Yojimbo – 1961 Kurosawa - The Cinema Archives

Another outstanding Kurosawa effort where you could write 1000 words on the cultural impact and cinematic influence. Certainly without Yojimbo– we wouldn’t have Fistful of Dollars which was the breakthrough film for both Sergio Leone and Clint Eastwood (two of the best 100 directors of all-time and one top 25 or so actor). That leads directly to Sergio Corbucci’s Django (essentially the same plot)- and we’re still seeing the reverberations of that today in 21^st century cinema obviously (Tarantino). This is a pillar- an archetype.
It isn’t just the western (genre) influence of say John Ford on Kurosawa. The source material from the west (hemisphere) has led to many of Kurosawa’s films. I mean he’s adapting Shakespeare often, and in this case it is Dashiell Hammett’s Red Harvest. He also adapted the Russian novelists (not the west obviously, but not Japanese either) and Maxim Gorky.
Darkly comic, violent (a higher body count than I remember) and nihilistically cynical
Mifune’s samurai named simply “Sanjuro”- is a brilliant character (both on the page and the way Mifune brings him to life). He flips a word at the opening to see what direction he’s going- Kurosawa’s take on fate
Mifune has such confidence and swagger- a nonchalance almost that he absolutely can pull off. The “we’ll need two coffins, better make that three” feels damn near close to the first action hero one-liner that would pervade the genre in the back half of the 20^th century (if it’s not this maybe it’s the Duke saying “that’ll be the day”).
Kurosawa continues (though not on quite the same level as 1960’s The Bad Sleep Well) the masterful widescreen, multiple depths of field composition.

Kurosawa continues (though not on quite the same level as 1960’s The Bad Sleep Well) the masterful widescreen, multiple depths of field composition

Darkly comic, violent (a higher body count than I remember) and nihilistically cynical

There’s a stunning shot at 25 minutes with the three heads in the frame— Isuzu Yamada’s character, her husband and son

There’s a stunning shot at 25 minutes with the three heads in the frame— Isuzu Yamada’s character, her husband and son– this is it– it isn’t some zoom-in from a pan and scan still shot- literally all that makes up the entirety of the wide frame is the three heads– beautiful

At 38 minutes- Mifune and the restaurant owner—the back of their head are on opposite ends of the tohoscope wide frame—and they’re spying on men through the wood façade

At 38 minutes- Mifune and the restaurant owner—the back of their head are on opposite ends of the tohoscope wide frame—and they’re spying on men through the wood façade

A simple story, two rival gangs, with Mifune (literally and figuratively) in the middle—a magnificently simple town set up, too
A very small role for Shimura—feels like a cameo almost- heavy makeup
As they approach each other in the street- the two rival gangs have these striking staggered tableau shots—echoed in something like Scorsese’s The Gangs of New York

As they approach each other in the street- the two rival gangs have these striking staggered tableau shots—echoed in something like Scorsese’s The Gangs of New York

A jaw-dropper at 65 minutes- the husband of the kidnapped woman is in the foreground center, the restaurant owner in the middle right—and Mifune in the back left

A jaw-dropper at 65 minutes- the husband of the kidnapped woman is in the foreground center, the restaurant owner in the middle right—and Mifune in the back left

The film’s greatest scene and sequence (ranking among the best of Kurosawa’s and the western genre in total if you count this as a western) is at 103 minutes as Mifune approaches the town. The feet of his hanging friend are in the frame in the front left. Two enemies in the foreground center and right and Mifune approaches in the far distant background. Kurosawa masterfully shoots with the telephoto lens—the wind is swirling and the town in ruins….pure genius.

The film’s greatest scene and sequence (ranking among the best of Kurosawa’s and the western genre in total if you count this as a western) is at 103 minutes as Mifune approaches the town