Arjun's Media Studies Culture Blog

Seven Samurai : 1954

When I was asked to select a classic movie to start my blog about, no other movie had a firmer spot in my mind. From the day I first watched it, to the day i got it on DVD, the film "Seven Samurai" has held the spot of my all-time favorite movie. Apart from the 207 minute run time, this movie has been thought to be the perfect action movie, with great characters and a very strong plot line.

The plot revolves around a small farmers village, who has been ransacked by bandits countless times. A veteran Samurai, who had fallen from his high rank, decides to gather 6 allies in order to protect the village, and teach the village some self defense. Without spoiling too much, i can say that the final battle between a small village, and over 60 bandits has to be the best action scene that i have ever witnessed. Enough of me blabbering on, lets see what others say about this movie...

Review 1 : A Film Review by James Berardinelli

"Seven Samurai is richly deserving of its high place in cineaste circles. Despite its epic length and scope, the key to the movie's success is that it focuses on a small group of characters. (The actual number of fully realized individuals is three, not seven – several of the "secondary" samurai are only sketchily developed.) The narrative is straightforward, allowing numerous opportunities for elaborate action sequences. In fact, the bulk of the movie's second half is comprised of battle scenes. These are clearly delineated and exactingly choreographed. Kurosawa, a meticulous craftsman, does not rely on editing sleight-of-hand to present fights. His stylistic imprint is emblazoned upon every frame."

I love this movie because it was different, the Japanese action scenes far surpassed any Hollywood fights I was watching at the time, and I think that James Berardinelli has the same feeling about this film too.

The review itself is very detailed and goes into a large amount of depth. the writer has paid a lot of attention to small details like camera angles, side characters, etc. This amount of detail adds value and trust to the review, when someone goes into depth about a subject, then a lot of research must be done to get the facts, and this research on help to validate the review in the eyes of a reader.

"One of the most intriguing sequences occurs as Kambei plans the defense of the village. Using a map of the environs, he explains how the enemy will likely approach and what he intends to do to impede them. By including this scene, Kurosawa ensures that we understand the layout of the village and the plans of the samurai, so that when the battle begins, we have an understanding of how landmarks relate to each other. James Cameron employs a similar approach in Titanic when, in the "present" sequences, he uses computer graphics to show what happened to the ship as it broke up so that, when we see it happen, we comprehend what is transpiring."

By going into detail and comparing the shots that Akira Kurosawa used to more well knon films like titanic, james allows the reader to connect to the film, even if they have not seen it before, Also, by ccomparing these shots, james is trying to show that Akira Kurosawa was the "James Cameron" of his time, as they both had the tactical thinking neccicarry to put a shot like that into their movie. I cannot praise this movie enough, so i will let james have the final say.

"Seven Samurai is a grand epic – a big, splashy motion picture that runs well over three hours and never flags. The intermission is almost superfluous; we are so caught up in the story that, by the time it arrives, it's more of a nuisance than a welcome break. Seven Samurai has the kind of momentum that many long movies lack. Despite its length, it is a perfect example of economy – there isn't a single wasted shot. Seven Samurai is an unforgettable masterpiece – the work of one of the world's greatest filmmakers at the height of his powers."

Review 2 : Mixed negative responses

Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it) I could not find any critical reviews about this movie However, I did manage to find a few small reviews on a variety of review sites that had bad ratings, so i decided to use them instead. So without further ado, lets review some reviews.

"It may have been amazing almost 60 years ago but today its kind of like watching a play; its not much fun and you realize how bad entertainment must have been back then for people to have enjoyed it."

In my opinion, this reviewer is thinking about the movie completely wrong. the movie is meant to be watched like a play (hence the 3+ hour run time). You are meant to follow the characters throughout this journey and relate to some problems they may be facing along the way, the movie isn't an American style action movie where the explosions speak louder than the cast, Akira Kurosawa purposefully made sure that each character was developed fully before the final battle, so that the interest of the audience constantly heightens as the movie reaches it's climax.

"how does this movie top the classics like Raiders of the Lost Ark and Die Hard, where the acting is at least ten times as better? The soundtrack for this movie is also pretty flimsy at that, whereas films like Die Hard had a strong, robust soundtrack. I'm sorry, but this movie is far from something i would call the greatest action movie ever"

Unfortunately I can't talk alot about the negative reviews because they all pick on the same thing. This reviewer relates Seven Samurai to films like Die Hard and Lost Ark, and as i said before, the reviewer has the purpose all wrong. Understandably, Seven Samurai is an action film, but its not one that follows the book. It replaces loud explosions for emotional scenes of warriors training in the rain, it cuts out swooping helicopter shots for basic eye-level dolly pans, so that you can see the emotion in the characters eyes. Although many male viewers dislike the movie because of its lack of action untill the end 1-1/2 hours, and the focus on character stories, most viewers prefer this change o pace, compared to the dominant action movie template.

If you have a chance to buy this movie on DVD, i cannot recommend you enough to do so, it is a classic film that has inspired many Hollywood directors to step out the box, and take a new look at action films.

Because of that, it will always be a classic, and will always be a great movie in my eyes

Written by -Arjun Ark-