Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto

Hiroshi Inagaki’s Samurai Trilogy kicks off with a bang — Miyamoto Musashi!

Based on Musashi, a long novel by Eiji Yoshikawa and set in 17th-century feudal Japan, this flick is regarded as Gone with the Wind of the East, an epic of adventure and romance. Best friends Takezo (Toshirô Mifune) and Matahachi (Rentarō Mikuni) joined the army expecting glory. A twist of fate brands them traitors, sending them on the run. Takezo’s captured but spared, trained by a compassionate Buddhist priest, even while his love for Matahachi’s bride-to-be Otsu grows.

Why don’t you behead me? You shame me this way! And you call yourself a priest? Don’t you know how to treat a samurai? Damn fool!

As always, I watch these movies through the lens of VIKINGS vs SAMURAI. I was struck by the peasants lining the road through their village, offering water to marching soldiers. Kinetic battle scenes in the rain-in fields of mud, water, and dead bodies. The soundtrack is fantastic. And I absolutely need to know what camera lens was used to shoot this movie because it's gorgeous.

Solid action flick! Samurai steeped in loyalty, trust, and grit. Inagak is no Kurosawa, but he nails it — battles, plots, and character depth. This movie was Toho’s first splash into color cinema, breaking their black-and-white norm. Miyamoto Musashi even snagged an honorary Oscar!

Up next, Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple (1955).