Movies
When I was a kid, I always watched Japanese samurai TV dramas with my grandmother. I would mimic the unmistakable “shinkt” of a sword being sheathed and the “sktaang!” of two blades clashing. Instead of cowboys and Indians or cops and robbers, my childhood heroic realm consisted of samurai and ninja, duels and ambushes, honor and deception. As an adult I now understand that these points of virtue and righteousness are important and universal. It’s no wonder then that samurai continue to fascinate people all over the world. Compiled here is a list of fourteen films and series that highlight different aspects of the samurai. From classic to contemporary, tragic to light-hearted, here’s a broad taste of the world of samurai on film.
—Ken Ikemoto, School Programs
Samurai Shakespeare
Ran (R) – Directed by Akira Kurosawa
Throne of Blood (Not Rated) – Directed by Akira Kurosawa
The samurai world is seen as a dramatic backdrop, a cultural lens through which deeper universal themes of tragedy can be expressed. Akira Kurosawa’s retellings of Macbeth and King Lear show how the samurai genre can take on a mythic resonance. Kurosawa’s earliest works were in silent film. It’s evident in this scene from Ran, contrasting the vivid action of a castle siege with a nearly silent soundtrack. The sudden impact of a rifle shot then plunges the viewer fully into the tragedy that is unfolding. Here Kurosawa’s method of storytelling is pure genius.
Vengeance is Bloody!
Lady Snowblood (R) – Directed by Toshiya Fujita
Kill Bill vol. 1 (R) – Directed by Quentin Tarantino
The fight scene in the snow between Lucy Liu and Uma Thurman in Kill Bill vol. 1 is classic Lady Snowblood style. Both these films focus on a female protagonist consumed by twisted vengeance. The wrathful, vengeful female character appears in even the earliest Japanese tales, for example, the scorned Lady Rokujo in the 8th century Tale of Genji. This is a timeless archetype of the enraged, death-conquering aspect of feminine power, familiar to us as Kali, Durga, or Rangda.
Check out this climactic duel between Lucy Liu as O-ren Ishii and Uma Thurman as the Bride. Director Quentin Tarantino pulls together a variety of elements: Japanese and English dialogue, a funky Spanish guitar, solid sword-work by both actresses, and a plaintive Japanese folk song melody to create a scene that is both a retro homage to and modern restyling of samurai imagery.
Warlord Takeda Shingen
Samurai Banners (Not Rated) – Directed by Hiroshi Inagaki
Kagemusha (Not Rated) – Directed by Akira Kurosawa
These two films focus on Takeda Shingen. A warlord during the period of near constant strife and warfare in the 16th century, he was known for his unstoppable cavalry. The first film portrays his rise, the second his decline. These epic films have great battle scenes, but more importantly they show that a daimyo of this period was truly a warlord. In comparison to the cultured, sophisticated samurai lord, these samurai lords and generals are ruthless, cunning, and brutal.
Rhythm and Swords
Zatoichi (2003) (R) – Directed by Takeshi Kitano
Samurai Champloo (Not Rated) – Directed by Shinichiro Watanabe
Zatoichi uses rhythm to contrast the steady pace of day to day life to the abrupt tempo of violence. We see the blind hero, who is attuned to the rhythms of life, longing to give up his violent lifestyle for the cyclical cadence of daily life among the peasants. Rhythm is that of harmony with life cycles in nature, violence is disharmony.
In the animated series Samurai Champloo, the rhythm is in the fight scenes. The action scenes play out like break-dancing battles. This puts a modern spin on samurai by combining it with hip-hop. It’s a great example of how the image of samurai as the idealistic honorable warrior fully dedicated to their expression is idealized in hip-hop culture today. Here, the rhythm of sword-fighting reflects the life and death need for self-expression.
In this scene from Samurai Champloo we see our two protagonists take on a mysterious swordsman. In the context of the historically placed storyline we hear that the way of the samurai is becoming obsolete, but as a modern viewer we understand that while the way of life and death by the sword may have become obsolete, the way of the samurai is rich and alive in popular culture to this day.
Dark Heart of Bushido
Hara-kiri – Directed by Masaki Kobayashi
Sword of Doom – Directed by Okamoto Kihachi
These two films take a critical eye to samurai codes of behavior. In Hara-kiri, clan leaders cover up the fact that a poor samurai is unjustly forced to commit suicide with a bamboo sword. It criticizes the samurai mode of thinking that values maintaining appearances over defending life and justice. It questions the true meaning of honor among samurai.
The film Sword of Doom examines the inherent self-destructiveness of a life dedicated to killing. The main character is a sociopath whose only satisfaction comes from killing. It asks, how far should or can a person go in the quest to become the most deadly swordsman before self-destructing?
Love and Samurai Modern
Twilight Samurai – Directed by Yoji Yamada
When the Last Sword is Drawn – Directed by Yojiro Takita
The Twilight Samurai, which is the first film of a trio of samurai films by Yamada Yoji, humanizes the samurai. We get a more human picture of a samurai as father, husband, and lover. Yamada delicately reveals ways where the samurai code of honor can be reconciled with the pursuit of love. We see that love is not irreconcilable to bushido, but in fact love reinforces and gives deeper meaning to honor. This combines with Yamada’s exquisite portrayal of samurai at the end of the Tokugawa period, as Japan begins to open to the West, to suggest that the modernization of the samurai is intrinsically linked to the humanization of the samurai.
The film When the Last Sword is Drawn has two contrasting main characters with two different interpretations of samurai honor. These characters dwell in the turbulent final years of the Tokugawa period, where factions fought to overthrow the established government and start a new modernized age. There is hopeful yearning for the promise of modernity but also a bitter grief over the end of the traditional cultural paradigm.
Violence of Style
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart on the River Styx – Directed by Kenji Misumi
Samurai Jack - created by Genndy Tartakovsky
Like the original Japanese graphic novel or manga series by Kazuo Koike, the film adaptation of Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart on the River Styx bursts with over-the-top stylized samurai action. Stretches of mounting tension are capped with revelatory violence. There is a raw beauty in the fight scenes, as though we’re watching a master artist painting with blood red ink.
Samurai Jack is an American animated series that continues this stylized trend of 70’s samurai films, but with a twist. The fun character design and sci-fi backdrop is combined with exquisite painterly compositions and slick dynamic direction. Mixed in is just the right amount of Saturday morning cartoon silliness, making Samurai Jack appealing to samurai fans of all ages. These selections show off the samurai who doesn’t just beat the bad-guy, he looks good doing it too.
