The Samurai FilmThe image of a lone hero, marked by a violent past and bound by honor, has exerted an endless fascination on film audiences the world over, but nowhere more than in Japan, where Samurai films have gained legions of passionate followers. Popularized and perfected by one of the greatest auteurs in the history of cinema, Akira Kurosawa, the themes of the Samurai film have consistently crossed over into western films, with blockbuster success in recent years of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and The Last Samurai. Long regarded as one of the world's most astute film analysts, Alain Silver deconstructs the key aspects of this vital film genre, from its focus on violence and death as a means of understanding life and the significance of swords and weaponry to key elements and motifs, such as hara-kiri, rebellion, and nostalgia for Japan's feudal past. With comprehensive filmographies of the major directors and films, a survey of the history and myths of the Samurai, a glossary of Japanese terms, and with more than two hundred photos, The Samurai Film is the ultimate resource for one of world cinema's most influential and compelling genres. |
Contents
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS | 7 |
THE SAMURAI IN FICTION | 38 |
AKIRA KUROSAWA | 57 |
Copyright | |
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Akira Ifukube Akira Kurosawa Alternate English Titles Art Direction Assassin blade bushido camera Cast chambara character Chushingura clan close shot Daiei DaieiScope death Director Distribution duel Eastmancolor Editor feudal Fight Choreography figure film's flashback frame Gennosuke genre Gosha Goyokin Hajime Hara-Kiri Hasegawa Hayashi hero Hideo Hidetora Hiroshi Inagaki Ichi Ichiro Isao Izo's Japan Japanese Kazuo Keiko Kenji Misumi kill Kinnosuke Nakamura Kinnosuke Nakamura Yorozuya Kobayashi Koichi Kojiro Kyoshiro Nemuri Lighting Lord Magobei Masahiro Masao Michiko minutes Miyamoto Musashi Mori Music narrative Niino ninja Okawa Photography Producer Raizo Ichikawa Release date ronin Ryunosuke Saito Sakamoto samurai film Samurai Video Sanjuro Sasaki Satomi scene Screenplay Seibei Shigeru Shin shinsengumi Shintaro Katsu Shochiku shogunate Sound story Suzuki sword swordsman Takashi Shimura Takechi Takeo Tanaka Tange Sazen Tatsuya Nakadai Tenchu Toei Toho TohoScope Tokugawa Tomisaburo Wakayama Toshiro Mifune Tsugumo viewer visual warrior Watanabe Yagyu Yamada Yamamoto Yojimbo Yoko Yoshinobu Nishioka Zatoichi