“Kagemusha” (影武者), 1980 Japanese 19 × 41 Rare Advance Poster (Printed Cast Signatures Variant), Poster Size (c. 48 × 104 cm) O599

This is an original Japanese 19 × 41 inch‑format advance (teaser) poster issued in 1980 for Akira Kurosawa’s epic Kagemusha (影武者, “Shadow Warrior”)—a landmark late‑period Kurosawa production famously championed internationally by Francis Ford Coppola (alongside George Lucas) as executive producers, helping bring the film to the world stage in the wake of Kurosawa’s financing struggles in the 1970s.
This version is the scarcer advance style with printed cast “signatures” at the bottom (these are printed as part of the original design, not hand‑signed).

Film background
Kagemusha is one of Kurosawa’s great meditations on power, image, and identity: a lowly thief is forced to become the double for a feared warlord, holding a clan together by embodying a presence that can no longer be real. The film’s subject—a man living as a shadow of authority—made it an instant classic of historical cinema, and an essential pillar of Kurosawa’s late masterpieces.

Just as importantly for collectors, it represents a rare, storied moment of auteur solidarity: Coppola’s involvement (with Lucas) links Kurosawa’s grand Japanese period tradition to the prestige machinery of New Hollywood, creating one of cinema’s most celebrated cross‑Pacific collaborations.

Poster design
A near‑monochrome masterwork of chiaroscuro and restraint: a monumental armored figure stands in fog, rendered as pure black silhouette, with the title calligraphy 「影武者」 subtly embedded across the body—an elegant visual echo of the film’s central idea (the man inside the role). A single vertical credit block—「黒澤明監督作品」 (“A film by Akira Kurosawa”)—adds museum‑clean authority.

The finishing touch, unique to this variant, is the striking cluster of printed cast autograph‑style signatures at the lower edge, like a ceremonial endorsement—turning an already minimalist teaser into a piece that feels almost like a commemorative programme cover.

Rarity and condition
The 19 × 41 format is itself uncommon and far scarcer than standard Japanese B2 paper, made for prominent theatrical display in a tall, architectural presentation. The printed‑signatures variant is especially desirable, widely regarded as the harder version to obtain compared to the no‑signature (“text‑less”) style.

Condition is very good overall, with signs of original use consistent with age and cinema handling (light creasing/handling wear and minor edge wear visible in the photos; typical wear on the reverse). Not linen‑backed. Please inspect the photos carefully as they show the exact poster for sale.

It is over 40 years old.
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.
Certificate of Authenticity included.