AllMovie

This documentary feature explores the martial-arts world of modern Japan in the late 1970s. The 15 million students of disciplines ranging from Judo (unarmed fighting) to Kyudo (bow-shooting), as well as the innumerable experts in esoteric weaponry are discussed, and the meaning and nature of the training they receive is explored. Though it is now commonly understood that the martial arts are offered as much for the development of spiritual discipline as for military or athletic prowess, this film had some impact in broadening that perception.