Rating: 
Summary: Good attempt, not up to DVD quality
Review: As every school of Japanese sword training has different techniques, I cannot criticize the abilities of any of the demonstrators. They do seem to know their styles. The presentation, multiple angles and explanations are done well. I was surprised that the gentleman demonstrating cutting did not have his saya tied into his hakama, but he did a good job explaining the basics he wanted to cover.The information presented gives a brief overview of the history of the samurai. There are many other excellent sources of information on Japanese martial arts, including: Donn Draeger's Comprehensive Asian Fighting Arts (available at a nice price through amazon.com); some of Diane Skoss' books (also available here); koryubudo.com and shutokukan.org The key to any martial arts training is to train with a legitimate sensei. The only way to truly learn the way of the sword is to continually practice. Watching this video is a good introduction, but without someone to watch your form, you will not know if you are developing bad habits or doing something wrong. I would have given this DVD 4 stars if it had included a chapter search and if the video quality was better. The material covered was worth the price.
Rating:
Summary: Good attempt, not up to DVD quality
Review: As every school of Japanese sword training has different techniques, I cannot criticize the abilities of any of the demonstrators. They do seem to know their styles. The presentation, multiple angles and explanations are done well. I was surprised that the gentleman demonstrating cutting did not have his saya tied into his hakama, but he did a good job explaining the basics he wanted to cover. The information presented gives a brief overview of the history of the samurai. There are many other excellent sources of information on Japanese martial arts, including: Donn Draeger's Comprehensive Asian Fighting Arts (available at a nice price through amazon.com); some of Diane Skoss' books (also available here); koryubudo.com and shutokukan.org The key to any martial arts training is to train with a legitimate sensei. The only way to truly learn the way of the sword is to continually practice. Watching this video is a good introduction, but without someone to watch your form, you will not know if you are developing bad habits or doing something wrong. I would have given this DVD 4 stars if it had included a chapter search and if the video quality was better. The material covered was worth the price.
Rating: 
Summary: For those who really want to learn..... this is the one
Review: As mentioned in the other reviews, the publishers of this volume simply (and I do mean simply) copied a videotape of medium to low resolution and authored a DVD with a single menu item - PLAY. The image quality is so bad in parts that it is difficult to discerne what's going on in the video, and the explanations about what the instructor is doing are sparse, if any are given at all. Perhaps when the original video was mastered there wasn't much out there in the way of Japanese sword instruction. If this is still the case, then there is a good market for some quality instruction and creative authoring.
Rating: 
Summary: Mistaken Identity
Review: As mentioned in the other reviews, the publishers of this volume simply (and I do mean simply) copied a videotape of medium to low resolution and authored a DVD with a single menu item - PLAY. The image quality is so bad in parts that it is difficult to discerne what's going on in the video, and the explanations about what the instructor is doing are sparse, if any are given at all. Perhaps when the original video was mastered there wasn't much out there in the way of Japanese sword instruction. If this is still the case, then there is a good market for some quality instruction and creative authoring.
Rating:
Summary: ...
Review: During the first 5 minutes of the video, they rush thrugh a brief and lame compilation of facts about the samurai, then the video features a long and boring colection of stances and kata. (the boring part is the undidactic way to present them, not the katas and stances themselves) Limited detail is observed and it has no explanations given. The quality of the image is ok, I guess you can learn a lot from this video if you are a begginer and need the basics.
Rating:
Summary: Learning much,,,
Review: I would just like to say this Dvd is very instructional and informative. As a new practioner I found it to be very user friendly. I am impressed and glad that I made the investment.
Rating:
Summary: a must see
Review: If you?re interested in swords or practice any of the Japanese Sword arts, this video is a must-see. It explains kata and techniques in great detail and now I know much, much more than when I started. This is the standard by which all others will be compared.
Rating:
Summary: this dvd sux big time!!!!!!!!
Review: this dvd is a waste of time. it's just a rip off.
i do muso shinden ryu iaido n i have to say the techniques are all excecuted without zanshin at all. he seems to be rushing thru his techniques.....can't wait to get to the bank to cash in, perhaps?????
the tameshigiri part was okay tho. to the guy who was doing the cutting, parctice more. as i know the chopped parts aren't suppose to go into orbit, its supposed to alide off after a slight pause.
but i have to say i liked the old footage of the japanese doing the katas, wished there was more footage of that.
the final word is.....it might be captivating to biginners and people who do not have knowledge in iaido.....but not to those who have the knowledge.
ps....i wanted to givr a lower rating, but unfortunately the lowest i can givr is 1 star.
Rating:
Summary: The art of the samurai revealed to all
Review: This dvd shows sword techniques and kata clearly and slowly that are traditional and effective.This is the real deal. When you practice the kata presented in this dvd your mind really does become one with the sword.It is wonderful that this type information is available to anyone with an interest to learn such an ancient art.
Rating:
Summary: For those who really want to learn..... this is the one
Review: This is an impressive DVD...if you are really interested in learning sword technique and kata this is the dvd for you. It may not have the "hollywood" make believe flambouancy that we see on the motion picture film screen, but it does have real technique for those who have the patience to learn. Any martial artist knows it takes patience, practice and repetition to become skillful. If you are looking for purely entertainment go to the movies if you want to learn swordsmanship buy this dvd.
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