The story follows munezo. Directed by yôji yamada. With masatoshi nagase, takako matsu, hidetaka yoshioka, yukiyoshi ozawa. A 19th century samurai, held in low esteem due. Webthe samurai rescues a woman (matsu takako) who's being abused in her married life, but as a silent romance blossoms between them, his corrupt superiors challenge the. Webthe samurai movie the hidden blade is set in the early 1860s, contiguous with the civil war on the other side of the pacific. There's a poetic symmetry in the timing.