Like an earlier Zatoichi film, "Zatôichi kesshô-tabi", this one starts with a dying woman and a baby that Zatoichi is to take to its father. Following the death of the mother, the credits roll and a singer who perhaps is well-liked in Japan begins singing--and the high nasal voice was really, really annoying. Perhaps it's just my Western sensibilities, but the song was tough to take. I think the singing is from Japanese Noh (a type of play)--but I am far from knowledgeable about those sort of things.
Once Ichi gets the baby to the proper town, he finds the child's aunt and gives it to her. Oddly, however, all along the route there a little boy has been following Zatoichi pelting him with rocks. When the father eventually comes to town and thanks the blind man for bringing the baby, the welcome is very short-lived. It seems that the brat who has been throwing stones at Zatoichi is the man's son--and he mistakenly thinks that Ichi killed his mother and stole her money (this WAS done but by a thief--not Ichi). However, when the father confronts Ichi, the blind man is not angry but agrees to help the family get the money--otherwise the aunt will be forced by the local boss into prostitution.
This leads to the very, very typical confrontation with the local strongman--a guy who naturally at first has his men attack Ichi, then pretends to be friends and then, ultimately, has an all-out battle with the blind man. In the final battle, the death tally is appropriately high and there are no huge surprises. However, the local constable was an interesting character and did give the film a few surprises. Otherwise, it's all very typical and familiar. Nothing extraordinary but another formulaic Zatoichi film.
