The Classic Shōgun

• Directed by Jerry London
• September 15, 1980 to September 19, 1980
• Based on James Clavell’s 1975 novel Shōgun
• NBC

Starring So Much Talent

• Narrator-Orson Welles
• Pilot-Major John Blackthorne “Anjin-san”-Richard Chamberlain
• Yoshi Toranaga, Lord of the Kwanto-Toshiro Mifune
• Lady Toda Buntaro “Mariko”-Yoko Shimada
• Lord Kashigi Yabu, Daimyo of Izu-Frankie Sakai
• Father Dell’Aqua-Alan Badel
• Friar Domingo-Michael Hordern
• Father Martin Alvito-Damien Thomas
• Vasco Rodrigues-John Rhys-Davies
• Captain Ferreira-Vladek Sheybal
• Johann Vinck-George Innes
• Father Sebastio-Leon Lissek
• Kashigi Omi, Head Samurai of Anjiro-Yūki Meguro
• Lord Toda Buntaro-Hideo Takamatsu
• Usagi Fujiko-Hiromi Senno    
• Ishido Kazunari, Ruler of Osaka Castle-Nobuo Kaneko

Featuring So Much Talent

• Jan Pieterzoon-Edward Peel
• Maetsukker-Eric Richard
• Roper-Steve Ubels
• Croocq-Stewart MacKenzie
• Ginsel-John Carney
• Salamon-Ian Jentle
• Spillbergen-Neil McCarthy
• Specz-Morgan Sheppard
• Muraji-Seiji Miyaguchi
• Toda Hiromatsu-Toru Abe
• Kiku-Mika Kitagawa
• Yoshi Naga-Shin Takuma
• Galley Captain-Hiroshi Hasegawa
• Old Gardener-Akira Sera
• Jirobei Hyoei-Enoki
• Kiri-Miiko Taka
• Sono-Midori Takei
• Rako-Ai Matsubara
• Asa-Yumiko Morishita
• Yoshinaka-Rinichi Yamamoto
• Sazuko-Yuko Kada
• Brother Michael-Masumi Okada
• Zataki-Yosuke Natsuki
• Urano-Takeshi Obayashi
• Gyoko-Yoshie Kitsuda
• Suga-Masashi Ebara
• Genjiko-Setsuko Sekine
• Lady Ochiba-Atsuko Sano

Englishman John Blackthorne’s experiences and political intrigues in feudal Japan.

At one point a miniseries was not only epic in scale but truly an event. A complete story from start to finish that you needed to invest some time in and not just a long film broken into two parts. Shōgun was an event that was appointment television when such a thing existed. The narrative is sweeping and complex. It has probably been 30 or so years since I’ve seen this last. And then I think I only caught part of Shōgun when it was rerun on some cable network so this viewing is as fresh to me as it could be without having never seen it.

As a story it is a work of historical fiction inspired by some fact. It mixes real events and people with imagination. The central character, while fictional, is based on a real person. Richard Chamberlain, often referred to as “King of the Miniseries”, stars as Pilot-Major John Blackthorne who is called Anjin-san by the Japanese since they have difficult with his given name. Blackthorne finds himself caught in the politics of Japan of the time.

On the one side he is under the kind yet dubious protection of Lord of the Kwanto Yoshi Toranaga (played by the legendary Toshiro Mifune) who sees something useful in him. He must also deal with the powerful Jesuit Order that immediately dislike Blackthorne because he is a Protestant rather than a Catholic. Toss into that the wealth derived from the Portuguese trade and the threat the presence of anyone not Portuguese represents and the situation becomes very dangerous with allegiances never really clearcut.

At the core of the story is the romance between Blackthorne and Lady Mariko (Yoko Shimada). It is a love doomed from the start and one that involves more than it seems. This is feudal Japan and much of what occurs is built around the complexity of the society of the time. Bigotry and biases on all sides make the plot more complex and the situation more difficult for the characters to move through.Performances aside, what I appreciated was that the eventual love scene was the payoff to the romance and not a shortcut to show they loved each other. It is a romance crafted through dialogue and actions. You believe that these two are in love. Shōgun never engages in lazy storytelling.

Blackthorne is a smart character and from the start knows the Jesuits are not being straight with him but is initially stuck with their speaking for him. The thing is he eventually meets a Spaniard named Vasco Rodrigues (John Rhys-Davies) who has no love for the Jesuits himself yet does not take the opportunity to compare notes when he can. Then again we might have shaved a hour or two off if he did.

John Rhys-Davies was on his way up in his career and demonstrated why he became memorable in later roles. The man still good but he just had a little extra magic here. His character is a charming rogue. As dangerous as he is friendly. He makes Rodrigues the kind of guy you want around you for a good time but not somebody you can necessarily 100% trust. 90% trust but not 100%.

I could go on with actor after actor who gave us complex and realistic individuals. Shōgun was done compellingly and intelligently with an aim towards authenticity. This was filmed largely on location. To the best of my knowledge very little was a set. This was in the days before CGI was a tool so this feels so much more real. Some have complained that not enough depth was given to the Japanese characters. I call bulls**t on that. They were not central to the story since Blackthorne was the main character yet given serious depth and motivation for supporting players.

Maybe I did something wrong with my Blu-ray but at no point do you see subtitles making you as lost as Blackthorne. There is some narration when necessary by Orson Welles so whatever comes next makes sense. But largely you are left to understand things via the non-English speaking characters based on their actions you see as well as those actions filtered through characters. It is an effective technique that that invests you in the story by forcing you to pay attention.

They make it clear that one wrong move will seriously screw Blackthorne over. Individual characters clearly have their own motivations and not all of them will benefit our central figure. Some could even prove quite lethal to him. Chamberlain for his part makes an intelligent character who you wish to see you succeed. He is charming and engaging.

Blackthorne finds himself in the good graces of Toranaga by being himself but being himself as appropriate for the audience. He does not lie and is authentic while carefully taking into account when he sees. He demonstrates intelligence and most importantly loyalty which is a valued commodity in the current political climate. There is a great deal of instability and trusted allies appear hard to come by.

This was a technical achievement for the time. We get a rather effective beheading (a TV first) early in the production as well as a urination scene (another TV first). Those two moments made it stick in my young brain. On a side note it was pure luck I was able to see either moment side my mother was the type to block my eyes when something objectionable would show up. I was beyond the reach of her arms. Plus given TV censorship at the time such elements would be completely unexpected.

I still find the earthquake scene impressive. It was unheard of to see such a thing outside of a set but here it looks to be done largely if not entirely on location. Again an impressive accomplishment without CGI.

The production is beautiful and the costuming is just amazing. I guess it pays to do the production in the country the story takes place in. This is some really beautiful looking stuff. They do an excellent job of presenting a place and way of life unfamiliar to the main character that is slowly made discernible to the viewer. With a sense of grandeur and epic scale, yet largely lacking in action, this still manages to hold you.

I don’t know if there’s a necessarily an anti-religious view in this, but the Jesuits being cast largely as villains in this certainly is not favorable to religion. They are treated often as schemers and manipulators. Father Martin Alvito (Damien Thomas) is the one Blackthorne often finds himself dealing with. I started out really hating the guy since he came off as a d**k but you realize his motivations and issues are as complex and difficult as those of Blackthorne.

There is aside from the elements of culture clash themes of loyalty. Trust is an important element of the story to sense. Trust isn’t a blanket thing for anyone, but rather something that depends on the particular situation. You could trust a person at one moment, but because of social duties or something else you cannot be comfortable around them in another instance.

I remember watching this and being impressed and I was very young at the time. With limited experience I hadn’t seen anything quite like it before and I went into this wondering if it would still hold up after all these years. It does. This was made when the word “miniseries” meant something. This was a genuine television series with a beginning, middle, and end.

Shōgun is something that doesn’t get made with this level quality anymore. I don’t know about the latest version and how that will turn out but I know this is fantastic and most certainly worth your time. Find it wherever you can.