Action & Adventure > Kurosawa, Akira Action & Adventure

Another Kurosawa Masterpiece

Advantages: Top quality film.
Disadvantages: Not a lot of DVD extras.

My collection of Kurosawa DVD's just keeps growing because he seems to have delivered every time. This is yet another film by the Japanese film-making genius that offers something different. Whereas 'Yojimbo' was a harder edged action film this sequel takes a far more light hearted approach, with genuine laughs along the way that aren't lost in the subtitles. Toshiro Mifune again stars for Kurosawa and as usual delivers in a way that only he can; ...

Osaitfc 01.03.2008 · Read full review
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Review of Sanjuro (Subtitled) (Wide Screen) (DVD)

The quickist sword in the west.

Advantages: brilliant film
Disadvantages: maybe difficult to get hold a copy.

...similar these films are, watch Yojimbo first and then A Fist Full of Dollars, without Yojimbo there would have been no Fist Full of Dollars. It would be unfair to say which film is best, as in my eyes they are both great films. The image Yojimbo gives of Japan at sometime during the 19 Century is that of a declining and corrupt Japan, which much of the country under the control of gangsters and corrupt officials. The film also portrays a national ...
...with the samurai, who normally having a high moral code being honoured and feared at the same time. The films also shows how these traditions are beginning to be opened up to western influences, this can be seen in the role Unosuke, played by Tatsuya Nakadai. He plays the son of one of the gangster who returns to the town in tradition clothes, but bearing an American gun which he uses instead of tradition weapons, thus making him a powerful force ...

oldgoth 27.07.2005 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Yojimbo (DVD)

Tale Of A Fallen Shogun

Advantages: wonderful adaptation of macbeth in japanese.
Disadvantages: none

...bring his tragic downfall. Throne Of Blood is classic and timeless. The settings have a historical feel and an impressive style. Isuzu Yamada and Mifune are sensational as they preformed their versions of Lady and Lord Macbeth. Director Akira Kurosawa transforms the Scottish landscape into a haunting, misty vision of ancient Japan. Visual elements such as fog, rain, and wind give the film an eerie feel along with the use of black and white. Kurosawa ...

kagito 15.09.2003 · Read full review
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Review of Throne Of Blood (Subtitled) (DVD)

Revenge and the boss' daughter

Advantages: A great drama
Disadvantages: Some over-acting, a bit too long

...suffer. And as he is the private secretary of the man he holds most responsible, Vice President Iwabuchi, and has just married Iwabuchi's daughter, it would seem that he is not far off achieving his goals. Nishi manages to blackmail some of his colleagues into helping him and it seems that the big bosses are finally about to get their comeuppance, when there is a rather major fly in the ointment - Nishi realises that he has fallen in love with his ...
...any case, can he beat the corrupt Japanese elite that run the company he works for? The Bad Sleep Well is directed by Akira Kurosawa, also responsible for The Seven Samurai, who is a legendary Japanese director. He sadly died in 1998 at the age of 88, but his influence lives on. You may never have heard of him, but his films have influenced a number of well-known western films, such as A Fist Full of Dollars and The Magnificent Seven (an adaptation ...

sunmeilan 30.03.2009 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Bad Sleep Well (Subtitled) (DVD)

Start here with Kurosawa's most popular film

Advantages: A cinema classic with adventure and drama
Disadvantages: Long, black and white, subtitled, with many fight scenes

...film you will probably love Seven Samurai. The film takes the viewer into 17th century Japan where a poor village asks a Ronin samurai for help in defence of bandit raids. The old warrior sets out to recruit 6 more samurai for his team. Their reward? Nothing but 3 miserable meals a day and the chance for a good fight. And these guys are good: 7 different characters. The film is engaging from the start. It was my introduction into Japanese codes ...
...the original film stock. Seven Samurai is an adventure film that feels like a western. It's 3 and a half hours long, but, once you get into it, the time flies by. Buy it, rent it, whatever you do - give this film a try. Peter H. ...

dizzley 02.02.2007 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of Seven Samurai (DVD)