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It is rather a shock, if you are familiar with Mikio Naruse‘s cinema, to discover “Summer Clouds”. The movie stands out in his filmography – not simply because it is his first color and widescreen feature, but also because it leaves behind the urban environment typical of the director to instead tell a tale about peasant life in the countryside. In place of the quiet domestic dramas set in small Tokyo homes, we now get wide shots of fields, valleys and beaches. Stepping out of his comfort zone, Naruse also stumbles somewhat in telling a story that feels much more polished and academic than his usual fare.

Summer Clouds is screening at Metrograph as part of the Mikio Naruse: The World Betrays Us program

There is still much to appreciate in a movie that bears strong similarities to Naruse’s earlier works, particularly in how it concentrates on a family...

“I am a person rarely impressed by actors… but in the case of Mifune I was completely overwhelmed. The ordinary Japanese actor might need ten feet of film to get across an impression. Toshirō Mifune needed only three feet,” said Akira Kurosawa.

One of the greatest talents in cinema history, Toshirō Mifune left behind a staggering body of work amassing over 150 starring roles. Born on April 1, 1920, a retrospective was planned for 2020 timed to his centennial and now, after a delay due to the pandemic, it will kick off next week at NYC’s Film Forum. Featuring 35mm rarities and rediscoveries imported from the libraries of The Japan Foundation and The National Film Archive of Japan, the series will run for a whopping four weeks, from February 11 through March 10, and feature 33 films.

Ahead of the retrospective, we’re pleased to exclusively debut the trailer, edited by John Zhao, highlighting what is...

Most epic movies make you ponder the money involved. How many bootstraps and belt buckles were crafted for The Lord of the Rings (2001-3)? How many computers were used to design the final battle in Avengers: Endgame (2019)? How much napalm blew up the jungle in the opening shot of Apocalypse Now (1979)? Seven Samurai (1954) doesn’t inspire such analyses; at least, not while you’re watching it. Watching this immersive medieval parable from Akira Kurosawa is like embracing a long-lost legend, dug up after hundreds of years like an ancient text on celluloid. Kurosawa was so seamless as a filmmaker that the sets and costumes and details all melt into his story.

From the American cowboy remake The Magnificent Seven (1960) to Pixar’s insect adventure A Bug’s Life (1998), the premise of Seven Samurai simmers in the cinematic consciousness. Set in 16th century Japan, ravaged by civil wars, a group of armoured...

Stars: Tomisaburo Wakayama, Akihiro Tomikawa, Yunosuke Ito, Go Kato | Written by Kazuo Koike, Tsutomu Nakamura | Directed by Kenji Misumi, Buichi Saito, Yoshiyuki Kuroda

Producing six films across two years (1972-1974) is no mean feat, especially when you consider that they mostly retain their quality throughout. Based on the 28-volume manga series by Kazuo Koike (writer, who adapts for screen) and Goseki Kojima (illustrator), Lone Wolf and Cub is a set of brisk, ultraviolent action-adventure movies, packed with clever ideas, beautiful scenery, and weird characters, set in the Edo period (17th to 19th centuries) of Japan.

Martial arts star Tomisaburo Wakayama plays Itto Ogami (meaning “wolf”), an ex-Shogunate Executioner whose wife is murdered by the fearful Yagyu clan, led by the cruel Retsudo (Yunosuke Ito). Framed and shamed into exile, Ogami takes his son, Daigoro (Akihiro Tomikawa), and hits the road. Not just any road, but the “Demon Way in Hell...

Picking your favorite Akira Kurosawa film is a tricky choice for any movie fan. From "Rashomon" to "Ran," the great Japanese filmmaker, one of the most beloved and influential directors of all time, knocked out a string of classics in a career that lasted well over 40 years. But more often than not, at the top of the list for Kurosawa fans is "The Seven Samurai," the 1954 samurai epic that redefined the action movie for generations.

Following six samurai (and one pretender, iconically played by Toshiro Mifune) who are recruited by a village of farmers to protect them from bandits, it remains to this day one of the most stirring, thrilling adventures in cinema history, and landed Kurosawa firmly on the map in international cinema. The film was released in Japan 58 years ago today, on April 26th, 1954 (a U.S. release, heavily cut down, would follow 30 months later), and to mark the occasion,...

Toshiro Mifune in Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai Seven Samurai Review Part 2 Almost as good an acting job as Shimura's is that of Isao Kimura as Katsushiro. Watch the scene where he confronts the great swordsman Kyuzo — in yet another bravura performance that shows less is more — after Kyuzo has single-handedly killed two bandits and returned with a needed gun. Katsushiro says little, save to tell his hero he is "great." Kyuzo restrains a smile of satisfaction. Then, when Kyuzo is later killed by a gunshot, look at the utter devastation on Katsushiro's face. Similarly, look at his reaction to killing a bandit — the first man he has ever killed — or even at some of the earlier shots that show Katsushiro ruminating on the fact that a life as a samurai is not all glamour. Let a Mark Hamill try to act like that! The three other samurai, [...]...

Shichinin No Samurai / Seven Samurai (1954) Direction: Akira Kurosawa Cast: Toshiro Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Yoshio Inaba, Seiji Miyaguchi, Isao Kimura, Kamatari Fujiwara, Yoshio Tsuchiya Screenplay: Akira Kurosawa, Shinobu Hashimoto, Hideo Oguni Oscar Movies Toshiro Mifune, Seven Samurai By Dan Schneider of Cosmoetica Some films get better after repeated viewings. Akira Kurosawa's 1954 black-and-white drama Shichinin no samurai / Seven Samurai is one of them. It fully deserved winning that year's Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival, as well its Academy award nominations for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration (black and white) and Best Costume Design (black and white). Additionally, Seven Samurai became an international sensation and it's reported to have been the highest-grossing Japanese film of its day. [Note: Spoilers ahead.] On first view, Seven Samurai is simply a great action film; but with subsequent viewings, the finer points of characterization come through, subliminally and purposefully seeping into the viewer's mind. [...]...

For years now Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai has been ranked as one of the best movies ever made, and is usually considered one of the finest achievement in cinema. In the most recent Sight and Sound poll of the best films ever made, critics ranked it eleventh (its highest charting was in 1982 at #3) while filmmakers ranked it ninth. It’s ranked thirteenth on IMDb.com’s list of the greatest films of all time. Ain’t no denying that Kurosawa and his cast (including Toshiro Mifune) made a masterwork. And my review of The Criterion collection’s Seven Samurai after the jump.

A band of marauding Ronin spot a village and are about to raid it when their leader notes that the village’s crops won’t be ready for another couple of weeks. They ride off, but a villager hears their plans. After a discussion, the villagers decide...