this film along with the five others follows the exploits and adventures of a wandering assassin and his young son. Having lost his wife, his job and his honour, Ogami Itto (the protagonist) has sworn vengeance on the Yagyu clan who caused his downfall.
Ogami follows a strict personal code ( nihilistic mix of Zen and Bushido) and is a complex central character. On the one hand living only for revenge, on the other he acts with seeming compassion and nobility.
In this installment, Ogami Itto battles against a heavily tattooed female asassin.
The films are graphically violent, but so obviously the product of a different culture, that at its worst it is more ludicrous than offensive .