Based on the life of William Adams, I have used this movie in my teaching so that my students can get an image of what they are reading and hearing about. The photography is fantastic and the performances are excellent. John Rhys-Davies is stellar and I cannot picture Blackthorne in any other way other than Chamberlain. The information is historically accurate and follows the book very closely, as expected with the author as exec. producer. The movie leaves you with a good feel of the beginning of the Tokugawa Shogunate, the political intrigues of Feudal Japan as well as the Catholic church. You will leave this series feeling satisfied and educated.