Akira kurosawa great director profile senses of cinema. The incomparable toshiro mifune stars in akira kurosawas visually stunning and darkly comic yojimbo. After training as a painter he storyboards his films as full scale paintings, kurosawa entered the film industry in. Oct 10, 2019 akira kurosawa was born in tokyo on march 23, 1910. Toshiro mifune in yojimbo by master of cinema, akira. Yojimbo, akira kurosawa, 1961 mifune kicks ass scene youtube. Sanjuro 1962, by akira kurosawa by actingout politics. So you could say that sanjuro was the only sequel ever willingly kurosawa made. Yojimbo sanjuro the criterion collection thanks to perhaps the most indelible character in akira kurosawas oeuvre, yojimbo surpassed even seven samurai in popularity when it was released. The movie is full of action which keeps most viewers entertained, but it is also home to a stunning story of truth, justice, and consequences.
To rid a terrorstricken village of corruption, wily masterless samurai sanjuro turns a range war between two evil clans to his own advantage. The director, kurosawa, focuses on the difficulty in knowing what human nature is really like, as it goes through the different perspectives of the characters in the story. Kurosawa made it less dramatic and intense by adding more comedy and a bit more in the form of 9 rebellious young men who are led by sanjuro. Remade twice, by sergio leone and walter hill, this exhilarating genretwister remains one of the most influential and entertaining films of all time. Throughout the film sanjuro sits in the corner of the room dispensing insults and asking for food and drink, while the samurai are full of anxiety and fear. As much as seven samurai captured the spirit of the western genreparticularly the films of john ford, kurosawas favorite american directoryojimbo above and below sees the director in full on western mode, from the heroic entrance if the protagonist onward. He took a script he had written before yojimbo and reworked it to include the main character. Yojimbo was such a smash hit that kurosawa took the unusual step of making a sequel the following year. Though sanjuro is a very different film from yojimbo, kurosawa includes enough callbacks to draw cheers of recognition from audiences hoping for yojimbo ii. Audio commentaries by kurosawa scholar stephen prince. Kurosawa was pressured by his producers into directing this sequel to yojimbo, and rose to the occasion by making his funniest and least overtly didactic film. I think is my 3 and halfth kurosawan movie after rashomon1950, ran1985 and half of madadayo1993.
Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, kurosawa directed 30 films in a career spanning 57 years. The story of the wandering ronin is back once again with the akira kurosawas underrated 1962 gem sanjuro, a sequel to the wonderful film yojimbo. Kurosawa, ultimately took over the job of directing the film, which he never intended. Denjiro okochi, susumu fujita, yukiko todoroki, ryunosuke tsukigata. The following is a list of works, both in film and other media, for which the japanese. A number of akira kurosawas films have been remade note. Jun 10, 20 if sanjuro was merely a fun romp, kurosawa could have ended the movie right there, but even the lightest kurosawa movies have some message attached. List of creative works by akira kurosawa wikipedia. This time it is a akiro kurosawas 1962 japanese movie, sanjuro. His welltodo family can trace its lineage as far back as the 11th century, and the young kurosawa was taught early on that he was a descendant. Akira kurosawa was born in tokyo on march 23, 1910.
The masterless samurai sanjuro, who slyly manipulates two warring clans to his own advantage in a small, dusty village, was so entertainingly embodied by the. Originally an adaptation of the shugoro yamamoto novel hibi heian, the script was altered with the success of kurosawas 1961 yojimbo to incorporate the. Kurosawas father, who had once been an army officer, was a teacher who contributed to the. The incomparable toshiro mifune stars in akira kurosawa s visually stunning and darkly comic yojimbo.
March 23, 1910 september 6, 1998 was a japanese film director and screenwriter, who directed 30 films in a career spanning 57 years. The 15 best scenes in akira kurosawa films taste of. After the success of yojimbo, kurosawa was being pressured to create a sequel. Sanjuro akira kurosawa pittsburgh japanese film festival. He places each group of gangsters in the foreground, but at the edges of the rectangular shape of the format, leaving the middle empty for sanjuro to appear. In this companion piece and sequel to yojimbo, jaded samurai sanjuro helps an idealistic group of young warriors weed out their clans evil influences, and in the process turns their image of a proper samurai on its ear. Within a few years, kurosawa had achieved sufficient stature to allow him greater creative freedom. Yojimbo sanjuro the criterion collection on dvd 715515021524 from criterion. Kurosawa akira, born march 23, 1910, tokyo, japandied september 6, 1998, tokyo, first japanese film director to win international acclaim, with such films as rashomon 1950, ikiru 1952, seven samurai 1954, throne of blood 1957, kagemusha 1980, and ran 1985 early life. This wasnt an unprecedented event in his career, since hed previously filmed a sequel to his directoral debut, sanshiro sugata, though that production was reported forced on him by the studio against his wishes. To rid a terrorstricken village of corruption, wily masterless samurai sanjuro turns a. Sanjuro reprises his goto scheme of pretending to side with an enemy when he seeks a job working for muroto in order to gain inside information. Nov 10, 2010 the insecure samurai are a great contrast to mifunes arrogant sanjuro and thats one of the main reasons the movie works so well as a story.
Toshiro mifune reprises his role of sanjuro, just appearing on the screen when the nine samurai are discussing their struggle with. Toshiro mifune reprises his role of sanjuro, just appearing on the screen when the nine samurai are discussing their struggle with the bad elders in their clan. Directed by akira kurosawa staring toshiro mifune, tatsuya nakadai, keiju kobayashi sequel to yojimbo pittsburgh premiere part of the pittsburgh japanese film festival. Akira kurosawa, the legendary japanese director, was born 100 years ago today. The following is a list of works, both in film and other media, for which the japanese filmmaker akira kurosawa made some documented creative contribution. In this tale of false perceptions and truth, of honor and dishonor, sanjuro is a character.
In this sly companion piece 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. With the massive success of yojimbo, the screenplay adaptation of peaceful days was reworked to be sanjuro, the continuing adventures of toshiro mifunes wandering ronin. Aug 01, 2016 sanjuro is looking at them from above yojimbo, 1961 kurosawa was one of the first to implement the new, at the time, cinemascope format and this scene is a distinct example of the fact. Sanjuro 1962 kurosawa had wanted to make a film based on shuguro yamamotos story peaceful days before he made yojimbo. Released within a year of one another, director akira kurosawas entertaining yojimbo 1961 and sanjuro 1962 represented a new height in popularity for the prolific storyteller.
Yojimbo, akira kurosawa, 1961 mifune kicks ass scene. The 15 best scenes in akira kurosawa films taste of cinema. Acting as a loosely connected companion piece to kurosawas earlier film yojimbo it sees him team up once again with toshiro mifune extending whats considered by many as the best directoractor partnership of all time. Toshiro mifune swaggers and snarls to brilliant comic effect in kurosawa s tightly paced, beautifully composed sanjuro. Japanese filmmakers are at least as widely known outside japan as its authors. Sanjuro is way more low key and lighter in tone than its predecessor. Sanjuro, so far is my favourite film from akira kurosawa albeit i have alot of his filmography still to watch.
First, kurosawa checks in with the chamberlain who is revealed for the first time as he lightly lectures the young samurai for not trusting him and causing a lot of unnecessary death, including the. Sanjuro 1962 akira kurosawa synopsis, characteristics. The film is all about action but interesting to follow. Toshiro mifune swaggers and snarls to brilliant comic effect in akira kurosawa s tightly paced, beautifully composed sanjuro. Documentaries on the making of yojimbo and sanjuro, created as part of the toho masterworks series akira kurosawa. He is regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Staring yoko tsukasa, isuzu yamada, tatsuya nakadai and toshiro mifune. Kurosawa had earned worldwide acclaim roughly a decade earlier for rashomon 1950 and continued his success with films like ikiru 1952, seven samurai 1952, throne of blood 1957 and the hidden fortress 1958.
The docu explains kurosawas cynical new style by recounting how he came up with the arresting image of a dog carrying a severed hand. Oct 03, 2017 the incomparable toshiro mifune stars in akira kurosawas visually stunning and darkly comic yojimbo. Sanjuro is looking at them from above yojimbo, 1961 kurosawa was one of the first to implement the new, at the time, cinemascope format and this scene is a distinct example of the fact. Akira kurosawas films on dvd akira kurosawa information. It feels more like a period piece than a samurai film, though its story still follows the. Set in the mid19th century when the disintegration of a rigid social structure was turning the once wealthy into paupers, or viceversa, this kinetic drama by acclaimed akira kurosawa features the hero sanjuro toshiro mifune, one of many samurai whose once traditional positions were fast disappearing. We learn of kurosawas interest in shooting the entire picture with telephoto zoom lenses, a choice that required a focus puller with magic fingers. Sanjuro, in which mifunes character helps a group of naive samurai fight corrupt officials in their clan. The insecure samurai are a great contrast to mifunes arrogant sanjuro and thats one of the main reasons the movie works so well as a story. Sugata, a young man, struggles to learn the nuance and meaning of judo, and in doing so comes to learn something of the meaning of life. Kurosawa akira, first japanese film director to win international acclaim, noted for such films as rashomon 1950, ikiru 1952, seven samurai 1954, throne of blood 1957, kagemusha 1980, and ran 1985. Toshiro mifune swaggers and snarls to brilliant comic effect in kurosawas tightly paced, beautifully composed sanjuro. Joseph campbells the hero with a thousand faces eventually. This includes a complete list of films with which he was involved including the films on which he worked as assistant director before becoming a full director, as well as his littleknown.
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