Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart at the River Styx (1972) - full transcript

The Criterion Collection

Toho Company, Ltd.

Katsu Productions present

Daizen!

We Yagyu have spread
across the whole of the country.

No matter where you go,

there will be no escape from us.

Lone Wolf And Cub

Baby Cart at the River Styx

Produced by Shintaro Katsu
& Hisaharu Matsubara

Original story by
Kazuo Koike & Goseki Kojima



Music by Hideaki Sakurai
Cinematography by Chishi Makiura

Fight choreography
by Eiichi Kusumoto

Starring:

Tomisaburo Wakayama
as Itto Ogami

Kayo Matsuo as Sayaka Yagyu
Minoru Oki as Tenma

Shoji Kobayashi as Benma
Akihiro Tomikawa as the Child

Directed by Kenji Misumi

-We have rooms available!
-Please come in!

We have vacancies!

Welcome! We have baths ready!

Oh, how adorable!

Daigoro...

Will you be staying with us?
Thank you for your custom, sir.

Do you have any other luggage?



I'll move the cart
to the back of the inn for you.

This way, please.
I'll show you upstairs, sir.

You must be exhausted
from your travels.

Shall I wash your feet?

-Omatsu!
-Sir?

You fool!
Be careful who you let into the inn.

How can we profit by letting in
a shabby ronin with a child?

But we still have a vacant room, sir?

I decide if we have vacancies or not!

This is a first-class inn
where respectable samurai stay.

What if he refuses to pay
and threatens us with his sword?

I'm terribly sorry, sir, but...

-Manager...
-Yes, sir?

Will you put this
somewhere safe for me?

Goodness!

-500 gold pieces.
-Yes, sir.

I shall keep it safe for you, sir.

What are you standing there for?
Wash the young master's feet!

Why are you so useless?

Such an adorable little boy.

Here, let me wipe your feet.

Thanks for your service.

One...

...two...

...three...five...

Daigoro...

You forgot one.

One...

...two...

...three...

Oh, four!

Three...

...four...

...five...

Can I get out now?

Greetings. I am Ozunu,
leader of the Kurokuwa clan.

I am Sayaka of the Yagyu clan
of Akashi.

I come with orders from Lord Retsudo
of the Shadow Yagyu clan in Edo.

Clear everyone from the room.

There's no need. They're all
Yagyu clanswomen of Akashi.

In that case...

What?

Damn that Itto Ogami!

In the end, Itto Ogami won the duel.

The agreement was that the Edo Yagyu
must thereafter leave him in peace.

That is why the Yagyu clanswomen
under your command

must eliminate Ogami at all cost.

Such are your orders
from Lord Retsudo.

We shall slay him!

I must remind you
to exercise extreme caution.

He is, after all, a former
Official Shogunate Executioner.

And a superb swordsman,
a master of the Sui-O School.

An easy opponent, he is not.

Ozunu! Are you belittling the abilities
of the Yagyu clanswomen?

Absolutely not.

It is just that he was able to slay
Lord Bizen and the honourable Sentinel.

This means that we Kurokuwa men
must join forces with you in case.

"In case" what?

-Are these your men?
-Yes.

Bid your most able man to enter.

Junai!

Try to get out into the garden.

I said, try to get out into the garden.

For ninja such as we,
that is but one leap.

Prove to me that you can do it!

Naive fools!
You dare call yourselves ninja?

Where is Itto Ogami now?

By the day after tomorrow,
he'll be in Akashi territory.

When one wishes to hire Itto Ogami,
the assassin Lone Wolf and Cub.

one places an amulet of evil
at shrines along major roads.

When Itto sees the amulet.

he leaves a sign
to let his whereabouts be known.

The same signs used
by the great warrior Dokan Ota?

By following the signs,
one can meet Itto.

-Chamberlain!
-A sign.

This one symbolises "headquarters".

Which means that
we'll meet him in there.

I am the Edo Chamberlain
Hirano of the Awa clan.

I'm the assassin...Lone Wolf and Cub.

I don't mean to doubt your word,

but can you provide proof that
you really are the Lone Wolf?

This does not concern you.

But does it answer your question?

If you wouldn't mind...

My fee is 500 pieces of gold.

Here...

Please check it.

I require that you tell me
every detail relating to this matter.

The fief of the Awa clan is valued
at 257000 bushels of rice.

but in actual fact
we're much more prosperous,

equivalent to a clan
rated at 450000 bushels.

This is due to our production
of Awa indigo, a special dye,

for which we hold the monopoly.

It earns the clan
330, 000 pieces of gold annually,

or about 200000 bushels of rice.

As such. we live in fear

that our clan 's knowledge of the secret
of the dyeing process may be leaked.

For this reason. we founded
a Dyers Guild to oversee the trade.

However, the Shogunate, desperate
to increase its economic power,

has become obsessed with acquiring
the secret of the Awa indigo.

They sent spies
into Awa clan territory,

who schemed to incite a riot
among our dye workers

and encourage them to demand
higher wages and better treatment.

If a riot occurs, the Shogunate
can use it as an excuse

to strip us of our monopoly.

Then the monopoly would be
in their hands

where they alone could profit from it.

So we spared no effort
to hunt down their spies.

We executed the conspirators
who planned the riot.

But these extreme tactics
unfortunately backfired,

and Makuya, headman of the indigo
artisans. feared for his life.

and he fled to the neighbouring
Takamatsu clan.

The Takamatsu clan
is an impoverished one,

and our clans are not
on good terms with each other.

In an effort to profit from this, they have
reported the matter to the Shogunate

and hidden Makuya safely away.

Despite our repeated enquiries,
they deny ever hearing of him.

And now, what we feared the most
is about to happen.

We've been informed
that the Shogunate has sent

three Official Escorts
of the Shogunate to Takamatsu

in order to take Makuya back to Edo.

As you must be well aware,

even the Yagyu clan
fear these Escorts,

the three Hidari brothers,
Benma, Tenma and Kuruma.

The three of them are masters
of Takeuchi Style harness techniques,

Benma employs
an iron hand-claw.

Tenma uses a flying club.

And Kuruma
uses a chain-mailed fist.

They're infamous
for their expertise.

They're often called
the Gods of Death.

and they're known
to have killed many.

If the brothers succeed
in taking Makuya back to Edo,

the secret of Awa indigo would fall
into the hands of the Shogunate,

and disaster will befall our clan.

Please slay Makuya the headman,
and preserve the Awa clan.

Please...

Please, I beg of you.

The ship that is transporting
the three Escorts

should be entering the port of Akashi
by noon the day after tomorrow.

I ask that you board this ship.

It will be leaving at the dawn bell
of the following morning.

And now a double somersault
from the middle!

And now, continuous tumbling together!

Daigoro!

I am Sayaka Yagyu!

Daigoro...

Let's go!

Daddy...

I must kill Itto Ogami to restore
the reputation of the Yagyu clan!

He's a superb swordsman, so skilled that
he was chosen as Official Executioner.

It isn't possible to defeat him
using ordinary methods.

Ozunu...

Are you saying that Ogami's Sui-O
techniques are superior to ours?

I am very sorry,

but all of your clanswomen
have been killed,

and only two
of my Kurokuwa men are left.

That's why, if we were to kidnap
Itto's son, Daigoro...

We are the famed Yagyu clan!

How could we use
such cowardly tactics?

It's obvious he intends
to destroy the Yagyu clan,

in the hope of restoring honour
to his family through his son.

Even someone like Ogami
would lose hope and confidence

if his son were gone.

"Kill Itto Ogami at any cost,
by any means."

That was Lord Retsudo's order.

Daigoro?

So you've come, Itto Ogami.

Halt!

You Yagyu are despicable.

What do you plan to do
with the boy?

Our game is over.

Throw down your torso-cutting sword.

Come on, Ogami!

I refuse.

This is a bottomless well.

If I let go of him, he'll die.

Kill him if you must.

But I ask you, what for?

Have you Kurokuwa clansmen
become vassals of the Yagyu clan?

Your wife was slain
when you defied the Yagyu clan.

Now look at you,
you wander around like a stray dog!

My son and I have chosen a life of evil.
We are unlike normal people.

For this day...

...we have long been prepared.

If this is where we lose
everything we hold dear,

if this is what fate has decreed for us,
then we shall accept it!

Then let me ask you,

why did you come here, where
your son's life hangs by a thread?

Is it not because you want to save him,
because of your love for him?

It is foolish to simply accept
everything that happens.

One must try one's best
before bowing to fate!

Daigoro...

Your mother is waiting for you
at the River Styx.

Do you understand?

Daddy...

Daigoro...

It clasped me so tightly.

That's why it's called
the "Lair of the Octopus".

Attention!

Fares, please, from those passengers
who boarded at Akashi!

Brother...

They must be the pathetic hirelings
sent by the Awa clan.

As you have all witnessed,
we were forced to kill them.

They attacked us first.

Rest assured that we shall
report this to the authorities

when we arrive at the harbour
in Takamatsu.

Get rid of the bodies.

Dump them overboard if you wish.

You have a child with you?

Those bastard Hidari brothers.

I can't share a ship
with such ruthless men!

Let us stay inside your quarters!

Who knows what could happen
if they come near us?

What if they get us involved?

It makes me sick!

There's no way I'll let
you bastards get to Takamatsu.

This is a major job,
I got 200 gold pieces.

If I don't finish you off, the second
1 00 pieces will be up in smoke.

You just watch.

Forgive me for disturbing you,

but could you please return my knife?

Akashiya Soy Sauce

It's oil.

Disguised as soy sauce.

Which means that this must be
the Awa clan's doing as well.

Good, they're drinking sake.

That was a close shave.

I thought I was finished back there.

But just you watch this...

You'll have nowhere left to run.
You'll be roasted alive!

Fire!

We're used to dealing
with situations like this.

You, on the other hand,
are saddled with a child.

But just in case you do
get out of this alive,

Iet us say this to you.

We'll be entering Takamatsu
to escort a man out.

Then from Hikita, we'll pass
through the sand dunes of Oura

to get to the north harbour.

A ship should be waiting for us there
to return to Edo.

Stay out of our way.

We escorts would never harm anyone,
provided we're not attacked first.

However if anybody interferes with us,
then we show no mercy.

Do remember that.

Even if the meddler is a former
Shogunate Executioner.

I've heard of an assassin
called "Lone Wolf and Cub".

But if such an assassin can't escape
a fire, then what good is he?

Daigoro...

Hold tight, I'll follow you.

You bastard!

Daigoro...

We don't have a fire.

If we don't warm ourselves,
we'll freeze to death.

You want to save me?

And to save us as well.

Three will be warmer than two.

Brother, will the Awa clansmen attack us?

All I can see are the sand dunes.

There's nobody,
not a sign of life anywhere.

They will come.

When we eventually
deliver Makuya to Edo,

the Awa clan will lose
200,000 bushels of annual revenue.

They'll come,
prepared to shed blood.

Don't drop your guard.

-Kill Makuya!
-Kill him!

So you came after all.

Remarkable that you escaped
from the burning ship.

Regrettable that you'll be
throwing your life away

after having just saved it.

Ready.

You threw...your sword?

My neck...

My neck...

It sounds as if it's wailing.

The wound across the neck...

...that wails like a cold wintry wind.

The whistling of a wintry wind...

Just once did I wish
to slay someone...

...and hear that very sound.

How ironic it is
to hear it...

...from my own neck.

Out!

I am the assassin...

...Lone Wolf and Cub.

At your service!

The End