"Yojimbo" (Language - Japanese) (1961) - Movie Classics

When I watched “Red Beard”, “Rashomon” and “Seven Samurai” of Akira Kurosawa, the emotional point and philosophical conclusions were predominant and in almost all there were explanatory. “Yojimbo” is a clever thriller. It is a terrific entertainer. But does it hold the same kind of intense values and principles as the three movies mentioned? It is told through some supporting characters and not explanatory. But it is not fair to have a made up expectation for any movie and especially of this genre. So let us come to real movie making and how entertainment is cooked properly. This is one of the best thriller/action movies made in the history of movie industry.

The story is how a nameless Samurai manages to eradicate two gangs in a small village. The movie is short and plot twists occurring every five minutes. The bait made by the Samurai to the leaders and the way it turns out is unpredictable. After the initial thirty minutes of proper explanation of the situation existing in the town, there is no stop for this fast paced thriller. Toshirô Mifune has a charisma which he can easily and conveniently change with respect to the character. His humour is interestingly animated in “Rashomon” and “Seven Samurai”. In “Red Beard” he is the stern and rigid Doctor. Here is it the combination of a man with few words and also the right wit. This movie even though is solidly supported by screenplay is made fun and clever due to the acting of Toshirô.

Films of this type has been made and remade numerous times and ways till now and keep on going in future. The days when heroism takes precedence over realism are around the time of this movie. A movie will be severely hit when the protagonist gets hurt or loses. The Samurai in this film suffers injuries and encounters a perfect match. Any movie like this is interesting because the hero is matched by a villain equally and may be better than him. The brother of one of the gang leader, Unosoke played by Tatsuay Nakadai fulfills that. At the same time he becomes the victim of the various forms of games laid by the Samurai. So everything goes planned as the Samurai moves the coin? No. While he does the half of the job, the remaining is a stroke of luck. And some times it can be called fate. The film does not fall in those categories of cheap tricks. The genuine effort is still authentic and original. And this is the reason for the non-stop entertainment of “Yojimbo”.

As with any Kurosawa’s movies, the technical aspect takes a special mention. But in rest of the movies I have watched, the camera work and the application of colour-contrast is enjoyable and highly sophisticated, here it goes for the make up, fights, special effects and long camera shots. All of the mentioned points are implied in different scenes. But they are used once. They use it for the demand of it and not for the fancy. This made me thinking. If there is a new technology been applied now a day in a movie, some of the creators tend to push those in a place where it is totally unintended. They fall for the novelty. In this film though, with that sophistication in those departments, they have controlled it for one sequence or even one shot. Truly loyal to the script.

And another important factor is that the missing of romance sequence. I cannot imagine some one sacrificing those because it would have brought down the momentum of the story. May be I appreciate it a lot more than supposed to due to the current trend in various film industries, wherein they question the script if it missed the “important” ingredient for entertainment. This is a simple story of all. It is evident that it is made for a nice thriller. Audience entertainment is the centre piece for a production of this kind. Beyond that they manage to stick to the originality of it. It is so sad that I have been seasoned to have an opinion like this. An opinion of bending the art with respect to the demand of the audience and the business. I guess Kurosawa would have given a questioned ridicule look on me for praising these factors. This is cinema and this is how it should be.

This might be termed as one of the easy weighed film made by Kurosawa. But I am sure there have been lot of social issues and values addressed very subtle. The government officials behaving for their profit. The financial advantage paving the way for the main war of reign. Also the desire to attain a woman and in a very mild toned manner, the consequences of gambling. It may seem I am reading too much from the movie, but those are the simple sub-conscious facts ingrained into the viewers’ when they watch this film. I cannot wait to watch the sequel, “Sanjuro”.