StraightRazor
Familiar Face
- Messages
- 65
- Location
- Northwest Ohio
All time favorite. If you can decide on one film, and one film only, which is it? Of any decade. And more importantly, why does this particular film appeal to you so much? Heres mine:
Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai
I first saw this film in high school after reading about it in a book owned by my father, 'The 100 greatest films of All Time', can't recall the author. I had heard the name Kurosawa when I was younger. My parents were very into foreign films and I remember my mother making me watch a film called 'Ran'. I didnt think much of it at the time, all I really remember was the incredibly bloody battle at the castle. Anyway, at the local library I found a 2 VHS copy of Seven Samurai and decided to rent it. I was hooked instantly.
Why? So many reasons. Toshiro Mifune. His performance here was his personal best, as far as I'm concerned. And his charachter, Kikyuchio, is considered by many to be one of the all time great charachters, ever! Literary or cinematically. And I agree wholeheartedly. His performance in one scene alone is worth the price of the DVD. He has discovered the villagers have been hoarding weaponry stolen from dead or escaping samurai. Pleased with himself, he brings his bounty to the other 6, expecting praise. They are disgusted. One says, "I'd like to kill every farmer in this village." Unable to control himself any longer, Kikyuchio launches into a bitter tirade, directed right at us the entire time. His anger and frustration are palpable as he throws arrows across the room, storms two and fro, and points right into the lense. I wont go line for line, you need to see it yourself. In the end, the other samurai realize the truth, Kikyuchio is only posing as a samurai, he is a farmers son. He hates the farmers for their weakness, but he hates the samurai even more for their cruelty. He hates himself. Brilliant.
The camera work. Good camera work is invisible. Kurosawa's work here is a tour de force.This, is a 'motion' picture. Every element in the image is controlled and framed perfectly by Kurosawa. His use of the 4x3 frame rivals the huge 16x9 widescreen 'epics' of today.
I grew up on the 'action/adventure' film. (In a close tie with Seven Samurai), Raiders of the Lost Ark, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, Mysterious Island, Tarzan, To hell and Back, The Searchers, Shane, Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The Train, King Kong, The Thing from Another World, Lawrence of Arabia(comes close), Ben Hur, Braveheart, The Good the Bad and the Ugly, the list goes on and on. Seven Samurai tops them all with ease. In every category. Story, direction, performance, editing, lighting, everything. (It suffers sound wise but I find that doesnt matter much. Turn sound and subtitles off and you can still tell exactly what is going on. The hallmark of a great film.)
I have tried over the years to turn other people on to Seven Samurai, usually to no avail. Its not an easy sell. "Hey, you should watch this 3 1/2 hour long black and white Japanese film from the 50's, it's in subtitles too!!" Watch them frown like you offered them some undercooked pork. That is sad. They really dont know what they're missing. It's the stigma of a 'foreign film' you often run into. Seven Samurai is the most watchable and enyoyable 'foreign' films I've ever seen.
The thoughts, emotions, actions and reactions of the charachters are so universal, it makes the adventure all the more thrilling.
This is one of those films that, after a while, begins to feel like 'yours'. I feel that way about very few films. Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Fellowship of the Ring, A Night at the Opera, and Seven Samurai.
Whew! I could go on for ever, but lets hear about your favorite.
Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai
I first saw this film in high school after reading about it in a book owned by my father, 'The 100 greatest films of All Time', can't recall the author. I had heard the name Kurosawa when I was younger. My parents were very into foreign films and I remember my mother making me watch a film called 'Ran'. I didnt think much of it at the time, all I really remember was the incredibly bloody battle at the castle. Anyway, at the local library I found a 2 VHS copy of Seven Samurai and decided to rent it. I was hooked instantly.
Why? So many reasons. Toshiro Mifune. His performance here was his personal best, as far as I'm concerned. And his charachter, Kikyuchio, is considered by many to be one of the all time great charachters, ever! Literary or cinematically. And I agree wholeheartedly. His performance in one scene alone is worth the price of the DVD. He has discovered the villagers have been hoarding weaponry stolen from dead or escaping samurai. Pleased with himself, he brings his bounty to the other 6, expecting praise. They are disgusted. One says, "I'd like to kill every farmer in this village." Unable to control himself any longer, Kikyuchio launches into a bitter tirade, directed right at us the entire time. His anger and frustration are palpable as he throws arrows across the room, storms two and fro, and points right into the lense. I wont go line for line, you need to see it yourself. In the end, the other samurai realize the truth, Kikyuchio is only posing as a samurai, he is a farmers son. He hates the farmers for their weakness, but he hates the samurai even more for their cruelty. He hates himself. Brilliant.
The camera work. Good camera work is invisible. Kurosawa's work here is a tour de force.This, is a 'motion' picture. Every element in the image is controlled and framed perfectly by Kurosawa. His use of the 4x3 frame rivals the huge 16x9 widescreen 'epics' of today.
I grew up on the 'action/adventure' film. (In a close tie with Seven Samurai), Raiders of the Lost Ark, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, Mysterious Island, Tarzan, To hell and Back, The Searchers, Shane, Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The Train, King Kong, The Thing from Another World, Lawrence of Arabia(comes close), Ben Hur, Braveheart, The Good the Bad and the Ugly, the list goes on and on. Seven Samurai tops them all with ease. In every category. Story, direction, performance, editing, lighting, everything. (It suffers sound wise but I find that doesnt matter much. Turn sound and subtitles off and you can still tell exactly what is going on. The hallmark of a great film.)
I have tried over the years to turn other people on to Seven Samurai, usually to no avail. Its not an easy sell. "Hey, you should watch this 3 1/2 hour long black and white Japanese film from the 50's, it's in subtitles too!!" Watch them frown like you offered them some undercooked pork. That is sad. They really dont know what they're missing. It's the stigma of a 'foreign film' you often run into. Seven Samurai is the most watchable and enyoyable 'foreign' films I've ever seen.
The thoughts, emotions, actions and reactions of the charachters are so universal, it makes the adventure all the more thrilling.
This is one of those films that, after a while, begins to feel like 'yours'. I feel that way about very few films. Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Fellowship of the Ring, A Night at the Opera, and Seven Samurai.
Whew! I could go on for ever, but lets hear about your favorite.
You seem to assume I'm some know-nothing kid who just breezed in off the street. I'm sure you are probably older than I am, but dont blame me!
