs of their dirty money.
Then we'll eat and drink our fill!
They'll all be ecstatic.
You would just...
let him die?
What's going on here?
Who's he?
Where'd you come from?
We've never seen you around here before.
Who the hell are you? Hey, stop!
You're not going anywhere!
Hey, I'm in here!
Come out here, everyone!
Stop him but don't kill him!
Go around that away!
Get him!
87... 88...
89... 90...
Spit it out! Why are you here?
Out of the way. I'll handle him.
He's a stubborn one.
Want me to finish you off, you dog?
Darling!
SAMEGABASHI CLINIC
Who's there?
Please have a look at him.
Please!
Sir!
Stay back.
Out of the way!
- What's going on, Doc? - Back off!
Don't come inside.
The plague?
He didn't just catch it. He was injected with it.
That means...
the secret police injected him with the bacillus.
It's a preemptive strike.
Yuki, don't ever go inside there.
And don't tell those two guys anything.
If rumors spread, there'll be trouble.
Can you save him?
No. He can't be saved.
Hey, look here...
What are you doing?
- Captain! - Help!
Kill her!
Over there.
Poor woman.
So this is how the police do things?
Bastards!
- Shusuke... - Shut up!
Shusuke...
I'm done for, right?
Is there any chance I'll live?
I don't want to die yet.
I still have things to do.
Aya...
I'm sorry.
Lady Snowblood...
Just look at the two of you.
You betrayed and abandoned me...
and now you come back looking like this.
You did what you wanted, stole what you wanted,
lived as you pleased — and now you've met your end.
Aya...
you were once my wife.
Stupid woman!
What the hell did you see in him?
As I slogged through the wastelands of Manchuria, gun on my shoulder,
you were the only thing that kept me going.
The thought you'd be waiting when I came back home.
I refused to die before I made it home. I couldn't.
Those thoughts kept me alive, and I made it back.
And then what happened?
The two of you went and —
Ever since then...
I've had nothing to do with you two.
Doc!
Get away!
To hell with your last wishes.
I won't honor them.
I'll get what I want, how I want!
"Now, then...
for the people of the Shinami slum...
50,000 yen and 300 bags of rice.
For the people of the Mannencho slum...
30,000 yen and 200 bags of rice.
For the Samegabashi slum, 50,000 yen...
and 300 bags of rice.
In total, 130,000 yen
and 800 bags of rice.
In the event you don't pay...
I'll have your heads.
I look forward to your reply,
pompous pigs!"
You've sunk from contract killer...
to extortionist's underling?
Let's hear the demands. What does he want?
130,000 yen in cash...
for the people in the three slums,
as well as 800 bags of rice.
And if I refuse?
The document you seek will be sent to the press.
Everything will be made public.
It'll be the end for you and your superiors.
Yuki...
do you have any idea who you're dealing with?
You're throwing sand in the wind.
This battle is already decided.
I know where your worthless friends are.
I know where the document is hidden.
If we wanted...
we could kill you all without breaking a sweat.
Then go ahead...
unless you fear the plague.
The plague?
You can hardly be surprised.
You're the one who infected him.
My friend is waiting for me, burning with fever,
clutching the document in his trembling hands.
So go get it.
Come to think of it, I may be infected too.
Frightened?
You look down on us from on high,
yet you fear the plague as much as we do.
Of course.
To die moaning with fever, vomiting blood —
you're too good for that!
Too pure!
Kikui...
we can make a deal right here.
You want to give up everything you have
and become like me?
What do you mean?
As you said...
I'm a worthless killer.
I have nothing but my own life. But you're different.
Your vicious methods and the winds of change
have allowed you to acquire position...
power, and wealth.
You want them so badly you can't help yourself.
You really want to risk losing it all?
Very well.
I'll do as you say.
But I'll need time to gather everything you want.
I don't have the authority myself.
Give me time.
Just give me one night.
I ask that you stay here tonight and wait for me.
Will you do that?
We have no choice but to meet their demands.
Besides, it's only money.
If we make a wrong move and spark an uproar,
we'll be digging our own graves.
It's just 130,000 yen. That's cheap!
Kikui! What the hell are you thinking?
I've had enough. I'll handle this.
This is Terauchi. Get me the Home Minister.
I don't care! It's urgent!
What are you doing?
We mustn't comply with their demands.
- We have no choice! - Yes, we do.
We'll burn down the slums.
We'll burn the document and everything else to ashes.
Out of the question!
What would the public and the press say?
We'll say we did it to prevent the plague from spreading.
It's preposterous!
Why?
They may be slums,
but hundreds live there. You mean to burn them alive?
Have you ever once considered them human beings?
Don't play the benevolent statesman now.
- Your hands aren't clean either. - Why, you —
Your Excellency...
this isn't just about money...
or your personal self-preservation.
They've begun a treasonous war against the nation,
and the nation mustn't yield
to any kind of threat or provocation.
Isn't that why laws exist
and why we exist?
Daddy!
Mommy!
Shusuke! Are you all right?
Snowblood, the end has finally come.
You cheated the executioner once,
but not this time.
I'll enjoy killing you myself!
Snowblood...
damn you!
No, wait!
Don't shoot!
Shusuke, hold on!
They're all dead.
Burned to ashes.
Shusuke...
Yuki...
help me up.
A clear Japanese sky...
perfect for celebrating Navy Day.
And with a certain matter taken care of,
your spirits must be as sunny as the sky.
Kikui, how can I thank you?
The document is burned beyond a trace.
Now I can pay my respects in peace
to the spirits of our war heroes,
all thanks to you.
You!
Snowblood!
Don't run away! Protect His Excellency!
Your Excellency!
You're rabid dogs!
You're insane...
Yuki.
Finish...
finish me off!
This was in May of 1907.
The Meiji emperor's glorious reign would soon meet its end.
THE END