Action,Drama,Comedy
Japan
Scabbard Samurai is a 2011 Japanese drama film directed by Hitoshi Matsumoto and starring Takaaki Nomi, Sea Kumada, and Takashi Sasano. The film follows the story of Kanjuro Nomi (played by Takaaki Nomi), an aged samurai who has been reduced to carrying around an empty scabbard and his daughter Tae (played by Sea Kumada) after he deserts his lord. He is captured by the lord's men and sentenced to death. However, he is given a chance to live if he can bring a smile to the face of the young prince who has been mourning the loss of his mother.
Kanjuro Nomi and his daughter take on the challenge, but struggle to find ways to make the prince smile. They try everything from performing music, telling jokes, and even staging a fake kidnapping, but nothing seems to work. As the days tick by, Kanjuro realizes that he has only a short time left to live and decides to take a drastic measure. He decides to build a giant machine that will bring the prince's mother back to life.
Kanjuro, with the help of his daughter and a local carpenter, builds the machine in secret and presents it to the prince. The prince is hesitant at first, but as the machine begins to work, he starts to smile. However, Kanjuro's plan backfires when the prince becomes addicted to using the machine to bring his mother back to life over and over again.
In the end, Kanjuro's sentence is lifted, but he chooses to take his own life to punish himself for his failure to bring real happiness to the prince. The film is a poignant exploration of the importance of joy, and how far people will go to attain it.
