Sanjuro
Encyclopedia
is a 1962 black-and-white Japanese
samurai film directed by Akira Kurosawa
and starring Toshirō Mifune
. It is a sequel
to Kurosawa's previous film Yojimbo, with Mifune reprising his role as a wandering ronin
. The film combines action and humour, and is lighter in tone than its predecessor.
(Mifune) emerges from another room where he had been quietly resting. The ronin had overheard their plans, and suggests that the superintendent is in fact the real corrupt official. While at first the samurai are insulted by his claims, they soon find themselves surrounded by the official's men, proving that he was correct. The ronin fights off the men in return for money, however after realizing that Mutsuta could now be in danger, he decides to help the samurai bring down the corruption.
They first begin by rescuing Mutsuta's wife (played by Takako Irie
) and daughter, but they remain strangely oblivious to the danger around them, and maintain a cheery civility in comic contrast to the young samurai. The group take refuge in a house within the chamberlain's compound. Musuta's wife asks the ronin's name; looking out the window at tsubaki (camellia
) trees, he invents the name Tsubaki Sanjūrō ("Thirty year-old Camellia Tree"). This is a re-telling of the same joke from Yojimbo, in which Mifune's character tells people in a similarly framed shot that his name is "Thirty year-old Mulberry Field". In this film he adds, "Although now I'm almost forty." The lady insists – as if advising him on table manners
– that Sanjuro refrain from unnecessary killing. The lady shows insight when she compares Sanjuro to a "glittering sword" and remarks that "the best sword stays in its scabbard."
The Superintendent's henchman Hanbei Muroto (Tatsuya Nakadai
), and several other corrupt officials address a plan to outsmart the chamberlain's followers. First they arrest the chamberlain by making a false claim that he has been in charge of organised crime. Afterwards, they try to lure out the samurai by setting out a patrol of palanquins, believing that the samurai will think the officials are in them and attack. This backfires on them and leaves them deeply humiliated.
Throughout the film, Sanjuro is considered by some of the samurai as a problem figure: he has bad manners, behavior unbecoming a samurai
, weird ways to express his thoughts, often seems lazy and disinterested during planning, and a flippant attitude regarding violence. He obviously has no compunction about killing people, often unnecessarily.
Sanjuro decides to get closer to Hanbei's master by going undercover as his henchman. Mistrust causes several of the samurai believe he is switching sides. The samurai agree that four of them will follow him: two who believed in him and two who did not. However, Sanjuro realizes he is being followed and the four are easily captured. When Hanbei leaves to request reinforcements Sanjuro frees the samurai, at the expense of having to kill all the guards. He demands the four samurai tie him up, and is found in disgrace. Understanding Hanbei cannot hire him after such a fiasco, Sanjuro insincerely commits to finding the attackers.
The next day, Mutsuta's wife and daughter find a parchment of the torn up petition flowing from a stream through the compound. The samurai realise that Mutsuta is being imprisoned in the room opposite where the samurai are staying. While at first they consider a full on attack at the officials, they soon find that the superintendents entire force is surrounding them, meaning an attack would end in slaughter.
Sanjuro hatches a plan to get the army out of the compound, and then sending a sign to attack through camellias down the stream. The first part of the plan works and the force is moved, however Hanbei catches him trying to send the sign and ties him up. When the officials realise that Sanjuro has moved the army on purpose, Hanbei races off to retrieve them. In a comedic scene, Sanjuro tricks the remaining officials into making the Samurai attack. It works and they manage to rescue the Chamberlain. Hanbei returns later to find he has been made a fool of once more.
The nine young samurai begin as innocent idealistic greenhorns who judge on appearances, are easily duped by a more experienced elder, and are quick to stumble into danger without even knowing what they are doing. They end wiser: they have learned the virtues of patience.
Later the samurai find that Sanjuro has left the compound. After racing off to find him, he is found with Hanbei, about to duel.
In the famous final scene of his duel with Hanbei, Sanjuro is reluctant to fight and tries to dissuade Hanbei saying that if they do fight, one of them would die and there is nothing to be gained from that.
Hanbei insists and the two face each other, feeling that he will not be at ease unless one of them is put to rest. And then, in a flash, it is over: a fountain of blood gush
es from Hanbei and he slumps to the ground, lifeless. When the young samurai cheer his victory, Sanjuro becomes extremely agitated and angry at their naïve insensitivity. In the most revealing remark, he states that dead adversary was exactly like him, so that at least he now has an understanding of what he really represents. Sanjuro then leaves towards an unspecified direction with his distinctive farewell of "Abayo", which means "See ya later".
The scene where a single blossom falls into a rushing stream raised severe problems on how to pull it off. Originally the crew considered using piano wire but were afraid the light glinting on it would show up on film. A female costume designer suggested unraveling a woman's stocking and using the nylon due to its strength and invisibility. When it worked, Kurosawa said the happiness he felt at that moment was "indescribable".
In the same documentary Nakadai and production designer Yoshirô Muraki relate that the notorious "blood explosion" at the film's end was done in one take. At the moment that the compressor hose attached to actor Tatsuya Nakadai was activated it blew a coupling causing a much larger gush of fluid than planned. In fact it was so strong that it nearly lifted him off the ground and it took all his might to finish the scene.
Cinema of Japan
The has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world – as of 2009 the fourth largest by number of feature films produced. Movies have been produced in Japan since 1897, when the first foreign cameramen arrived...
samurai film directed by Akira Kurosawa
Akira Kurosawa
was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...
and starring Toshirō Mifune
Toshiro Mifune
Toshirō Mifune was a Japanese actor who appeared in almost 170 feature films. He is best known for his 16-film collaboration with filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, from 1948 to 1965, in works such as Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood, and Yojimbo...
. It is a sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
to Kurosawa's previous film Yojimbo, with Mifune reprising his role as a wandering ronin
Ronin
A or rounin was a Bushi with no lord or master during the feudal period of Japan. A samurai became masterless from the death or fall of his master, or after the loss of his master's favor or privilege....
. The film combines action and humour, and is lighter in tone than its predecessor.
Plot
Largely based on Shūgorō Yamamoto's short story "Peaceful Days" (日日平安 Nichinichi hei-an), the story begins with nine young samurai, who are worried about corruption in the leadership of their clan. They believe that the lord chamberlain, Mutsuta, is corrupt after tearing up a petition against organised crime. One samurai told the superintendent of this, who agreed to intervene. As the nine meet secretly at a temple and discuss their problem, a roninRonin
A or rounin was a Bushi with no lord or master during the feudal period of Japan. A samurai became masterless from the death or fall of his master, or after the loss of his master's favor or privilege....
(Mifune) emerges from another room where he had been quietly resting. The ronin had overheard their plans, and suggests that the superintendent is in fact the real corrupt official. While at first the samurai are insulted by his claims, they soon find themselves surrounded by the official's men, proving that he was correct. The ronin fights off the men in return for money, however after realizing that Mutsuta could now be in danger, he decides to help the samurai bring down the corruption.
They first begin by rescuing Mutsuta's wife (played by Takako Irie
Takako Irie
was a Japanese film actress. Born in Tokyo into the aristocratic Higashibōjō family , she graduated from Bunka Gakuin before debuting as an actress at Nikkatsu in 1927. She became a major star, even starting her own production company, Irie Productions, in 1932...
) and daughter, but they remain strangely oblivious to the danger around them, and maintain a cheery civility in comic contrast to the young samurai. The group take refuge in a house within the chamberlain's compound. Musuta's wife asks the ronin's name; looking out the window at tsubaki (camellia
Camellia
Camellia, the camellias, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are found in eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalaya east to Korea and Indonesia. There are 100–250 described species, with some controversy over the exact number...
) trees, he invents the name Tsubaki Sanjūrō ("Thirty year-old Camellia Tree"). This is a re-telling of the same joke from Yojimbo, in which Mifune's character tells people in a similarly framed shot that his name is "Thirty year-old Mulberry Field". In this film he adds, "Although now I'm almost forty." The lady insists – as if advising him on table manners
Table manners
Table manners are the rules of etiquette used while eating, which may also include the appropriate use of utensils. Different cultures observe different rules for table manners...
– that Sanjuro refrain from unnecessary killing. The lady shows insight when she compares Sanjuro to a "glittering sword" and remarks that "the best sword stays in its scabbard."
The Superintendent's henchman Hanbei Muroto (Tatsuya Nakadai
Tatsuya Nakadai
is a Japanese leading film actor.He became a star after he was discovered working as a Tokyo shop clerk by filmmaker Masaki Kobayashi during the early 1950s...
), and several other corrupt officials address a plan to outsmart the chamberlain's followers. First they arrest the chamberlain by making a false claim that he has been in charge of organised crime. Afterwards, they try to lure out the samurai by setting out a patrol of palanquins, believing that the samurai will think the officials are in them and attack. This backfires on them and leaves them deeply humiliated.
Throughout the film, Sanjuro is considered by some of the samurai as a problem figure: he has bad manners, behavior unbecoming a samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
, weird ways to express his thoughts, often seems lazy and disinterested during planning, and a flippant attitude regarding violence. He obviously has no compunction about killing people, often unnecessarily.
Sanjuro decides to get closer to Hanbei's master by going undercover as his henchman. Mistrust causes several of the samurai believe he is switching sides. The samurai agree that four of them will follow him: two who believed in him and two who did not. However, Sanjuro realizes he is being followed and the four are easily captured. When Hanbei leaves to request reinforcements Sanjuro frees the samurai, at the expense of having to kill all the guards. He demands the four samurai tie him up, and is found in disgrace. Understanding Hanbei cannot hire him after such a fiasco, Sanjuro insincerely commits to finding the attackers.
The next day, Mutsuta's wife and daughter find a parchment of the torn up petition flowing from a stream through the compound. The samurai realise that Mutsuta is being imprisoned in the room opposite where the samurai are staying. While at first they consider a full on attack at the officials, they soon find that the superintendents entire force is surrounding them, meaning an attack would end in slaughter.
Sanjuro hatches a plan to get the army out of the compound, and then sending a sign to attack through camellias down the stream. The first part of the plan works and the force is moved, however Hanbei catches him trying to send the sign and ties him up. When the officials realise that Sanjuro has moved the army on purpose, Hanbei races off to retrieve them. In a comedic scene, Sanjuro tricks the remaining officials into making the Samurai attack. It works and they manage to rescue the Chamberlain. Hanbei returns later to find he has been made a fool of once more.
The nine young samurai begin as innocent idealistic greenhorns who judge on appearances, are easily duped by a more experienced elder, and are quick to stumble into danger without even knowing what they are doing. They end wiser: they have learned the virtues of patience.
Later the samurai find that Sanjuro has left the compound. After racing off to find him, he is found with Hanbei, about to duel.
In the famous final scene of his duel with Hanbei, Sanjuro is reluctant to fight and tries to dissuade Hanbei saying that if they do fight, one of them would die and there is nothing to be gained from that.
Hanbei insists and the two face each other, feeling that he will not be at ease unless one of them is put to rest. And then, in a flash, it is over: a fountain of blood gush
Blood squirt
Blood squirt is the effect when an artery, a blood vessel in the human body , is cut...
es from Hanbei and he slumps to the ground, lifeless. When the young samurai cheer his victory, Sanjuro becomes extremely agitated and angry at their naïve insensitivity. In the most revealing remark, he states that dead adversary was exactly like him, so that at least he now has an understanding of what he really represents. Sanjuro then leaves towards an unspecified direction with his distinctive farewell of "Abayo", which means "See ya later".
Production
According to the documentary Akira Kurosawa: It is Wonderful to Create, originally Sanjuro was to be a straight adaptation of the story "Peaceful Days". After the success of Yojimbo the studio decided to resurrect its popular antihero, and Kurosawa reimagined the script accordingly.The scene where a single blossom falls into a rushing stream raised severe problems on how to pull it off. Originally the crew considered using piano wire but were afraid the light glinting on it would show up on film. A female costume designer suggested unraveling a woman's stocking and using the nylon due to its strength and invisibility. When it worked, Kurosawa said the happiness he felt at that moment was "indescribable".
In the same documentary Nakadai and production designer Yoshirô Muraki relate that the notorious "blood explosion" at the film's end was done in one take. At the moment that the compressor hose attached to actor Tatsuya Nakadai was activated it blew a coupling causing a much larger gush of fluid than planned. In fact it was so strong that it nearly lifted him off the ground and it took all his might to finish the scene.
External links
- Criterion Collection essay by Michael Sragow
- Sanjuro at the Japanese Movie DatabaseJapanese Movie DatabaseThe , commonly referred to as JMDB, is an online database of information about Japanese movies, actors, and production crew personnel. It is similar to the Internet Movie Database, but lists only those films originally released in Japan. The site was started in 1997, and contains movies from Meiji...