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Toshiro Mifune returns as the nameless warrior in Akira Kurosawa's sequel to his 1961 classic Yojimbo. In Japan, Yojimbo was one of the biggest hits of that year. Toho was, understandingly, keen to see a follow-up. Kurosawa took a script which he had been keeping in his back pocket, an adaptation of Shūgorō Yamamoto's novel Hibi Heian that was earmarked for another director, and inserted the unnamed ronin.

In the original, Mifune's character sets two sides in a gang war on a path of mutual destruction. In it tradition and modernity, film noir and the western, comedy and tragedy, conflicting musical traditions are all set on a collision course. It was a violent fusion of styles that had an appeal far beyond Japan. Sanjuro is a more conventional film. It is more in line with the samurai movies of the Fifties and early Sixties.

The plot is not the Dashiell Hammett.

Yojimbo is a classic of the samurai film genre for a reason, and remains deeply relevant over sixty years after it debuted. Directed by Akira Kurosawa, Yojimbo follows a nameless ronin as he wanders into a small village torn between two warring gangs. Deciding to pit the criminals against one another for his own profit, the warrior finds himself forced to confront dangerous killers and moral quandaries while trying outwitting and outfighting his enemies. The result is a legendary entry in Akira Kurosawa's filmography, that stands among the director's best films while juggling societal themes with action, comedy, and thrills.

The immeasurable impact that Yojimbo had can't be understated, as the films it influenced ended up reshaping entire genres in turn. Its crystalization of the antihero remains timely, and fits in perfectly alongside modern movie heroes. Beyond being a crucial piece of cinematic history though, Yojimbo remains a timeless and entertaining film.

In 1993, Akira Kurosawa’s final feature, “Madadayo,” was released. Following this, he would leave the director’s chair entirely after he suffered an injury to his spine, forcing him to spend the final years of his life in a wheelchair. After decades of filmmaking, his career as a director had come to an end. Yet, he wasn’t done artistically speaking, remaining active as a screenwriter. Unfortunately, things would worsen for him in the following years as his health gradually declined, further restricting him from being artistically creative. On September 6th, 1998, Akira Kurosawa died due to a stroke. The death of the renowned filmmaker was met with international mourning. However, his legacy would continue to live on thanks to overwhelming admiration from audiences for his filmography and numerous tributes. On top of this, many who worked alongside the beloved auteur sought to honor him. One such movie...

With so many great Japanese directors who made a name for themselves, it is always interesting to see some collaborate. One of the most interesting collaborative efforts was the company “Yonki-no-Kai,” which translates to the “Club of the Four Knights,” established in 1969 by filmmakers Akira Kurosawa, Keisuke Kinoshita, Masaki Kobayashi, and Kon Ichikawa. The group of friends put together this effort to support one another, as the film industry in Japan at the time was in a state of financial hardships. Yet, things did not go according to plan with Kurosawa’s film “Dodes’ka-den,” being a box-office failure, leading to many projects being shelved. The four wrote a jidaigeki feature that would go unmade for a long-time when they couldn’t raise funds to make it. Years later, following the passing of his companions, Ichikawa would eventually be able to direct this initially canceled feature while...

In 1961, Akira Kurosawa released his fantastic samurai film “Yojimbo.” A movie that would be both a critical and box office success and go on to inspire countless filmmakers, such as Sergio Leone. The entertaining jidaigeki picture had many qualities to admire from its witty screenplay, stunning camerawork by legendary cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa, fast-paced action scenes, and an outstanding performance from the great actor Toshiro Mifune in one of his most iconic roles. However, to make a sequel to such a groundbreaking piece of cinema would be a challenge. So how does the legendary director Kurosawa follow up on one of the most beloved works of his career? He follows up with “Sanjuro,” a sequel that is not only an excellent continuation but an amazing film on its own.

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The movie is a loose adaptation of novelist Shugoro Yamamoto’s short story “Peaceful Days,” which dealt...

Akira Kurosawa is one of the greatest directors of all-time.  It's indisputable so don't even try.  However, his work is not immune from the clutches of remakes and his classics Seven Samurai, High and Low, Ikiru, and Drunken Angel have all been in development at one point or another.  However, most of his work has remained out of the hands of a single company until now.  Variety reports that new production company Splendent Media (the folks behind Al Pacino's upcoming film Wild Salome) has picked up the remake rights to 26 of Kurosawa's films including Yojimbo, Ran, Kagemusha, Dreams, and Rashomon.  In addition, Splendent also now owns 24 films Kurosawa wrote but didn't direct and 19 unproduced screenplays. Hit the jump for why you shouldn't be dismayed. While it's tough to argue that no one will be able to tell these stories as well as Kurosawa, we should all remember that Kurosawa also adapted stories.