One of the most thrilling and disturbing samurai epics ever made, Sword of Doom is both a mind-blowing art film and a superb action movie. At the centre of this brooding dissection of samurai culture is the spectacle of a soul going rotten in an era without values. It features a masterful performance from Tatsuya Nakadai, breathtaking wide-screen photography and a number of magisterial fight sequences. Director Kihachi Okamoto’s film maintains an iron grip throughout and culminates in a denouement of staggering bleakness and audacity. Sword of Doom haunts the imagination long after the final credits have rolled.