Sanjuro (1962) User Reviews (99)

One of Kurosawa's most polished movies

[aliaselias · 9/10 · 23 May 2006]

Tsubaki Sanjuro is, unfortunately, not so widely seen abroad (= outside Japan) as Yojinbo, probably because it was not copied as a western. In Japan, however, Tsubaki Sanjuro is not less popular than Yojinbo. Not a few Japanese actually prefer the former to the latter, and it's easy to see why: It is stylistically more polished and smarter than Yojimbo and Mifune is 'cooler' as well - he shows a brilliant leadership and every Mifune fan would be really delighted to see how his young, naive disciples run after him like chicks following the mother duck.

And while Yojinbo's female main character, Orin, is an evil and crafty woman, Lady Mutsuta in Tsubaki Sanjuro is 'irritatingly light-hearted'. But she has a deep insight into Sanjuro's personality and understands him far better than his male disciples. An excellent character, and, in fact, she is the only person in Tsubaki Sanjuro AND Yojinbo to whom Sanjuro/Mifune speaks in a polite form (in Japanese).

Tsubaki Sanjuro is, so to speak, a 'concentrate' of Kurosawa's cinematography and one sees in it every aspect of his greatness in a very compact form. Therefore no one could remake this movie.

Kurosawa Plays Himself.

[OttoVonB · 7/10 · 21 June 2002]

With a near clean lineup of masterpieces under his belt, nobody could fault Kurosawa for wanting to make a simple piece of entertainment. This simple aspiration did not stop him from making another hugely influential success.

Sanjuro is a loose sequel to the classic Yojimbo. The character is back, as is, confusingly, Tatsuya Nakadai as a completely different character. The landscape and tone are entirely new, lighter, jollier. It is almost a spoof of its predecessor,as Mifune's nonchalant and perpetually unwashed antihero helps a group of goody- two-shoes samurai save their framed master. This is also the first on-screen collaboration between Toshiro Mifune and the young Yuzo Kayama, before they costared to such memorable effect on Redbeard.

Nobody spoofs Kurosawa better than the man himself: this is without a doubt his funniest film, yet he never treats it as a second-class product. No slouch, the director peppers this light romp with unforgettable visual flourishes, enraptured homages to the American Westerns that so inspired him, and an end-note of surprising violence, the likes of which Tarantino could only dream of.

At a fast-paced 96 minutes, this is probably a great entry point into the cinema of Akira Kurosawa, and a film that would be much more highly regarded had it not come from such an established filmmaker.

Might be better than Yojimbo

[mahmus · 9/10 · 15 April 2020]

An excellent sequel to Yojimbo.

I can't quite decide which one is better. I think I enjoyed this one just a tiny bit more.

Toshiro Mifune really is one of he most badass actors of all time

Among the Most Entertaining of Kurosawa's or Mifune's Movies

[Snow Leopard · 4 April 2005]

Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune combined their abilities in numerous fine movies, and while "Sanjuro", for its part, is lighter than most of the others, it is certainly one of the most entertaining of the movies that either of the two has made. Mifune gets a role that allows him to get many good moments, and it's also a role that he must have enjoyed playing.

The story is quite interesting, with many good turns and a way of keeping you guessing as to what will happen next. Mifune plays a samurai who takes it upon himself to try to save a rather hapless but nevertheless worthy clan from government conspiracy and from its own foolishness. It's a role that gives him both plenty of good lines and plenty of good action sequences. Kurosawa, of course, knows just how to get the most out of all of the material, and the story also provides some interesting psychological insights on the characters.

The settings are very good, and they are often used in creative ways in telling the story. Except for Mifune's character, most of the other characters are fairly one-dimensional, but they are believable, and they also allow plenty of room for Mifune to get the most out of each of his scenes. The result is a very enjoyable and well-crafted movie.

Excellent - Superb - A Masterpiece

[NEFARlOUS · 10/10 · 30 September 1998]

Akira Kurosawa is probably the best Director in the entire History of film-making. He has not been that prolific given the amount of time he has spent making films, but many of these have subsequently been remade - Seven Samurai became the magnificent seven. Yoijimbo (the prequel to this one) became A fistful of dollars - and more recently last man standing. The hidden Fortress became Star Wars. Sanjuro marked the return of Toshiro Mifune as the Sardonic Ronin from Yoijimbo. Yet again, the photography is excellent - the period costumes and buildings beautiful to look at even in black and white. From one of the first scenes, in the grounds outside the Shrine, Mifune shows a 500% improvement in the art of Kenjutso - he must have been practicing night and day! But it is the character of Sanjuro itself that makes the film so absorbing. He is on the surface, a dirty, disrespectful abrasive man - but his deeds portray him as a hero - someone who once was a shining example of a Samurai and despite being put through the ringer still holds to a deeply rooted code of honor. When this shows however, he is most anxious to cover it up again..... The film involves a power struggle within a small city in Japan between the old faction and the new power-hungry one. It deals with false perceptions and truth. Two of the tenets that are at the heart of Kurosawa's films. This is a Gem - rent it - if you can, Buy it!

it's by Kurosawa--what else do you want?

[jehru · 10/10 · 17 October 1998]

Sanjuro is another in a long line of purely classic films by Akira Kurosawa. This movie was made on a whim on the heels of the wildly successful Yojimbo, but Kurosawa doesn't simply whip out a movie to satisfy the audience; he creates another film masterpiece. This is a farcical comedy shot with the same brilliance as Ran--take a minute and notice how perfectly the image on the screen portrays what Kurosawa wants us to see. Nothing about this film is a mistake, something that he would want to do over. Watch this film!

Better than most in the genre, even if not a 'masterpiece' for Kurosawa

[Quinoa1984 · 9/10 · 22 December 2004]

Sanuro, the sequel (or prequel, more likely a sequel though) to Akira Kurosawa's 1961 classic Yojimbo, brings us Toshiro Mifune to one of his most memorable characters, as he helps out (begrudgingly but, for the audience, funny way of help) with a group of would-be samurai trying to fight a corrupt man trying to gain power. With this film, Kurosawa delivers if not more than the same amount of violence (with one of his finest scenes of which towards the very end), and Mifune along with co-stars are believable and make for an entertaining ride. For those who are not familiar with Kurosawa and look to start, this and Yojimbo are the best starting points.

But to say that it is not one of Kurosawa's very best is not entirely a dis-service to him. One flaw for me was that the story was not very clear on the first viewing, or at least as clear as what I'm used to from him (then again, the samurai genre is one I've only started to dig into). But a second viewing brought it clearer, and was even more suspenseful and amusing. That it is not as satirical (or perhaps it is) than what I had heard is not a minus however. The best that can be said that it is highly watchable, and could grow on those looking for a samurai film with more based on character than on immediate, flowing blood-shed and carnage. The least that can be said is that it does not compromise artistry and thoughtfulness for mediocrity. Grade: A

A superior return of an archetype

[DuskShadow · 10/10 · 3 March 2015]

Sanujuro ( meaning 30) is the name of a ronin ( wandering, masterless samurai) during the modernization period of japan (mid to late 1800's).

A sudden political change has occurred with the rise of the middle class and a more modern government not hinged upon an actual , all powerful godly emperor and aristocracy. But during this time much turmoil and corruption ran rampant through the country as outside influences with vested interests propelled the land into " do or die mode"; change or BE changed. Thus the political climate is one of unseemly individuals whom stop at nothing to cement themselves into positions of power and all in the way be damned to JIGOKU ( hell).

But in the heat and lust for power a kindly, old fashioned politician is abducted by more devious sorts commonly associated with their station ( not too different form nowadays). So the nephew and loyal young vassals strive to formulate a plan of attack and brave all danger and cast discretion to the wind to save the honorable old man, even at the expense of their lives, for such is Bushido (the way of the samurai). However before embarking upon their errand , a surprise from a familiar face ( with the same name , look, style,,etc) named Sanjuro overhears them and shows them a more strategic way to fulfill their mission.

Personally I believe this to be an indirect sequel, but still a sequel to the previous years smash genre hit, Yojimbo. Aside from the painfully obvious facts that the character with the same first name, style, look, vernacular and way of conjuring a family name from what ever he spies around him suggests this to be a sequel , there's also the constant lodging within temples that could point toward the penniless ronins true return to film, as well as the clever usage of the number 30 ( sanjuro) that shares his name throughout both films. Kurosawa did nothing without thought, and this film was very much more thoughtful than the first ( yojimbo).

To put it simply: the first film was almost all comedy and farce, whereas the second film this review is primarily concerned with is much more a tale of the times it takes place in; a political intrigue period piece, filled with action, better set design, props, extras galore, moxy if you will. The directors penchant for tongue and cheek is no more than the veritable "spice of life" as I call it, that all humans whom have lived experience in this life. But even with a tad comedic realism, this film has much more character, captivates and requires more attention and intellect to follow and is just an all around superior film.

I highly recommend this to anyone seeking older films that do not reek of unnecessary melodic overtones or dance routines. The best black and white films didn't need such things. Now go enjoy a fine film!

Tsubaki Sanjûrô: On par sequel

[Platypuschow · 6/10 · 24 October 2018]

Sanjuro is the sequel to Yojimbo (1961) and see's our unnamed ronin friend once again defending the innocent under the guise of his own desires.

Toshirô Mifune returns as the grumpy samurai and delivers a strong performance yet again. He is flanked by much of the same cast from the original movie, though they're all playing different characters (Which really damages the movies credibility).

This time he saves the lives of 9 men and joins them in saving one of their relatives. This time however it's more strategy and action than Yojimbos intricate mind games.

Truth be told Sanjuro is a weaker Toho movie than Yojimbo, it isn't as clever and certainly lacks the same level of charm. Regardless however it's a well constructed movie and Kurosawa has done a great job in it's creation.

Alike Yojimbo it sits within IMDB's top 250 movies, presently lower at 222. I don't agree that either of them should be in there, but then again very few should be in my eyes. Kurosawa's pinnacle was Seven Samurai (1954) and from what I've seen thus far I doubt it'll be beaten.

Very watchable Japanese samurai cinema, but hardly groundbreaking.

The Good:

Toshirô Mifune

Has real charm

The Bad:

Sworddplay is still terrible

Inferior to Yojimbo

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

In fuedal Japan, barns were regular love nests

A Swashbuckling Toshiro Mifune Makes Sanjuro Absolutely Enthralling!

[sandnair87 · 9/10 · 6 May 2015]

In Akira Kurosawa's highly underrated sequel to the much revered Yojimbo, Toshiro Mifune reprises his role as the titular master-less samurai, this time having the arduous task of cleaning up the mess created by the younger generation of a ruling clan, whose misplaced trust leaves them vulnerable to the clan's true enemy.

Set in 19th century Japan, a gruff, disheveled, footloose samurai turns up in a deserted shrine where a cabal of nine young progressives is plotting to overthrow a corrupt regime. Boldly and brashly he appears among them while they have been fumbling for a plan and haughtily takes over the ticklish task of directing them. Consistently decrying the fledgling samurai as "idiots," expert strategist Sanjuro seemingly can't help himself from getting involved with the fallout of their political meddling, as the hapless bunch is desperately in need of saving. Starting with his chivalrous rescue of the chamberlain's wife and daughter from the corrupt warlord, Sanjuro leads the army of warriors on a wild goose chase so the nine inept samurais can free the chamberlain. All the action soon leads us to a dark, rug-yanking conclusion, as our eponymous samurai waves goodbye to those he helped and walks off into the sunset heroic and alone.

The fact that Sanjuro is played by none other than the grunting, swashbuckling Toshiro Mifune makes the movie thoroughly enjoyable from beginning to end. The movie largely gyrates around the marvelously eccentric mannerisms of Mifune's performance, who swaggers through the entire film with a bemused expression - grimacing, scratching, yawning, and stretching in an ironic counterpoint to his character's phenomenal skill as a swordsman. The film's humor arises from Sanjuro's weary irritation and the contrast between his slovenly behavior and the phony ceremonial propriety of others. But while Mifune's satiric portrayal is a delight, Akira Kurosawa sets it in a more recognizably Japanese milieu, with a complicated plot involving political and historical intrigue. Kurosawa applies the full force of his cinematic genius, with brilliant widescreen composition that tells the story in visual terms as clear as the verbal ones. He guides the narrative mostly for laughs, but when the action kicks in the sword fighting is brutal and memorable.

Sanjuro may not be Akira Kurosawa's most celebrated work, but you will find his witty paw prints all over the snappy dialogue, unique characters and intriguing plot – an effort that I personally rank higher than Yojimbo!

To answer the question: See Yojimbo

[badtothebono · 6/10 · 11 August 2007]

Sanjuro is good, but not even close to Yojimbo's league. Sanjuro probably isn't even one of his top 6 movies. Mifune and Nakadai are fine, but the women are irritating (in a way and to a degree that perhaps Japanese women have perfected, speaking as someone who knows Japanese women). There just really isn't that much to this. I believe those who say he was forced to make this movie and made it as a bit of a joke. It is that far below his standard of excellence. I've seen Yojimbo 3x. This once. I'd watch Yojimbo again before this. My question is; can some film school dropout explain the supposed point of the fountain of blood in the final scene?

Funny sequel to Yojimbo

[SnoopyStyle · 8/10 · 27 February 2014]

This is the sequel to 'Yojimbo'. Toshirô Mifune returns as the wandering ronin Sanjûrô Tsubaki. He encounters nine naive samurai who wants to confront corruption. One of the samurai had confronted his uncle the lord with the accusations. The response was dissatisfying so he tells the superintendent. The superintendent tells the nephew to gather his men. The ronin immediately smells a trap, and the corrupt superintendent launches a raid on the group. Only the ronin's smarts saves the group. Now the uncle and his family are taken prisoner and the ronin endeavors to rescue them with the help of the nine naive samurai. Only the clueless nine are sometimes more problematic with their distrust of the often napping ronin.

This is a funnier movie than Yojimbo. Sanjuro does battle more with his brains than with his sword. The best swords are kept in their sheaths. However there is that great scene of drawing of the swords at the end. The guy imprisoned in the closet has a good funny scene. It's a very good sequel to Yojimbo with a funnier tone.

entertaining but surprisingly dumb

[cherold · 7/10 · 25 May 2017]

This sequel to Kurosawa's brilliant Yojimbo is entertaining and amusing, but it's also kinda dumb, something that seems to have been missed by all the user reviews I've read here.

The premise is set up quickly and rather abruptly, as a group of samurai talk about their attempt to find an authority figure to rid their clan of corruption. Toshiro Mifune wanders in from a back room to tell them they are all idiots, then protects them by killing a whole bunch of bad guys.

The group of samurai are a comical bunch, wandering about like a bunch of newborn ducklings, and Mifune takes the role as their protector because that's what heroes do.

But his charges aren't the only idiots. Everyone in the movie is an idiot, except for Mifune and some peripheral women characters. The plot is pushed forward entirely by the stupidity of its characters, to the extent that it's a wonder any of them lived past puberty. While Yojimbo was a movie about a really smart guy tricking less smart people, Sanjuro is about astoundingly gullible people being fooled by the only person in the movie who isn't a half-wit.

Still, it's very likable and often funny, particularly in the case of a mellow prisoner and an unflappable mother.

The movie also has a whole, "it's terrible that so many people are being killed" moral that reminds me of the old TV series Kung Fu, which espoused peace while serving a steady stream of violence. Like everything else in this movie, it's pretty silly.

It's a fun movie, and if you liked Yojimbo and Seven Samurai it's worth checking this out as well. But watch Yojimbo and Seven Samurai first, because they are much better movies.

Too confusing for me

[Benyomin · 4/10 · 25 June 2000]

I did not enjoy this movie. I know that it is by Kurasawa, a master. I know that it stars Mifume. It seemed like ninety-minutes of running back and forth without much of a point. There is a certain tongue-in-cheek element to it, but other than spawning an occasional grin, the movie did not reach out and grab me. It is no Kagemusha, Ran, or Ikiru.

Enjoy the comedy, but don't forget the duel

[harry_tk_yung · 13 October 2003]

Spoilers warning

An overwhelming proportion of the comments on Sanjuro in IMDB has been given to its comedy elements. This makes perfect sense because no other Kurosawa/Mifune corroboration has taken this all-out crack at comedy. It does not mean that sense of humour is lacking among Kurosawa's strength. Indeed, no master is truly great without a sense of humour. For example, both Hitchcock and Kurosawa like to inject a dose of their sense of humour, respectively, at the frightening and poignant junctures in their films. In Sanjuro, the amusing characteristics of the character portrayed by Mifune were not new. They were all there in Yojimbo before, but fully unleashed in Sanjuro, and some on the brink of being overused, such as the flexing of the neck and shoulder muscles, which looks like a shrug.

Indeed Kurosawa did not lose a single opportunity of making Sanjuro so much fun to watch. The nine young samurai, courageous but impulsive and inexperienced, provide excellent material and the mood here is set from the very beginning, in the scene when they are trapped in their meeting place. After Mifune (I'm using the artist's name instead of the character's for simplicity) had driven away the enemies and calls them from the hiding place below, their heads pop up in threes, twos and singly, giving it almost an animation flavour. The rescued mother and daughter is of course a pair of darlings, particularly the mother, whose interaction with Mifune is a classic yin and yang confrontation, but depicted in a most amusing way. And then we have the captured samurai who keeps popping out from the closet in which he is confined, offering his unsolicited opinion, then suddenly remembering his station in the scheme of things, crawls back inside, demurely closing the sliding door behind him. These are but a few examples that give the film a festive mood.

The DVD I watched has only Chinese subtitle. Although I can't really claim to judge the quality of the translation as I don't know Japanese, gut feel tells me that they are good compared to the garbage you often see on screens in Hong Kong these days. Still, I can't help but think that for Sanjuro, some of the fun may have been lost in the translation. Fortunately, body language and facial expression does a lot to make up for it.

There is much more in Sanjuro than just first class comedy. Kurosawa is a great master of capturing motion on the screen (as Ozu is the great master in capturing stillness on the screen). The most outstanding scene in Sanjuro demonstrating this occurs quite early in the story. After Mifune voluntarily joins the nine, they formulate the first plan: he would take three men with him to try to rescue the lord's wife and daughter while the rest would scout around for information. This is followed immediately by a series of rapidly cut shots each with a young samurai running swiftly in the street, at various directions. The whole series takes a few seconds but the momentum generated is immense.

While the tone throughout the film is light, we should not lose sight of the undercurrent continually building up between the Kurosawa and Nakadai, culminating in one of the best duel scenes in the entire film industry, if not the best. When the lord's rescued wife first meets Mifune, she comments that he is too `bright', like an unsheathed sword. At the end, Mifune says that both he and Nakadai are unsheathed swords. From the very beginning, these two recognise each other as truly worth opponents and this is reaffirmed during their encounters throughout the film. In the end, Mifune is forced into the duel reluctantly. Even Nakadai himself does not seem to particularly want it. However, within his own universe of logic, because he has been made a fool by Mifune, the only way out for him is a duel. What we have then is a duel very similar to the fast-draw type of duels in westerns, but at close range. And that is what makes a world of difference. The two men stand facing each other, within striking distance, in absolute stillness, for what seems to be an eternity (I was tempted to re-watch the DVD to measure and report the actual time but such a piece of information would take something away the beauty of the film). The absolute intensity is followed by simply brutality as the swords are unsheathed in a flash (but not so fast as to impair our visual enjoyment of the beauty of the geometry of the draws) and the abrupt eruption of blood from Nakadai's chest signifying a punctured heart (the Chinese translation of the title is `Heart piercing sword'). While good direction in a western may match the intensity, I would personally prefer the visual beauty of the silent, deadly draw of the sword to the loud cracking of the gun.

The righteous sequel to Yojimbo

[sourav894 · 10/10 · 27 December 2011]

Sanjuro is the righteous sequel to Yojimbo, but unfortunately, not as popular- probably because it was never copied to become a western. Mifune is as smart as he was in Yojimbo. In-fact, he has improved! He has developed leadership skills and is more polished. Has has respect for women! Although there are many noticeable differences as well. Yojimbo retains its indebtedness to the sword with heavy doses of ruthless action. There is certainly action in Sanjuro, but it rarely gets truly ruthless- another symbol of maturity in Sanjuro's character. If Kurosawa wanted, he could have included action and made the film more commercial. Instead, he did what was the right thing to do. He had his protagonist claim in the end- "I am just like him (the dead antagonist), he was like a sword that should have a sheath" Yojimbo and Sanjuro are both essentially comedies, but they evoke different senses of humor. The black comedy of Yojimbo is nowhere in evidence here. Sanjuro is more or less slapstick humor. Unlike most Kurosawa films, this film is mostly indoor. Nature comes into play only in the final scene of the film, which the audience knows, is justified once they watch the film!

Funny Adventure

[claudio_carvalho · 8/10 · 15 September 2005]

In Japan circa Eighteenth Century, nine young men decide to present an accusation of corruption in their clan to the local superintendent. However, the group is betrayed, but the ronin Sanjûrô Tsubaki (Toshirô Mifune) saves them from the superintendent's men. The uncle of the leader of the rebel clansmen, the Chamberlain Mutsuta (Yûnosuke Itô), is kidnapped, and his wife and daughter are detained and made prisoner of the superintendent, and he tries to force Mutsuta to write a fake confession letter declaring being corrupt. Sanjûrô helps the group to rescue the Chamberlain and his family.

"Sanjûrô" is a funny adventure of master Akira Kurosawa. The story has great action scenes and jokes, excellent cinematography and performances, I like it but it is not among my favorite movies of Kurosawa. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Sanjuro"

Along with YOJIMBO, Kurosawa's greatest films

[planktonrules · 10/10 · 19 July 2006]

While most Western audiences are reasonably familiar with THE SEVEN SAMURAI and ROSHOMON, this is, in my opinion, the best work of director Akira Kurosawa. But, saying that this film itself is best isn't easy because this is actually a followup to the highly successful film, YOJIMBO that Kurosawa completed the year before. Together, they are just terrific and feature Toshiro Mifune as the amazingly skilled and clever wandering swordsman who is out to right wrongs and make the world a better place (much like the character "Zatoichi" in the long series of samurai films that debuted the same year SANJURO was released).

In this case, there is a corrupt local official and a very naive group of young and energetic but STUPID young men are about to expose his corruption to his boss--expecting the boss to act and restore justice. But, as Mifune is very clever and these guys are dumb but nice, he advises them NOT to go to the boss, as he, too, is probably part of the problem! They cannot accept that the boss is corrupt, but through Mifune's brilliant maneuvers, they realize the truth and assist him to restore peace and justice.

This movie is amazing because although there are some wonderful action scenes, the level of comedy is also pretty high and I loved the tongue-in-cheek aspects of the film. Plus, the ending is one of the strangest yet coolest in film history. You just have to see it to believe it!

Kurosawa's revisionist take on his Samurai movies... mocking his own style... but still with style!

[ElMaruecan82 · 9/10 · 28 June 2019]

Kurosawa didn't like "The Magnificent Seven" as he found ludicrous the idea of mercenaries fighting bandits, no matter how noble Brynner and his peers were portrayed, they were closer to the Yakuza than the Samurais.

And maybe "Yojinbo" was the cinematic way to express these mixed feelings, as Sanjuro (Toshiro Mifune) was both a samurai and a mercenary, a true Japanese antihero. But while "Yojinbo" was set in a desolated town somewhere in the pre-Meiji Japan, its sequel "Sanjuro" takes place in a well-guarded town where the ancient feudal order was bound to prevail, only in the surface. "Yojinbo" had the antihero established, "Sanjuro" was Kurosawa's revisionist 'Western'.

And the revision starts with the directing. "Yojinbo" consisted mostly of exterior shots and a fair share of action, "Sanjuro" opens like a play: nine young men are exposing the situation, apparently, their uncle, the chamberlain refused to deliver the local lord their petition against corruption so they assumed he was the one pulling the strings. So they went to the superintendent Kikui, and his lieutenant Moruto (Tatsuday Nakada) promised to handle the situation. The scene is too solemn to work even by Kurosawa's standards; the Sensei is up to something.

When the young men are done talking, a voice emerges from the dark and Sanjuro appears, still the same nonchalant reluctant warrior who scratches his beard and yawns. He smells something fishy in the story and warns them against any hasty move. Sanjuro becomes their "director"' as the camera instinctively follows him whenever he moves, with the young men, it was all static like in a play, they're acting in the false sense of the word but cinema resurrects with Sanjuro, both a director and a heckler to these guys' shortsightedness. Sanjuro proves his worth very quickly when he spots the Superintendent's men's ambush under the commandment of Moruto.

The way they could hide is worthy of "Life of Brian" and when the nine guys emerge from the floor after the bad guys left plays almost like the seven dwarves' pointing their noses out of their beds. That's the mark of great sequels, keep the same protagonist, change the setting and if you can change the tone and keep it consistent, you've got a classic in your hand. Basically, those who act like straight men are the real clowns whereas Sanjuro is the real deal, which isn't saying too much, the closer to an honorable character is in fact Moruto, so close to Sanjuro's, he's his counterpart.

Now we don't need all the details, except that it results with the uncle's kidnapping and the main mission is to rescue him. The complexity isn't in the plot but in the way Sanjuro uses his tactical skills to anticipate the enemy's moves and come up with the right strategy: taking a prisoner, getting the servants drunk to free the chamberlain's wife and daughter, get the information of the uncle's whereabouts. It's all played like a chess game between the two enemies, which means there's not much room for action. Indeed, one of the most overused lines is "Stop! Wait!" there' a pattern whenever the nine guys decide to kick as, Sanjuro is never too far and kick theirs.

The film is full of such missed showdowns and misleading sight of horses galloping, It's like a constant anticlimax, as if Kurosawa didn't want to indulge to his old tricks, Sanjuro himself doesn't want to fight much because he doesn't have worthy enemies, guards are either too cowardly or clumsy. When just because of his protégés' carelessness, he ends up killing a whole army, he slaps them as if he displayed Kurosawa's own attitude toward violence. If we think the quick fight scenes reward our patience, then we missed the whole philosophy of Sanjuro, a piece of wisdom that came from an old and wise woman: the idea that the best swords stay in their sheath, this is not a condemnation of violence but of its needlessness.

In a film that makes you long for a spectacular confrontation between the two conflicting forces, who could anticipate that it would all depend on a bunch of camellias' dropped into a stream, it's so simple, so Japanese in its poetry and it says something interesting about Kurosawa, he can criticize his own style but he still does it with style. There's an awkward moment where a plan works and the young men engage in a happy dance and when realizing they must keep quiet, the music turns to jazz and it's hilarious in a cartoonish way. These kids represent the future while both Sanjuro and Moruto are a dying breed of men.

Even the uncle at his release is glad Sanjuro refused his offer because he wouldn't know what to do with this kind of men, maybe Kurosawa himself didn't know what to do with Samurais and might have had a problem with their perception from an immature perspective. The film ends with a duel though, as if we were owed one, no matter how hard he tried to avoid it, the alter-ego wants a fight to be in peace with himself. Sanjuro refuses. Values are reversed, the 'evil' one wants to die honorably, and the good one would rather call it a day, but like in "Yojinbo", he can't escape his duty, and the fight is brief, gory, shocking, classic and controversial "from within".

And it wonderfully comes full circle with the beginning where Sanjuro was the spectator to the men's stupidity. The men cheer for Sanjuro who shouts back at them, they didn't get the point... and that might be Kurosawa's personal message about violence. Unfairly accused of betraying his culture by some Japanese press, the man was born in a Samurai family knew too well the dangerous appeal of misunderstood violence, and chose the perfect way to condemn it through a mix of gentle poetry and grotesque comedy, making the violent climax even more spectacular.

A bizarre masterpiece, a masterpiece nonetheless!

although I generally prefer Kurosawa's films when they're dark and allegorical, they can be just as enjoyable when they are lighthearted and rhapsodic

[TheUnknown837-1 · 7/10 · 10 April 2010]

Although it is a diminution from its marvelous action-packed predecessor, "Yojimbo", Akira Kurosawa's "Sanjuro" is nothing short of ecstatic entertainment. Once again we have Toshiro Mifune playing that anonymous, sword-wielding ronin without a name (the inspiration for Clint Eastwood's iconic character The Man with No Name) caught up in a struggle between two sides. However, this time he is jumping sides not between greedy town bosses, but a corrupt superintendent and a group of brave but reckless clansmen trying to rescue hostages from the enemy. And just like before, we have ecstatic excitement, lots of action scenes with surprisingly commendable saber duels, fantastic performances, witty dialogue, and a truly thunderous climax at the end.

"Sanjuro" is just one step below "Yojimbo" perhaps because Kurosawa did not originally intend to make a sequel to the said film and it is a very difficult challenge to build the second piece of the saga puzzle and make it equal to the first, let alone better. But just because it is not on the level of a masterpiece like "Yojimbo" does not mean it's not a heck of a lot of fun, because it is.

There is not one moment in "Sanjuro" that I did not enjoy. Toshiro Mifune's flawless acting coupled with Akira Kurosawa's one-of-a-kind direction takes a story that might otherwise seem kind of silly and makes it into an entirely plausible period piece as far as the human mind is concerned. And what's truly enjoyable is the fact that Kurosawa does not simply have one action scene after another. Again, he builds a solid narrative in which surprises and ideas are introduced for the audience. We like the ronin, but we identify most with the petrified, confused clansmen who aren't really sure which side Mifune is on. So when he pulls a tactic, we wonder with obfuscation along with them.

In short, "Sanjuro" is yet another tremendous entertaining opus from the master Akira Kurosawa. While it's not standing on the same tier as "Yojimbo" or some of Kurosawa's other films, it is a really enjoyable thrill ride. And the final climax, where Toshiro Mifune once again goes eye to eye with Tatsuya Nakadai is really, well, explosive.

Mifune and the Nine Fools

[owen-watts · 8/10 · 6 July 2020]

Kurosawa's sequel to the magnificent Yojimbo is a fascinating sort of film - basically a semi-satire of Jidaigeki films in general which Mifune's hypnotically gruff and prowling nameless samurai haplessly tethered to nine clueless and near-identical fools who all hop and scurry about after him like meerkats.

It's gloriously physical and there are parts of it that are genuinely very funny (the semi closet-bound imprisoned guard is a particular favourite). There is a melancholy to it though - and the strikingly brutal ending is a terrible reminder of how lonely the world-weary ronin is in this strange world.

An Unsheathed Sword

[aylwardpaul · 10/10 · 17 June 2022]

I love this sequel to Yojimbo more than it's predecessor, which is really saying something given that Yojimbo is an absolute classic.

Sanjuro is more fun, and has better repeat viewing value.

The action is more evenly paced, and there is more humour.

Toshiro Mifune's character also has an adversary to be respected in this one, and indeed there is a terrific duel between them at the end.

It is beautifully filmed in Black & White, in the same manner as Yojimbo.

In my opinion Sanjuro, Yojimbo, and The Seven Samurai are the three greatest pre-70's samurai films.

They stand the test of time, and along with the Lone Wolf & Cub films of the 70's and Yoji Yamada 2000"s trilogy - The Twilight Samurai, Hidden Blade, and Love And Honour - are the greatest samurai films ever made.

Sanjuro also has to be one of the greatest sequels ever made.

Enjoy.

Not quite Yojimbo, but still stands solidly on its own two feet

[cricketbat · 7/10 · 23 February 2021]

While not as strong as its predecessor, Sanjuro still stands solidly on its own two feet. Toshiro Mifune plays his part well and gives us an iconic protagonist that is believably wise and understandably indifferent. The plot was a little confusing to me at times, as I am not that familiar with feudal Japan, but I was still able to follow the story and enjoy the journey.

Mediocre Sequel To "Yojimbo"

[bigverybadtom · 4/10 · 1 September 2014]

Tosohiro Mifune again plays the role of the ronin from Kurasawa's previous movie "Yojimbo", and both share the theme of a wandering lone warrior in a parody of Clint Eastwood "man with no name" Western movies. "Yojimbo" was exciting and amusing; "Sanjuro", alas, is overlong, repetitive and inferior.

The story is about a group of samurai meeting in a shrine, one of whom is the nephew of the region's Chamberlain, who had laughed off the nephew's exposure of corruption in the local government. The nephew had then told the local Superintendent, who expressed belief. The ronin, who happened to be sleeping nearby, had overheard the conversation and warns that the Superintendent is the true criminal...and is proved right when the Superintendent send some assassins to kill the nephew and his friends. The ronin manages to trick the assassins into leaving, and the nephew and his friends learn that the Chamberlain had been kidnapped and held hostage.

Sounds exciting, right? But then the movie starts to repeat itself, with people continually looking over walls or opening and closing doors, with the ronin running back and forth and fighting and being upset at having to kill people, with the nephew and his friends being mistrustful of the ronin and causing further grief because of it, with troops marching back and forth. The tension is lost and the latter half of the movie slows to a crawl, spoiling the sharp beginning.

A wonderful-see

[leobardo · 28 February 2006]

...but the movie is great fun even when you know what's going to happen.

I'd like to call it the B-side of Yojimbo, mainly because it revisits the same character that that movie is based on, Sanjuro, but in other respects as well, being it much less renown than that movie, not that it is any less good, making it sort of the movie that a real Kurosawa fan would know about. But these two pieces are mirrors of themselves. They are strategy movies in that they are artistic 'games' that keep the viewer guessing, also showing aspects of life in the form of a staged situation, and since Kurosawa and his writing collaborators were such great masterminds at this, one is immediately caught up as if he were playing himself, or at least trying to keep up with the players' moves. The movie piles up images, intrigue, mystery and suspense and resolves it all in a very cohesive, almost perfectionist way. I mean, it is hard to find mistakes here, though we know that most of it is uncanny. I think, in this sense, Kurosawa had the talent of structuring his plot negatively, precisely by way of mistake. Every single positive plot line is rebutted by the man who has the bigger picture in mind, which is the samurai Sanjuro, who has the capacity of seeing negatively, of experiencing mistake before it occurs. This renders wonderful plot construction throughout, and source of limitless inspiration, in my opinion. Sadly, this wasn't anything that someone like George Lucas, or many other people Kurosawa influenced over the years, used in their movies. If they had, the Star Wars legacy would be a complete experience, and not just a pile of special effects with a couple of decent dramatic story lines (I give Lucas that much). Sanjuro builds wonderfully and its cohesiveness is only surpassed by its cinematic artistry.

The first scenes are both beautifully staged, intelligently written, and remarkably revelatory, as we witness not only a few minutes of in-depth character construction, but also the plot structure unfolding and the general philosophy of the film taking heed. It then goes to show, through a combination of Kurosawa's staging and Mifune's acting, the omnipresence of the samurai, much in the way Luke Skywalker failed to show his when he was finally a Jedi in Episode vi of the Star Wars saga. For example, in that movie, the Jedi pushes 'bad guys' away through an omnipresent power which no one sees or feels. That in itself negates the possibility of us believing the power is actually his -the Force he called it (giving it a name, and such a redundant use of it, already weakens the whole concept)– apart from the fact that most of the revelations of this 'Force' are creatively deficient. Here, the samurai confronts over 200 men in a most astonishing opening fight that lasts very little time. One of the great lines is his samurai contender's 'ceasefire', who says: 'Leave him. It'll take us too long to get rid of him'. The scene is a great battle scene, because of the character content it portrays, one which summarizes in just a few seconds how necessary and ingenious a fight can be within the framework of a story, far from being just merely a formulaic tool for suspense (Check out how he turns the back to the camera... cinematically more effective than attracting a sword through thin air). Finally, in this opening sequence, Kurosawa presents the exemplary subject of his film: a batch of rebellious dimwits, unexperienced and weak (again, in very little time this is explained to the utmost detail), who must overcome an inevitable destiny of imperial corruption. Their only strength of course is the goodness of their cause. We are about to witness the intent of the impossible: how a rebellion of just a handful of men shall try to overcome an entire 'empire'. This also reminds us of Star Wars, but sadly, again, Star Wars never makes us understand how powerful the empire is, what type of corruption it holds (what is the dark side anyways... why is it dark, just because they wear black, just because the are holding Leia prisoner? must be because the emperor is so ugly), and what qualities, strength, weaknesses, do the rebels hold? Oponents are devoid of contrast within themselves, thus that whole storyline is more or less a waste. In Sanjuro, it is central, because one is forced to acknowledge the ludicrous scenario (so present in humanity), and a very exemplary one in itself: the strength of corruption versus the weakness of decency. One severely outnumbers the other. And one is much more mischievous and astute, while goodness, as we see here, is few and far between, seems vulnerable, innocent and in many cases just plain dumb. The addition of the samurai personifies both sides and creates gorgeous shading throughout. Finally, the triumphal finale is wonderfully executed. And the final cinematic metaphors of that plight are unforgettable.

There are many things that can be analyzed here. But the reception of the thematic elements is what varies and inevitably, as in all or most film except for those we call classics, it is this that will divide opinions and make some people accept one film and not another; like one film or dislike it. So, yes, there is a possibility you'll find it uninteresting as a whole. However, what really makes this movie worthwhile for anyone (I say that as objectively as I can), even if you don't like B&W or older films – is the final scene: one of the most spectacular segments I've witnessed in my life. So, maybe just for that, it is worth sitting through it.