| Overall Grade: |
B+ |
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| Story: |
A- |
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| Acting: |
B+ |
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| Direction: |
A- |
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| Visuals: |
B+ |
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Yet another outstanding film..
by Terrorazer (movies profile)
Feb 27, 2007
2
of
2 people found this review helpful
Does Akira Kurosawa even know how to make a bad film? Or even a decent film? Seriously, all this guy knows how to make are outstanding and simply stunning movies. Every one that I've watched so far from Kurosawa never ceases to amaze me. He has to be one of the greatest directors in Japanese history, not to mention all time. Yojimbo is an amazing film. The story is compelling, the acting is solid, the art direction is of course the best (we're talking Kurosawa here) and the visuals are still amazing even for a 1961 film. Probably not as recognized as 'Seven Samurai' or 'Rashomon,' Yojimbo still combines what Kurosawa and his crew does best, the elements of a beautiful film.
Firstly, the story follows a wandering masterless samurai, played by Toshiro Mifune, as he ventures into a town torn between two warring factions: Ushitora's men and Sembei's. With a samurai in town, both sides try their hardest to recruit the skilled swordsman to lead them into victory. However, as the samurai easily realizes, both sides boil of rage, greed, and selfishness. The plan: the samurai will play mastermind as he attempts to manipulate both sides and cause them to destroy each other in the process. Sounds pretty good doesn't it? It's compelling, it really is. I enjoyed all two hours of it. Things get even more interesting as one of Ushitora's leaders comes back with a handgun, obviously holding the advantage over all sword-wielders. There are hardly any flaws to be found throughout this movie. The story flows great, it holds its own amount of twists and turns and mixes in comedy and action and suspense very masterfully. Props to Kurosawa, a great director and once again, a great story.
After watching this film, the acting is again a bright spot in the film, but truly there are no dark spots at all. Mifune plays a quiet, subtle, but amusing samurai who outsmarts and outpowers any who attempt to backstab him. Mifune gives in another memorable performance. He's very good at subtly acting out events with mere subtext. He needs very few words and lets his body and actions do the talking. A very skilled actor, indeed, and an even more believable portrayal of a samurai who wants no money but good for the town. The handgun carrier actor also puts in a nice performance as he is able to single himself out among the rest of the antagonists as the main baddy for Mifune. A nice job indeed in portraying the greedy, scary, intelligent henchmen of Ushitora. The two bosses of both sides also put in notable performances as well as 'The Old Man' who aides the samurai throughout the film. Nice work to all the actors.
The art direction is definitely the strong point for Akira Kurosawa and his crew. They both must be masters of the camera as every shot is either so detailed, so minimal, or so dazzling. For example, the final scene on the street of the town features a mist that constantly surrounds the battlefield. It keeps going throughout- very effective in creating a gloomy atmosphere that inevitably foreshadows bloodshed and a final veil before it is lifted. The visuals are fun to watch, and although it is black and white, and like the many other Kurosawa films, it allows you to create your own color to the scenery and after the film, allows you to remember the entire movie with color throughout. It's an amazing spectacle.
Akira Kurosawa is a hell of a director. There's no doubt about that. And Toshiro Mifune is the perfect samurai. No doubt about that either. Yojimbo is a great, great film and very memorable. It is expertly written and even more expertly directed. Congrats and thank you to Kurosawa and co. because I have just sat through two hours of brilliance in film-making. |
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