A sword fight is indispensable for historical dramas.The lead samurai cutting down the enemy in an elegant, dignified series of movements is always a sight to behold. The techniques shown in these exciting sequences are called, “tate�. They are a genuine piece of Japanese culture performed in all kinds of battle scenes, such as those on stage plays, TV dramas and Japanese movies.When you look in a dictionary, the meaning of “tate� is “stage fighting in brawls or with swords, in stage plays and movies� Movements come in fixed forms, which are memorized and combined by many actors to create a flashy sword fight.
