Rating: NR
Length: 207 minutes

Standard 1.33:1 B&W Not Anamorphic

JAPANESE: Dolby Digital Mono

English

A poor Japanese farming village is raided annually by robbers for both crops and other amenities. This year they decide to hire samurai to defend the village and defeat the robbers. Guess how many samurai they get? Go ahead, guess. And while you’re at it, guess what famous American western was based on this film? Hint: The number is the same and they were simply "magnificent".

This is a movie that is almost always included in the thousands of "Best Movies" listings that have been compiled over the years. There is everything one looks for in a good action movie; character development, solid storyline, well filmed and choreographed action scenes, and as a bonus, quite a bit of humor. These characters are actually believable. For a movie that clocks in at 207 minutes, it goes by quickly.

Unless you’re fluent in Japanese, those 207 minutes will be spent reading subtitles. This is something I got used to while I was in Europe but I still know a lot of people that either doesn’t like to or just refuse to do this. Also, if you’re looking for a lot of blood and gore, wrong movie with samurai swords; check out "Kill Bill Vol 1" instead.

• Audio commentary by Japanese film expert Michael Jeck.
• Original US theatrical trailer.

Excellent movie, you will be entertained! Get the Criterion Collection version while they’re still available; great picture and sound restoration.

Minoru Chiaki - Heihachi Hayashida

Bokuzen Hidari - Yohei

Yoshio Inaba - Gorobei Katayama

Daisuke Katô - Shichiroji

Kokuten Kodo - Gisaku, the Old Man

Toshirô Mifune - Kikuchiyo

Seiji Miyaguchi - Kyuzo

Isao Kimura - Katsushiro Okamoto

Yukiko Shimazaki - Rikichi's Wife

Takashi Shimura - Kambei Shimada

Keiko Tsushima - Shino

Yoshio Tsuchiya - Rikichi

IMDB
DVD Verdict