ICHI

ICHI (2008) is a Japanese samurai action drama from Fumihiko Sori that you can watch online on iFILM. Ichi is a blind traveling singer who hides a blade inside her walking cane and cuts with it better than most men who can see.

She drifts from village to village searching for the man who raised her as a girl. Along the way a clumsy ronin named Toma latches on — he can't bring himself to draw his sword, so she ends up protecting him more than the other way around. When a brutal gang takes over the town, the quiet singer turns out to be the only one who can stop it.

This is a female spin on the legend of Zatoichi, the blind swordsman: Haruka Ayase plays Ichi almost wordlessly, all in movement and a still, closed face. The fights are dry and fast, with no showing off, and the sadness on screen weighs as much as the steel. One for fans of samurai films built around a heroine. Stream ICHI (2008) online on iFILM.