KAGEMUSHA: SHADOW WARRIOR (1980) MOVIE POSTER, DAYBILL
Size AU Daybill Post-War (13" x 30")
Kagemusha: Shadow Warrior (1980) Original Daybill Movie Poster, Japanese Historical Epic, Starring Tatsuya Nakadai, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Directed by Akira Kurosawa, is in Very Fine+ Condition. Movie Poster and Condition Condition:...
Kagemusha: Shadow Warrior (1980) Original Daybill Movie Poster, Japanese Historical Epic, Starring Tatsuya Nakadai, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Directed by Akira Kurosawa, is in Very Fine+ Condition.
Movie Poster and Condition
Condition: This Original Daybill is presented in Very fine+ condition, Folded twice as issued. Ink rating stamp bottom right side. See images for general condition. This Poster is currently stored folded and will be shipped in an acid free polyprop bag with acid free backing board. This original daybill poster represents one of Akira Kurosawa's most celebrated masterpieces and Palme d'Or winner from 1980. The poster features the stunning visual artistry that captures the epic scope and feudal grandeur of this samurai epic film, showcasing the meticulous period detail that made Kagemusha a cinematic masterpiece.
Movie Synopsis
Kagemusha: Shadow Warrior (1980) is Akira Kurosawa's magnificent historical epic that tells the tale of a petty thief who bears an uncanny resemblance to Takeda Shingen, a powerful 16th-century Japanese warlord. Tatsuya Nakadai delivers a tour de force performance in the dual role of both the dying warlord and the kagemusha (shadow warrior) who must impersonate him to keep the clan united and their enemies at bay.
Set in feudal Japan during the Sengoku period, the story begins when the legendary warlord Takeda Shingen is mortally wounded by a sniper. To prevent rival clans from learning of his death and attacking the vulnerable Takeda clan, his generals recruit a convicted thief who bears a striking physical resemblance to their fallen leader. Initially reluctant, the thief gradually becomes consumed by the role, transforming from a petty criminal into a complex figure haunted by the responsibilities of leadership.
The exceptional cast includes Tsutomu Yamazaki as the cunning brother Nobukado, Kenichi Hagiwara as Shingen's son Katsuyori, Jinpachi Nezu as the loyal retainer Sohachiro Tsuchiya, and veteran Kurosawa actor Takashi Shimura in his final collaboration with the director. The film also features Kaori Momoi and Mitsuko Baisho as the women in Shingen's household who must navigate the dangerous deception.
Kurosawa's meticulous attention to historical detail is evident throughout the film's production design by Yoshirō Muraki, which earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Art Direction. The elaborate battle sequences, featuring hundreds of extras in authentic period armour, showcase Kurosawa's unparalleled ability to choreograph large-scale action while maintaining intimate character development.
The film explores profound themes about identity, power, and the nature of leadership through the lens of Japanese history. As the kagemusha becomes increasingly absorbed in his role, he begins to believe he truly is the great warlord, leading to tragic consequences when reality inevitably intrudes upon his illusion.
Kagemusha represents a triumphant return to form for Kurosawa after several difficult years in his career. The film's success was aided by the support of international admirers George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola, who helped secure funding for the production. This international collaboration allowed Kurosawa to create his most visually spectacular work since Seven Samurai.
The film achieved remarkable critical acclaim, winning the Palme d'Or at the 1980 Cannes Film Festival (tied with All That Jazz) and receiving nominations for two Academy Awards (Best Art Direction and Best Foreign Language Film). The film won the César Award in 1981 for Best Foreign Film, cementing its status as one of cinema's greatest achievements.
Featuring breathtaking cinematography and Kurosawa's signature use of colour and composition, Kagemusha stands as both a meditation on the illusory nature of power and a spectacular showcase of Japanese period filmmaking at its absolute finest.
To find out more about Kagemusha: Shadow Warrior (1980) click here to go to IMDB.com.
Special Notes
Images may have a small 'MPA' digital watermark and this does not appear on the poster. Posters are being held by magnets in the corners to take photographs, so you may see some magnet and shadows from the magnets in these areas. The magnets are not included in the sale of the item.
Postage, Insurance & Your Country Taxes
Postage costs are quoted for this item, include insurance up to AUD$100, but if you reside outside of Australia, the price does not include any import taxes/fees that you may be required to pay when the item reaches your borders. Please check with your local authorities for any additional taxes or fees. If you would like full insurance coverage for your purchase, please message me and I would be happy to quote the additional cost (estimate is AUD$2.50 p/AUD$100 or 2.5% of the item value, up to a maximum item value of AUD$5,000).
FAQ
At Movie Posters Australia, the love and conservation of movie posters comes first, and we like to share this passion. Our commitment to quality means we will provide high quality memorabilia to our customers. Posters are carefully chosen and authenticated to ensure originality and value. We want our customers to trust MPA, so we always try to be as open and transparent as we can, provide detailed condition information and images, to ensure customers are comfortable and confident in their purchase.
While the industry does have a few condition rating standards, there is no movie poster condition rating system that has become the accepted standard world wide. This unfortunately makes condition terms vary from movie poster dealer to movie poster dealer. Terms like Mint, Near Mint, Very Fine, Fine, Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor, seem to be universal to most condition rating standards, but most standards still lack definition about what and how many flaws/defects/damage defines a specific condition level. For more information on how Movie Posters Australia grades the condition of its movie posters, daybills, lobby cards and other ephemera please see out Movie Poster Condition and Grading page.
In the early days of cinema, posters were primarily hand-drawn and printed in various sizes, often tailored to fit the available space in theaters or promotional areas. In the United States, the "One Sheet" size (some times called '1 Sheet' or '1SH' approximately 27" x 41", became the standard during the 1930s. This size was manageable for theater display and suited the needs of a growing film industry.
Different countries developed their own poster sizes and styles, which also changed sometimes over the decades, and were influenced by local preferences and practical considerations, like available paper sheet sizes and how many posters could be printed on one sheet.
In Australia, the most popular size, the Daybill, has evolved over the decades. Australian Daybills sizes in chronological order are:
- Long Daybills (15" x 40"), from 1920's to pre-WW2 or pre-1941, were printed two to a sheet, longer than current Daybill versions. There were size variances in width from 14.5" to 15" and in height from 39.5" to 40".
- War Time Daybill (10" x 30"), during WW2, for a short time to conserve paper during a war time shortage, four Daybills were printed on one sheet. Information from Press Sheets also referred to these War-Time sizes as "New Size Daybills".
- Post-War Daybill (13" x 30"), this 13" x 30" Post-War size carried through until the 1980's, but also varied in size from 13"-14" x 29.75"-30.25".
- Post-80's Daybill (33cm x 66cm, or 13" x 26"), over a few years in the late 80's, the size changed again to a metric 33cm x 66cm, although these have also varied from 32-33cm x 64.5-66cm. New sizes from the late 80's were created, sometimes called a Mini Daybill or Mini Poster, in 9" x 12", 11" x 17" and 13" x 20".
In the UK, the somewhat unique 'Quad' poster, measuring 30" x 40", became popular, offering a larger landscape format that allowed for more elaborate designs.
In Japan, movie poster sizes were smaller, such as the "B2" (20" x 28"), which suited the more compact living environment of larger cities, smaller advertising spaces, and unique aesthetic sensibilities.
The 1970s and 1980s, witnessed the rise of the "six-sheet" (81" x 81") format, reflecting a trend towards larger and more visually impactful advertising.
Overall, the variation in movie poster sizes across different countries and decades highlights the interplay between technological printing advancements, paper resource availability, paper sheet size changes, cultural preferences, and the evolving nature of movie marketing.
At Movie Posters Australia we tag each poster we sell with a 'size' and 'condition' description at the very top of the page for our customers to easily see. There may however be some slight variations to sizes by up one inch due to variations in production and guillotine methods by printers over the decades.