Sword of Doom | Shot Breakdown of the “Mount Mitake – Command Match” Scene

Kihachi Okamoto’s magnificent movie The Sword of Doom follows a samurai’s descent into demonic villiany. It is a tremendous film and a harrowing portrayal of a character whose lack of morality and empathy eventually consume him.

The narrative is wonderfully fragmented and lacking in exposition which keeps the viewer on the edge of comprehension the entire film.

Okamoto by this time had directed several samurai action films and partnering with the brilliant Hiroshi Murai, the cinematography is gorgeous and dramatic.

The framing and editing have a much more modern sensibility as the visual storytelling is incredibly deft and purposeful.

What follows is a shot breakdown of the first fight sequence film which has the dynamics of a Sergio Leone gunfight; a long slow build up, increasing the tension until the final violent spasm of action which occurs almost too quickly to be seen.

The match begins with a long formal shot of the opponents and the match judge as they bow and face each other and kneel.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

Okamoto lays out his shots in an orthogonal technique, cuts to right angles. And like Leone, he will switch from a wide landscape shot directly to a close up, the face as a landscape.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

The referee of the match holds his flag directly into the camera for a very dynamic pointed action at the viewer

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

These next two shots were slow dolly pans around the character, the camera just moving enough to impart a fluid movement.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

This is a long, patient shot of the opponents, with Ryunoske on the left, slowly lowering his dueling staff, the signature of his style of fencing.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

After the reaction shots of the audience, we return to close up and medium shots, slow dolly pans again, building tension and suspense.

This is a sequence of 180 cuts.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

After this long dance, the opponents are on opposite sides from where they started.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

Okamoto cuts to a dolly push in, slow.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

And then a 180 cut to a quicker dolly push out of Ryunoske.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

This is an unusual cut from a close up of the spectator who is conspiring with the referee…

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

…to a shot that is three quarters behind him, presenting his POV of the duel.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

The opponents have not moved in all this time.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

The conspirator gives the signal to the referee.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

And the referee calls the match a draw, stabbing his flag at the camera and the viewer.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

Ryunoske visibly exhales with relief.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

But Bunnojo charges after the call.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

The shot of the strike from Ryunoske is so quick, a fraction of a second.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

Bunnojo is already dead, his momentum carries him off the platform and into the crowd.

The orthogonal cuts, 90 degree angles and 180 degree flips, are over for this scene and the cuts and angles are more organic.

There is less camera movement as well.

Mount Mitake – Command Match scene from “The Sword of Doom”, directed by Kihachi Okamoto, cinematography by Hiroshi Murai 1966

Upon leaving the dueling area, Ryunoske goes into the crowd to leave.

There next two shots are shocking in how modern they feel and seem so out of place for this period of Japanese cinema. They are two dolly pan shots with long lenses of the faces of key characters in the crowd, creating a beautiful parallax effect with the people in front of them and for the woman, a reveal of her face as this was the first time the viewers become aware that she was in attendance.