In Japan, the deeds of the 47 ronin of the Ako Domain have been widely sung for more than 300 years, which may be in line with the "loyalty" and "samurai spirit" in the Japanese mind.
The incident probably happened: On March 14, 1701, the lord of the Ako Domain, Asano Nagamasa, was ordered to receive the imperial envoys of the imperial court, and was harassed by Lord Kira, who was in charge of the ceremony, and in anger drew his sword and slashed Kira. Enraged, the shogun immediately ordered Asano Nagamasa to cut off his abdomen and issue severe punishments such as severing the family name.
After the incident, Yoshio Ishishi, the chief of the Ako Domain, adopted a restrained attitude of stabilizing the domain, took economic measures to stabilize people's hearts and minds, and mediated in many ways to stop the radical forces and avoid the disintegration of the domain. At the same time, Ōishi Yoshio led his courtiers to petition the shogunate, hoping that Asano University, the younger brother of Asano Nagamasa, would inherit the family name, but there were many twists and turns, which eventually made it impossible to restore the domain.
Against this background, Ōishi Yoshio led a total of 47 of his courtiers to attack the Kira mansion in the early morning of December 14, 2015, and successfully obtained the first rank of Kira, paying homage to the tomb of the lord. On February 4, 16, the shogunate ordered 46 Ako courtiers who participated in the night raid to cut their abdomen en masse and bury them at Izumi-ji Temple to accompany the lord.
Later generations of loyal subjects have collected relevant literary works, drama, film and television works have not been broken. Among them, in 1962, directed by Mr. Inagaki Hiroshi, "The Scroll of Snow of The Flower Roll of Zhongchen Tibet" is undoubtedly the most influential and largest film reflecting the Zhongchen Tibetan incident, which achieved box office results and good reputation in that year. Produced and distributed by Toho Corporation, the film is divided into two episodes, "Roll of Flowers" and "Scroll of Snow", and lasts for nearly three hours. The film is a collection of contemporary superstars, such as Koshiro Matsumoto, Yuzo Kayama, Tatsuya Mitsuhashi, Akira Takata and Setsuko Hara.
Based on historical facts, the film portrays the loyal image and samurai spirit of the Ako samurai of all sides. At the same time, the director's aesthetic taste is integrated in the film, and the soundtrack is also just right. Although the film is nearly three hours long, the plot of the viewing process is tense and relaxed, and there is no sense of procrastination. At the end of the film, the warriors return from the snow after taking revenge on the snow, and passers-by greet them in the middle of the road, although they know that death awaits them, but there is no fear. The momentum of their death as a homecoming made the hot-blooded boy move.
Another of the more famous versions is the 1978 Ako Castle Break, directed by Shinji Fukasaku, starring Nishinosuke Nakamura, Takaya Fujioka, and Shinichi Chiba. The film has also reached a larger scale, and Fukasaku Shinji is very good at playing his killing action scenes, and the literary drama and rhythm are also orderly. Nakamura Kinnosuke's performance in the film is remarkable, vaguely less stable than the old character in Inagaki's version.
Speaking of an alternative version, it's 2013's Forty-Seven Ronin, directed by Carl Ricky and starring Keanu Reeves, Sanada Hiroyuki, Tadanobu Asano, and others. Fantasy elements are added to the film, in which the demon girl played by Rinko Kikuchi confuses the Lord of Asano and makes him wield a sword at Kira, adding the role of the half-race Kui (Keanu Levis) adopted by the Lord of the Clan, as well as the love between him and the daughter of the Lord.
If you talk about personal preferences, I personally recommend the version of Hiroshi Inagaki, and I have to watch an epic song. "Ako Castle Break" is also a work that lovers of sword and sword films have to watch.