Sanjuro

Sanjuro, inspired by a story from Shūgorō Yamamoto (yeah, the same guy who gave Kurosawa the juice for Red Beard), originally started as a samurai flick in which our main dude, Sanjuro, makes up for his lack of sword skills with his quick wits. But then, after Yojimbo blew up, Kurosawa decided to flip the script and turn it into a satire.

So, you got Sanjuro, played by the legend Toshiro Mifune, just wandering around when he bumps into this group of young, idealistic warriors who are all about taking down a corrupt regime. But instead of the usual Kurosawa sword-swinging madness, Sanjuro gives us this mischievous, sly, and good-humored take on the whole samurai gig.

Kurosawa’s love for the story shines through with all these moments of ribald humor, especially when Sanjuro’s messing with these young samurai. He’s poking fun at all those generic samurai tropes and Kabuki clichés like it’s nobody’s business.

You’re like a sword without a sheath. You cut well, but the best sword is kept in its sheath.

But don’t get it twisted. Even with all the laughs, Kurosawa’s still diving deep into his favorite theme: what’s real and what’s just a bunch of smoke and mirrors. Sanjuro learns not to judge a book by its cover, taking some wisdom from the chamberlain’s seemingly scatterbrained wife. And man, that realization hits him hard, leading to this unexpectedly intense final speech in which he calls himself out on his own arrogance.

Now, the action? It’s off the charts. Mifune’s showdown with Tatsuya Nakadai is the stuff of legends. One slash, straight through the heart. Kurosawa’s a master of contrast. While these dudes are slicing each other up, he’s throwing in shots of these characters checking out camellias floating peacefully on the water. Its like violence meets serenity, you dig?

Sanjuro ain’t your typical samurai joint from Kurosawa. It’s playful, satirical, and all about flipping the script on what you’d expect from a samurai flick. But, I gotta warn ya, the plot’s a bit of a maze, and the tone’s all over the place. Kurosawa serves up humor with a side of reverence for the old-school samurai, and sometimes, it feels like he’s trying to juggle too much.

But hey, even with its quirks, Sanjuro is one hell of a movie. It’s beautifully made and proof of Kurosawa’s genius behind the camera.