A SAMURAI IN TIME: Pre-Orders Are Up For Junichi Yasuda’s Adoring Time Travel Samurai Flick
It’s not enough for me to talk about this film only a few times until getting to review it last year. Indeed, the release of writer/director Junichi Yasuda’s fantasy chanbara time-swap romp, A Samurai In Time, is getting the physical release on Blu-Ray that it deserves, and it’s going to be available next month wherever discs are sold.
More importantly is the fact that the Blu itself will be region free, for anyone lacking the systems required to universally accomodate Blus with different regional coding. Of course though, I wouldn’t be here pushing it if Yasuda and the good folks over at Third Window Films didn’t make it worth your while, and for a film I genuinely enjoyed. For a region free product with special features and limited edition slipcasing, you better believe they do.
With one strike of lightning, samurai Kosaka Shinzaemon accidentally teleports through time and finds himself in modern day Japan. However, his realisation doesn’t hit so quickly, because of all places, he happens to land on a period drama film set! After facing the director’s wrath for veering away from a script he has no idea about, Kosaka is saved by the kind assistant director Yuka. The samurai soon comes to terms with his troubling situation and learns to make a living as a kirareyaku, a swordsman whose job is to die spectacularly on film. Mesmerised by the world of showbiz, will Kosaka adapt to his new reality, or will the grudges of the Edo period war slice his life apart?
A Samurai in Time was made in memory of Seizo Fukumoto, Japan’s leading kirareyaku who died more than 50,000 times on camera and starred as the Silent Samurai in Last Samurai (2003). With Makiya Yamaguchi in the lead role, this fish-out-of-water comedy is one that’s sure to bring the laughs, while also paying homage to samurai cinema. Director Junichi Yasuda is also a man of many talents, who not only founded his production company MIRAIEIGASHA in 2014, but also took over his father’s rice farming business in 2023.
Yasuda directed A Samurai In Time with the backing of Toei Studios Kyoto to sanction production as the Covid-19 pandemic threatened to cripple the film. The director also wore multiple hats on set including editing, cinematography and lighting.
Actor Makiya Yamaguchi, is joined by Norimasa Fuke, and Yuno Sakura, along with Rantaro Mine, Yoshiharu Fukuda, Ichiko Kurenai, Ken Shonozaki, and Tsutomu Tamura, with sword sequences by seasoned veteran Itto Seike of the Toei Sword Club.
The film is currently playing in UK cinemas as part of the 2025 edition of the Japan Touring Film Programme until March 31, with Third Window releasing the Blu-Ray on April 28. The features hosted on disc include the following:
•Director Junichi Yasuda interview
• Deleted Scenes
• Makiya Yamaguchi and Yuno Sakura behind the scenes talk show
• Teaser Trailer
• Trailer
• Slipcase Edition (Limited to 2000 copies)
Visit Third Window Films for more info, or hop to your nearest browser’s search bar for a directory on where you can pre-order your copy today. I pre-ordered mine recently from Grindhouse Video myself, so you’re welcome to follow suit if you like.
