1. ‘HARAKIRI’
(Masaki Kobayashi, 1964) (star)(star)(star)(star)
This astounding, devastating accomplishment stars Tatsuya Nakadai as a down-and-out samurai who (we think) wishes to commit ritual suicide in the room of the prosperous Iyi Clan. Kobayashi unfolds the grim, cynical tale in layers, climaxing in a brilliant, beautiful swordfight on a wind-swept plain. (Video)
2. ‘SAMURAI REBELLION’
(Masaki Kobayashi, 1967) (star)(star)(star)(star)
Toshiro Mifune is Isaburo, a loyal samurai who chafes when the clan’s lord demands that Ichi, his former mistress and now beloved wife of Isaburo’s son, renounce her husband and return to the castle–even though the lord initially demanded that Isaburo’s family take her in. This is a moving, powerful drama, with a rarity in samurai flicks–a very strong female character in Ichi (Yoko Tsukasa). (Video)
3. ‘THE SEVEN SAMURAI’
(Akira Kurosawa, 1956) (star)(star)(star)(star)
This movie is a masterpiece, with its nuanced, insightful depiction of seven ronin (masterless samurai) who come to the aid of a village being tormented by a passel of baddies. The final battle scene is like a ballet made even more gripping by how well we have come to know each of the “magnificent seven.” Toshiro Mifune is, as usual, nonpareil. (DVD/Video)
4. ‘SAMURAI ASSASSIN’
(Kihachi Okamoto, 1965) (star)(star)(star)(star)
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This reality-based (the 1860 assassination of the elder of Japan’s House of Ii) character study traces the lives of two swordsmen, one of whom might be a traitor to a group of assassins. Toshiro Mifune’s performance as troubled, aspiring samurai Tsuruchiyo Niino–searching for his real father–is fantastic in a film with surprises galore. (Video)
5. ‘YOJIMBO’
(Akira Kurosawa, 1961) (star)(star)(star)(star)
Yes, it’s Mifune again as the gruff, mischievous Sanjuro, a ronin set adrift by peacetime Japan. Setting two warring clans against each other, Sanjuro gets caught up in his own plot, only to emerge triumphant in this lush, visually gorgeous morality play. (DVD/Video)