Movie: Yojimbo (1961)
“Sanjuro, a wandering samurai enters a rural town in nineteenth century Japan. After learning from the innkeeper that the town is divided between two gangsters, he plays one side off against the other. His efforts are complicated by the arrival of the wily Unosuke, the son of one of the gangsters, who owns a revolver. Unosuke has Sanjuro beaten after he reunites an abducted woman with her husband and son, then massacres his father’s opponents. During the slaughter, the samurai escapes with the help of the innkeeper; but while recuperating at a nearby temple, he learns of innkeeper’s abduction by Unosuke, and returns to the town to confront him. Written by Bernard Keane {BKeane2@email.dot.gov.au}”
- Director: Akira Kurosawa
- Release Date: 13 September 1961 (USA)
- Run Time: 110 min | USA:75 min
- Country: Japan
- Genre: Action , Comedy , Crime , Drama , Thriller
Trivia: Akira Kurosawa challenged his assistant directors to come up with an image for the film to let Sanjuro know he was entering a bad town. He shot down all of their ideas, since all of them had already been done. Kurosawa himself then came up with the idea of the dog carrying the human hand.
Goofs: Revealing mistakes: When Sanjuro practices throwing the knife at a leaf, the wire on the knife is clearly visible (the scene was filmed backwards; the knife was actually pulled off the leaf by the wire).