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| The Cover of The Seven Samurai |
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| Buy The Seven Samurai at Amazon.com |
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| The Cover of The Seven Samurai |
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| Buy The Seven Samurai at Amazon.com |
No section of this site that contains film reviews about the world of samurai would be complete without a review of this film. Many pages of reviews, graduate theses, and film buff lore has been written about this movie. Just about every syllable ever uttered or written about this movie is full of praise for this Kurosawa masterpiece.
What more could I possible write here about this film that has not already been written? I think that what I could tell people who have not yet seen this film is that there is much more to it that you may suspect. Naturally, this is a film that has been celebrated for having marvelous explorations of the deeds and code of the samurai warrior, much of it, however, is usually projected or super-imposed on the narrative. We have expectation of this film depicting hard-core tough-guy samurai standing stoically in the face of overwhelming odds, without much depth in character, one man interchangeable with the next.
But what is not often talked about in regards to this film are some of the very human, and humane elements that are portrayed in this film through the experiences of these samurai men. There are points in this film where men of supposed stern and iron samurai fortitude weep openly. They are surprised and touched by different experiences, different stories, and are emotionally linked to the world around them. There are many surprising moments which are poignant and beautiful.
There is also the message throughout the film that the “role of the samurai” and his position in society is not an isolated or as hierarchically elite as one may think. There is the element of courageous manhood that links many men, of different backgrounds and temperaments, together. The subtext of the film may be something along the lines of, “The spirit of the samurai is within”. Anyway, that is a nice sentiment too.
The action is great. The story is great. The characters that Kurosawa has grouped together are convincing and interesting. I could watch this film several times over and see something different each time.
Highly recommended!
Mark Groenewold
Kanazawa, Japan
September, 2004
This page is copyright © 2004 Mark Groenewold