Plot
In 16th century Japan, the aging prince Hidetora Ichimonji decides to divide the empire he built in a lifetime of hard work between his sons Taro, Jiro and Saburo. The eldest, Taro, receives the important first castle and becomes the new head of the Ichimonji clan. The other two sons receive the second and third castles and are supposed to support their brother. However, Hidetora wants to keep the title of “Grand Duke” (Daimyō). Hidetora wants to illustrate the strength of this alliance by showing that a bundle of three arrows cannot be broken, unlike a single arrow. However, Saburo manages to break the three arrows and calls his father's idea stupid.
When Saburo continues to criticize his father's plan - after all, he built his empire on treachery and intrigue and now expects his sons not to do exactly that - the angry Hidetora banishes his son and his advisor Tango, who had defended Saburo.
After Hidetora's resignation, Taro's wife Kaede begins to influence him and ask him to take direct, complete control over the clan. Kaede is vengeful because the old Grand Duke wiped out her family in a previous war and stole her parents' castle. Therefore, she tries to manipulate her husband in order to create a rift between him and Hidetora. The opportunity arises when Hidetora shoots one of Taro's guards because she wants to kill the court jester Kyoami because of a cheeky comment. Taro then urges his father to also give up the title of “Grand Duke”. Enraged by this demand, Hidetora leaves the first castle. He travels to the second castle, which is under the command of Jiro. However, Jiro is more interested in using his father in a game of intrigue than actually helping him. During his time at the second castle, Hidetora meets Jiro's wife, Lady Sué. A large part of her family was also killed by Hidetora. However, Sué forgave him after she became a Buddhist.
Hidetora travels with his personal bodyguard to the third castle, which was abandoned by the banished son Saburo. Hidetora is attacked there by the armies of Taro and Jiro. His bodyguard and his concubines are killed in the battle and the castle is set on fire. Hidetora remains in the castle and wants to commit seppuku. However, his sword is broken and so he is unable to do so. He falls into madness and leaves the burning castle. When Taro and Jiro's soldiers finally storm the castle, Taro is shot in the back by Jiro's general Kurogane.
Hidetora is eventually found by Tango and Kyoami, wandering aimlessly in the wilderness. They join Hidetora and remain as his only followers. They seek shelter in a farmer's hut and discover that it is Sué's brother Tsurumaru, whose eyes were gouged out by Hidetora years ago. Like his sister, he also tries to free himself from hatred by praying to Buddha, but cannot forget the Grand Duke's deeds.
After returning from battle, Jiro begins an affair with Kaede, who soon has a major influence on him. She demands that Jiro leave his wife Sué. When Jiro agrees to a divorce in order to marry Kaede, she demands that Sué be killed and her head brought to her. Kurogane is tasked with the murder, but he silently acknowledges Kaede's order and later warns Jiro about his new wife. In a key scene in the film, he snubs Kaede: He brings her a stone fox's head in a bundle of fabric instead of Sué's hoped-for head. Kaede rages because Kurogane tells her and Jiro that he thinks she is an evil animal demon.
Meanwhile, Hidetora's group hides in the ruins of Sué and Tsurumaru's family's burned-down castle. Tango tries to convince him to seek protection from his outcast son Saburo. But Hidetora resists this for fear of losing face and having to admit that Saburo was right. Therefore, Tango has no choice but to take Saburo to the hideout and he leaves the confused old man in the care of Kyoami. Hidetora becomes increasingly aware of the atrocities he committed to consolidate his power. This eventually becomes too much for him and he flees from hiding.
In search of Hidetora, Saburo's army invades his old lands again. Concerned by this approach and alarmed by his brother's alliances with other warlords, Jiro sends his numerically superior army to intercept him. The armies meet on Hachiman Field. Saburo's new ally, the warlord Fujimaki, also marches to the border to be able to assist him in an emergency. Another rival warlord, Ayabe, is also taking up positions on the border. On Kaede's advice, Jiro initially agrees on a ceasefire and safe conduct to Hidetora, with the ulterior motive of then luring the search party into an ambush. Jiro nevertheless orders an attack on Saburo's army. However, his units are decimated by his arquebuses. During the battle, Jiro and his general Kurogane are informed that Ayabe's army is marching towards the first castle. Jiro's army immediately retreats uncontrollably. While Jiro's army defends against Ayabe's attacking forces, a rider brings Sué's head. Then General Kurogane, who had refused to kill Sué, rushes to Kaede. She reveals that she had planned the fall of the House of Ichimonji for a long time out of revenge motives, whereupon the general kills her.
Saburo finally finds Hidetora in a hole in the ground. He comes back to his senses and the two reconcile. However, Saburo is shot in ambush by Jiro's soldiers. Hidetora fades from grief and also dies. Jiro and Kurogane likely end up fighting a losing battle in the course of the fight with Ayabe's army.
The film ends with the image of the blind Tsurumaru standing abandoned on the wall of his ancestral ruined castle, having lost a scroll with a golden image of the Buddha Amida that his sister Sué had previously given him for protection.
Source: Wikipedia
