Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance: Kenji Misumi does not pretend he has anything but a pulpy chanbara in his hands; the story told is simple (even if he makes it more interesting using multiple flashbacks to flesh out the main character and his story), but the character at its center is interesting in his complexity. It’s a solid, mostly quiet performance by Tomisaburoo Wakayama as the stoic hero in an over-the-top world; pretty much every one else betrays the origin of the material with large, mustache-twirling type of performances (often literally). The action is violent (in a cartoonish, absurd way), quick and dirty. Everything is reasonably well put-together (except the make-up, that also looks quick and dirty).