Movies Like When the Last Sword Is Drawn (2003)

When the Last Sword Is Drawn is a 2003 action, drama, history film from Yojiro Takita with a MovieMagicScore of 7.5/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Rurouni Kenshin Part II: Kyoto Inferno and The Sword of Doom.

Action Drama History

Rurouni Kenshin Part II: Kyoto Inferno

2014

Kenshin has settled into his new life with Kaoru and his other friends when he is approached with a request from the Meiji government. Makoto Shishio, a former assassin like Kenshin, was betrayed, set on fire and left for dead. He survived, and is now in Kyoto, plotting with his gathered warriors to overthrow the new government. Against Kaoru's wishes, Kenshin reluctantly agrees to go to Kyoto and help keep his country from falling back into civil war.

7.6

MagicScore

The Sword of Doom

1966

Ryunosuke, a gifted swordsman plying his trade during the turbulent final days of Shogunate rule, has no moral code and kills without remorse. It’s a way of life that leads to madness.

7.7

MagicScore

Shinsengumi: Assassins of Honor

1969

Near the end of the nineteenth century, as the balance of power shifts from Shogunate towards the Emperor, Japan restlessly awaits the dawning of a new age. But not all are content...The Shinsengumi, a small army of samurai, farmers and peasants, band together to do battle against the tide of history. Their leader, Isami Kondo is a man who rises from farmer to fighter to head the fierce Shinsengumi brigade. Using a stern hand and a heart of gold, he rallies his men in defense of the tottering Shogunate. But bloodshed and treachery lurk around every corner.

6.8

MagicScore

Samurai Assassin

1965

Japan, 1860. The men of the Mito clan, victims of the Ansei purge, anxiously prowl around the Sakurada Gate of Edo Castle with the intention of assassinating Naosuke Ii of Hikone, tairō of the Tokugawa shogunate and responsible for their misfortune.

7.3

MagicScore

Rurouni Kenshin Part I: Origins

2012

In 1868, after the Bakumatsu war ends, the ex-assassin Kenshin Himura traverses Japan with an inverted sword, to defend the needy without killing.

7.5

MagicScore

13 Assassins

2010

A bravado period action film set at the end of Japan's feudal era in which a group of unemployed samurai are enlisted to bring down a sadistic lord and prevent him from ascending to the throne and plunging the country into a war-torn future.

7.3

MagicScore

Samurai Marathon

2019

When feudal lord Itakura Katsuakira decides to prepare his samurai troops for the onslaught of modernization by having them compete in a marathon, his independent-minded daughter Yuki secretly joins the race.

6.0

MagicScore

Rurouni Kenshin: The Final

2021

In 1879, Kenshin and his allies face their strongest enemy yet: his former brother-in-law Enishi Yukishiro and his minions, who've vowed their revenge.

7.7

MagicScore

Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning

2021

Before he was a protector, Kenshin was a fearsome assassin known as Battosai. But when he meets gentle Tomoe Yukishiro, a beautiful young woman who carries a huge burden in her heart, his life will change forever.

7.7

MagicScore

#10

Rurouni Kenshin Part III: The Legend Ends

2014

Shishio sets sail in his ironclad ship to bring down the government. In order to stop him, Kenshin trains with his old master to learn his final technique.

7.7

MagicScore

#11

Harakiri

1962

Down-on-his-luck veteran Tsugumo Hanshirō enters the courtyard of the prosperous House of Iyi. Unemployed, and with no family, he hopes to find a place to commit seppuku—and a worthy second to deliver the coup de grâce in his suicide ritual. The senior counselor for the Iyi clan questions the ronin’s resolve and integrity, suspecting Hanshirō of seeking charity rather than an honorable end. What follows is a pair of interlocking stories which lay bare the difference between honor and respect, and promises to examine the legendary foundations of the Samurai code.

8.5

MagicScore

#12

Sanjuro

1962

Toshiro Mifune swaggers and snarls to brilliant comic effect in Kurosawa's tightly paced, beautifully composed "Sanjuro." In this companion piece and sequel to "Yojimbo," jaded samurai Sanjuro helps an idealistic group of young warriors weed out their clan's evil influences, and in the process turns their image of a proper samurai on its ear.

8.0

MagicScore

#13

The Twilight Samurai

2002

Seibei Iguchi leads a difficult life as a low ranking samurai at the turn of the nineteenth century. A widower with a meager income, Seibei struggles to take care of his two daughters and senile mother. New prospects seem to open up when the beautiful Tomoe, a childhood friend, comes back into he and his daughters' life, but as the Japanese feudal system unravels, Seibei is still bound by the code of honor of the samurai and by his own sense of social precedence. How can he find a way to do what is best for those he loves?

7.8

MagicScore

#14

The Hidden Blade

2004

Set in 19th Century Japan a young samurai who finds himself in love with a farm girl leaves his home to begin a new life. He has to take stock of his new life when he is put to the test and ordered to kill a traitor who just happens to be his dearest friend.

7.4

MagicScore

#15

Yojimbo

1961

A nameless ronin, or samurai with no master, enters a small village in feudal Japan where two rival businessmen are struggling for control of the local gambling trade. Taking the name Sanjuro Kuwabatake, the ronin convinces both silk merchant Tazaemon and sake merchant Tokuemon to hire him as a personal bodyguard, then artfully sets in motion a full-scale gang war between the two ambitious and unscrupulous men.

8.1

MagicScore

#16

Killing

2018

In Edo period Japan, a lone ronin lives in a village helping the farmers tend to their land. One day, a group of outlaw swordsmen enter the village.

7.2

MagicScore

#17

Love and Honor

2006

A look at the relationship between a young blind samurai and his wife, who will make a sacrifice in order to defend her husband's honor.

7.5

MagicScore

#18

47 Ronin

1994

Kon Ichikawa's retelling of the classic true story of Samurai honor. When a young clan lord is forced to commit seppuku (ritual suicide), his loyal followers (now Ronin, masterless Samurai) dedicate their lives to avenging his death.

7.5

MagicScore

#19

The Tale of Zatoichi

1962

The adventures of a blind, gambling masseur and master swordsman. Zatoichi targets a yakuza-controlled village, because war with a neighbouring town's smaller gang is brewing.

7.3

MagicScore

#20

Tenchu!

1969

A ronin desperately seeks a way out of financial straits; he allies with the Tosa clan under the ruthless leader Takechi, who quickly takes advantage.

6.9

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like When the Last Sword Is Drawn?

The top films similar to When the Last Sword Is Drawn by MovieMagicScore are Rurouni Kenshin Part II: Kyoto Inferno (7.6), The Sword of Doom (7.7), Shinsengumi: Assassins of Honor (6.8). Each shares action/drama/history themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is When the Last Sword Is Drawn worth watching?

When the Last Sword Is Drawn holds a MovieMagicScore of 7.5/10 from 111 viewer ratings, putting it among the better-reviewed titles in its genre.

What kind of movie is When the Last Sword Is Drawn?

When the Last Sword Is Drawn (2003) is a action, drama, history film directed by Yojiro Takita, starring Kiichi Nakai, Koichi Sato, Yui Natsukawa.

Where can I find more recommendations like When the Last Sword Is Drawn?

Browse the full ranked list above, or explore more action recommendations on MovieMagicScore, where every list is ordered by genuine viewer ratings.

Keep exploring

Movies like Rurouni Kenshin Part II: Kyoto Inferno Movies like The Sword of Doom Movies like Shinsengumi: Assassins of Honor Movies like Samurai Assassin Movies like Rurouni Kenshin Part I: Origins Movies like 13 Assassins

About movies like When the Last Sword Is Drawn

This ranked list pairs When the Last Sword Is Drawn (2003), a action and drama and history film from Yojiro Takita, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Kiichi Nakai take note). Unlike critic-driven sites, every position here is ordered by MovieMagicScore — a rating built only from real viewers, with no studio marketing or paid placement. Scores update as more people rate, so the list stays current.

← Back to When the Last Sword Is Drawn