• 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
  • Recommend but not in the top 10 of 1945