Not As strong as the first film but still a solid effort
More close-ups here- not a strength—I think Kurosawa is better when letting the figures operate in space
More close-ups here- not a strength—I think Kurosawa is better when letting the figures operate in space — but this is certainly a clear exception– great work here
And nice frame, track and then reframe of the Miss Sayo character at 6 minutes
It’s WWII—so there is an American bully sailor and that sets off the Judo vs. Boxing—USA vs. Japan premise—it is sort of similar to the story structure of Rocky IV– haha
At 12 there’s a montage of Sanshiro Sugata being appalled by the spectacle of boxing—Kurosawa bounces fast and faster through montage off of the bloodthirsty vulgar crowd, the man being brutalized- very well done
The titular hero here is a great character- a larger than life warrior with a moral compass – a reluctant fighter
At 35 minutes a great shot of the lamp in the foreground in the dojo
At 35 minutes a great shot of the lamp in the foreground in the dojo
The snow epic showdown – certainly shooting it outside adds to the atmosphere- choreographed- a great long shot of him throwing his enemy down a mountain
Kurosawa’s third film- there’s a weak movie called The Most Beautiful he made between the two Sanshiro Sugata films in 1944
[…] Sanshiro Sugata Part Two – Kurosawa […]