The story of rival clans, hidden gold and a princess in distress becomes, in Kurosawa’s masterful hands, a thrilling mixture of fairy-tale and Samurai movie, with the finest elements of a John Ford Western and a Shakespearean drama thrown in for good measure. Toshiro Mifune excels in a role which he subsequently made his own - the unmatched warrior - and his skill as horseman and swordsman is matched only by Kurosawa’s skill behind the camera and in the editing suite. Misa Uehara as the princess in exile is a potent mix of strength and vulnerability, and the choreographed set pieces set cinematic precedents which are hard to follow. Also available on VHS [308157].
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How to watch
Stream, rent or buy via
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
319263
Languages
English
Japanese
Japanese
Audience classification
PG
Subject categories
Action & Adventure → Swashbucklers
Advertising, Film, Journalism, Mass Media & TV → Foreign language films
Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Samurai - Conduct of life
Armed Forces, Military, War & Weapons → Samurai - Conduct of life
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Black and White
Holdings
DVD; Access Print (Section 1)