Shichinin no samurai (1954)

User Rating:

8.8/10   

Director:

Akira Kurosawa

Writers:

Akira Kurosawa (screenplay) &
Shinobu Hashimoto (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

19 November 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Drama | War

Tagline:

The Mighty Warriors Who Became the Seven National Heroes of a Small Town

Plot:

A poor village under attack by bandits recruits seven unemployed samurai to help them defend themselves.

Plot Keywords:

Samurai | Bandit | Farmer | Japan | Rice

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Takashi Shimura	...	Kambei Shimada
Toshirô Mifune	...	Kikuchiyo
Yoshio Inaba	...	Gorobei Katayama
Seiji Miyaguchi	...	Kyuzo
Minoru Chiaki	...	Heihachi Hayashida
Daisuke Katô	...	Shichiroji
Isao Kimura	...	Katsushiro Okamoto
Keiko Tsushima	...	Shino
Yukiko Shimazaki	...	Rikichi's Wife
Kamatari Fujiwara	...	Manzo, father of Shino
Yoshio Kosugi	...	Mosuke
Bokuzen Hidari	...	Yohei
Yoshio Tsuchiya	...	Rikichi
Kokuten Kodo	...	Gisaku, the Old Man
Takuzo Kumagaya	...	Peasant (as Jirô Kumagai)
Eijirô Tôno	...	Kidnapper
Haruko Toyama	...	Ginsaku's Daughter-in-law
Tsuneo Katagiri	...	Farmer in front of Gono
Kichijiro Ueda	...	Captured Bandit Scout
Jun Tatara	...	1st Coolie
Yasuhisa Tsutsumi	...	Farmer in front of Gono
Atsushi Watanabe	...	Bun Vendor
Toranosuke Ogawa	...	Grandfather of Kidnapped Girl
Yu Akitsu	...	Husband in Burnt House
Isao Yamagata	...	Samurai
Sojin	...	Blind Minstrel (as Sojin Kamiyama)
Gen Shimizu	...	Samurai who kicks farmers
Keiji Sakakida	...	Gosaku
Shinpei Takagi	...	Bandit Chief
Shin Otomo	...	Bandit second-in-command
Toshio Takahara	...	Samurai with gun (as Shuno Takahara)
Hiroshi Sugi	...	Tea Shop Owner
Miki Hayashi
Sachio Sakai	...	2nd Coolie
Akira Tani	...	Bandit
Sokichi Maki	...	Strong-looking Samurai
Haruo Nakajima	...	Bandit
Ichirô Chiba	...	Buddhist Priest
Noriko Sengoku	...	Wife of Gono Family
Fumiko Honma	...	Woman Farmer
Masanobu Ôkubo	...	Samurai
Etsuro Nishijo	...	Samurai
Etsuryo Saijo
Minoru Ito	...	Samurai
Hideo Shibuya
Kiyoshi Kamoda	...	Samurai
Senkichi Ômura	...	Bandit who escapes
Takashi Narita	...	Bandit who escapes
Shoichi Hirose	...	Bandit
Koji Uno	...	Bandit
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Hiroshi Agetsu	...	Gono Husband
Ryutaro Amami	...	Bandit
Goro Amano	...	Farmer
Shizuko Hogashi	...	Farmer's Wife
Tazue Ichimanji	...	Woman Farmer
Toku Ihara	...	Farmer
Kaneo Ikeda	...	Samurai
Kazuo Imai	...	Farmer
Hisaya Ito	...	Samurai wandering through town
Koji Iwamoto	...	Farmer
Kyoichi Kamiyama	...	Farmer
Shigeo Kato	...	Farmer
Masayoshi Kawabe	...	Farmer
Michiko Kawabe	...	Farmer's Wife
Ippei Kawagoe	...	Farmer
Yoshikazu Kawamata	...	Farmer
Akira Kichoji	...	Farmer (as Akira Kichijoji)
Yayoko Kitano	...	Farmer's Wife
Fumiyoshi Kumaya	...	Ginsaku's Son
Akio Kusama	...	Bandit
Masahide Matsushita	...	Samurai
Jun Mikami	...	Bandit
Sanpei Mine	...	Farmer
Keiko Mori	...	Farmer's Wife
Kyoji Naka	...	Bandit
Eisuke Nakanishi	...	Farmer
Toshiko Nakano	...	Farmer's Wife
Junpei Natsuki	...	Farmer
Hideo Oe	...	Farmer
Yasuo Onishi	...	Farmer
Matsue Ono	...	Woman Farmer
Masako Oshiro	...	Woman Farmer
Hideo Otsuka	...	Farmer
Keiko Ozawa	...	Woman Farmer
Haruya Sakamoto	...	Samurai
Kyoro Sakurai	...	Samurai
Takeshi Seki	...	3rd Coolie
Megeru Shimoda	...	Farmer
Seiji Sunagawa	...	Bandit
Misao Suyama	...	Woman Farmer
Jiro Suzukawa	...	Farmer
Kazuo Suzuki	...	Farmer
Toriko Takahara	...	Woman Farmer
Yuko Togawa	...	Farmer's Wife
Kamayuki Tsubono	...	Bandit
Tomeko Umayato	...	Woman Farmer in front of Gono
Michiko Uwamoto	...	Farmer's Wife
Akira Yamada	...	Farmer
Tatsuya Nakadai	...	Samurai wandering through town (uncredited)
Kaneyuki Tsubono	...	Bandit (uncredited)
Ken Utsui	...	Samurai wandering throuth town (uncredited)
Ren Yamamoto	...	Farmer (uncredited)

Directed by
Akira Kurosawa

Writing credits
Akira Kurosawa		(screenplay) &
Shinobu Hashimoto		(screenplay) &
Hideo Oguni		(screenplay)

Produced by
Sôjirô Motoki	....	producer

Original Music by
Fumio Hayasaka

Cinematography by
Asakazu Nakai

Film Editing by
Akira Kurosawa

Production Design by
Takashi Matsuyama

Costume Design by
Kôhei Ezaki
Mieko Yamaguchi

Makeup Department
Midori Nakajo	....	hair stylist
Junjiro Yamada	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Hiroshi Nezu	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Sakae Hirosawa	....	assistant director
Hiromichi Horikawa	....	chief assistant director
Toshi Kaneko	....	assistant director
Masaya Shimizu	....	assistant director
Yasuyoshi Tajitsu	....	assistant director

Art Department
Kôhei Ezaki	....	art consultant
Koichi Hamamura	....	property master
Yoshirô Muraki	....	assistant art director

Sound Department
Ichirô Minawa	....	sound effects editor
Masanao Uehara	....	sound assistant
Fumio Yanoguchi	....	sound recordist

Camera and Electrical Department
Masao Fukuda	....	still photographer
Mitsuo Kaneko	....	assistant lighting technician
Shigeru Mori	....	lighting technician
Takao Saitô	....	assistant camera

Editorial Department
Hiroshi Nezu	....	editing manager

Music Department
Masaru Satô	....	assistant to composer

Other crew
Shigeru Endo	....	instructor: horseback archery
Kôhei Ezaki	....	folklore researcher
Yuji Hamada	....	accountant
Ienori Kaneko	....	archery instructor
Toshio Nakane	....	acting office
Teruyo Nogami	....	script supervisor
Takeharu Shimada	....	production assistant
Yoshio Sugino	....	swordplay instructor

Production Companies

• Toho Company

Distributors

• Toho Company (1954) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Columbia Pictures (1956) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) (1972) (USA) (TV) (US network premiere)
• AVCO Embassy Pictures (1982) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Films Incorporated (1982) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Janus Films (1982) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Landmark Films (1982) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Embassy Home Entertainment (1987) (USA) (VHS)
• Criterion Collection, The (1989) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Criterion Collection, The (1991) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Criterion Collection, The (1998) (USA) (DVD)
• Cowboy Pictures (2002) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Toho Company (2002) (Japan) (DVD)
• Shoval Film Production (2003) (Israel) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Bright Angel Distribution (2004) (Netherlands) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Madman Entertainment (2004) (Australia) (DVD)
• Total Film Home Entertainment (2004) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Total Film Home Entertainment (2004) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Nihon Eiga Satellite Broadcasting (2007) (Japan) (TV)
• Asociace Ceských Filmových Klubu (ACFK) (2009) (Czech Republic) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Atlantic Film (2002) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Cinédis (1955) (France) (theatrical)
• Jaguar Film (1965) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Rosenbergs Filmbyrå (1965) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Studio 43 (????) (France) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI) (2002) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Television och Smalfilm (1965) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Continental Home Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2009) (USA) (DVD)
• Sandrews (2007) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Tocantins (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Toho Video (1996) (Japan) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Toho Genzosho  video editing

Also Known As:

Seven Samurai (UK) (USA)
Shichi-nin no samurai (Japan) (alternative transliteration)

Runtime:

160 min (international version) | Argentina:163 min | Japan:206 min (initial release) | Sweden:202 min (2002 re-release) | UK:150 min (original version) | UK:190 min (1991 re-release) | USA:141 min | USA:203 min (re-release) | USA:207 min (restored version) | Spain:202 min (DVD edition)

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Portugal:M/12 | Brazil:10 | Czech Republic:U | Spain:T | Argentina:16 | Australia:PG | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:11 (re-rating) (2002) | Sweden:15 (original rating) | Switzerland:14 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (1991) | USA:Unrated | West Germany:16

Company:

Toho Company

Trivia:

One of the samurai who is seen walking through the town was played by a young Tatsuya Nakadai. This uncredited bit part is believed to have been only the second film appearance by Nakadai, who would quickly become one of Japan's most accomplished actors, and who had a long working relationship with Akira Kurosawa. His active career continues more than 50 years after this film was released.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the first scene when the people in the village are discussing what to do with the bandits, it's visible that they are wearing wigs to make it look like they are bald.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Bandit second-in-command: We'll take this place next.
Bandit Chief: We took it last autumn. They haven't got anything worth taking yet. Let's wait.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Seven Samurai: Origins and Influences (2006) (V)

Complex Beauty

Donald Richie thought it was Kurosawa's finest, and suggested that it might the best Japanese film ever made.

It is a film that rewards casual viewing and careful viewing and repeated viewing and viewing over time. Isn't that rather like a wonderful book, that rewards you every time you pick it up? I suppose that is the definition of greatness.

How was this greatness achieved? (This is not a rhetorical question. It truly astonishes me how this film creates meaning...cutting across all boundaries of nationality, language, and culture to become a meaningful personal experience for those who view it). This creation of greatness may be a mystery, but we can point to the some features of the film's excellence:

The artistic achievement: The music, the cinematography, the extensive set design, the editing and the acting in the service of a moving story all conspire to create a world that becomes ours on a deeply personal level. It is a film which influences later films and filmmakers.

The narrative achievement: Based on an original concept of Kurosawa's which began as a "day in the life" documentary of a samurai's existence, Kurosawa developed the idea into this breathtaking film of samurai who save a village. This simple but complexly nuanced human story involves us in different social classes in an historical framework. We come to know individual peasants and samurai, and feel that we know significant things about them, their motivations, hopes and fears.

The achievements of the actors: These are characters you will love, people you need to have in your life: the characters of Kyuzo, Heihachi and the unforgettable Bokuzen Hidari as a bewildered peasant..! Takeshi Shimura, as the leader of the samurai, Gambei, is the embodiment of wisdom, and calm in the storm. And, saying that Toshiro Mifune has star power is like saying the noonday sun sheds a little warmth.

Toshiro: It's the cut of his jawline when he asks the village patriarch, "Got a problem, grandad?", and the most charming look of confusion and embarrassment playing over his face when he is told by Heihachi that he is the triangle on the samurai flag. It's his energy, speed and agility and power and intelligence. Mifune sniffing out the fuse of a gun in the woods, bouncing through the brush half-naked in an abbreviated set of armor, or carrying his ridiculously oversize sword on one shoulder, Mifune crying over a baby, and the incomparable scene of his embarrassment that turns to rage when Mifune accuses the samurai of creating the farmer's condition.

Toshiro Mifune represents with extraordinary physicality the spirit of a man desperate to prove his worth: Mifune's got the animal sexuality, the physical response to emotional situations, the expressive face, the humorous and varied vocalisms to make us feel deeply what his character experiences: his struggles, his growth.(His drunken burblings as the last "samurai" to audition are nothing short of hilarious, and his "fish singing" is eerie and funny, too...also the grunted "eh?" that he often uses to show confusion, and the "heh" of disgust..such wonderful sounds, and so expressive!) Mifune's acting is wild and alive, even more than 50 years after the film's original release.

Takashi Shimura: You will trust him with your life. His great, open heart, his mature calm, his honesty and compassion make him one of the greatest of all samurai on film.

Fumio Hayasaka's music: Kuroasawa was lucky to have such a brilliant composer as collaborator. Themes introduce characters, and the samurai theme is surprising and memorable. If you have viewed the film, chances are, the samurai theme is playing in your mind with just a mention of the music. Hayasaka's music is muscular and nuanced: creating humor, or a counterpoint to the action, or deepening our sympathy for and understanding of the characters.

Muraki's scenography: There is no doubt that the places shown in the film are real. The achievement of Kurosawa's longtime collaborator provide a real world for the action.

The filmography is ground-breaking: the multiple cameras, slow-motion and attention to light and composition make each frame worthy of an 8X10 glossy. How can individual moments of such beauty be sustained throughout the movement of the film? It is an astonishing feat. And, best of all, no image degenerates into interior design or vacuous prettiness...everything forwards the movement of the cinematic experience. When the film ends, we feel as if we have lived it!

It is with great respect and humility that I offer my thanks to the memory of Mr. Kurosawa. His great work leads us to treasure humanity and its struggles, to develop our own abilities to feel compassion, encourages us to try to make good choices, to be socially and morally responsible, to embrace life.