Film Forum

Japan, 1962
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
Starring Toshirō Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Yūzō Kayama, Reiko Dan
Approx. 96 min. 4K DCP.

In a secluded temple, a group of painfully sincere young samurai meet in secret to plan how to save the day in their clan’s power struggle — then they hear this yawn. It’s Toshirō Mifune, repeating his role (with variations) as Sanjuro from YOJIMBO, grudgingly proceeding to straighten out, bail out, and shock the straight arrows. Nakadai, resurrected from YOJIMBO (it’s a different character), is an even more formidable antagonist; his showdown with Mifune comes to a conclusion startling even to the actor: Kurosawa had a never-before-used special effect up his sleeve.

Reviews

“Kurosawa’s eye makes the combat beautiful, just as his dramatic instinct makes it magnetic. SANJURO is inspirational.”
– Michael Sragow, Criterion

“A surprising, fetching, beautifully made film.”
– Bosley Crowther, The New York Times