Yojimbo
- Release Date
- April 25, 1961
- Director
- Akira Kurosawa
- Cast
- Toshiro Mifune , Tatsuya Nakadai , Yôko Tsukasa , Isuzu Yamada , Daisuke Katô , Seizaburô Kawazu
- Runtime
- 110
- Main Genre
- Action
- Writers
- Akira Kurosawa , Ryûzô Kikushima
- Tagline
- First class samurai action tale with philosophy to boot
Summary
In director Akira Kurosawa's comedic YOJIMBO, a masterless samurai, Sanjuro (Toshir� Mifune), wanders into a town divided by two warring clans. After displaying his formidable swordsmanship before both clans in a brawl with street thugs, Sanjuro offers his services to the highest bidder. When one clan conspires against him, the clever warrior switches his allegiance to the other side, with the ultimate goal of tricking the two equally despicable and foolish clans into exterminating each other. Sanjuro's authority is challenged, however, when Unosuke (Tatsuya Nakadai), a brother of one of the leaders, comes to town wielding a modern contraption: a gun. In the classic final showdown, the old world samurai is pitted against new world progress, and must use both his wits and physical prowess to survive.
latest
How Yojimbo Became an Accidental Western
An inspiration to movies such as "The Man with No Name", this Japanese film stands the test of time as the accidental original.