Seven Samurai (1954) Shichinin no samurai (original title)

Director:

Akira Kurosawa

Writers:

Akira Kurosawa (screenplay) &
Shinobu Hashimoto (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

19 November 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama

Tagline:

Will Take Its Place With the Seven Greatest Films of All Time!

Plot:

A poor village under attack by bandits recruits seven unemployed samurai to help them defend themselves.

Plot Keywords:

Samurai | Bandit | Farmer | Japan | Rice

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Toshirô Mifune	...	Kikuchiyo (as Toshiro Mifune)
Takashi Shimura	...	Kambei Shimada
Keiko Tsushima	...	Shino
Yukiko Shimazaki	...	Wife (as Yukio Shimazaki)
Kamatari Fujiwara	...	Farmer Manzo
Daisuke Katô	...	Shichiroji (as Daisake Kato)
Isao Kimura	...	Katsushiro (as Ko Kimura)
Minoru Chiaki	...	Heihachi
Seiji Miyaguchi	...	Kyuzo
Yoshio Kosugi	...	Farmer Mosuke
Bokuzen Hidari	...	Farmer Yohei
Yoshio Inaba	...	Gorobei Katayama
Yoshio Tsuchiya	...	Farmer Rikichi
Kokuten Kôdô	...	Old Man Gisaku (as Kuninori Todo)
Eijirô Tôno	...	Thief (as Eijiro Tono)
Kichijirô Ueda	...	Bandit Scout (as Ueda Kichijiro)
Jun Tatara	...	Coolie A
Atsushi Watanabe	...	Bun Seller
Toranosuke Ogawa	...	Grandfather of Kidnapped Girl
Isao Yamagata	...	Samurai
Kamiyama Sôjin	...	Blind Player (as Sojin)
Gen Shimizu	...	Samurai Who Kicks Farmers (as Hajime Shimizu)
Keiji Sakakida	...	Gosaku
Shinpei Takagi	...	Bandit Chieftain (as Shimpei Takagi)
Shin Ôtomo	...	Bandit Second-in-Command
Toshio Takahara	...	Samurai with Gun
Hiroshi Sugi	...	Tea Shop Owner
Kan Hayashi	...	Weak Ronin
Sachio Sakai	...	2nd Coolie
Sôkichi Maki	...	Strong-Looking Samurai
Ichirô Chiba	...	Buddhist Priest
Noriko Sengoku	...	Wife of Gono Family
Noriko Honma	...	Woman Farmer
Masanobu Ôkubo	...	Samurai
Etsurô Saijô	...	Bandit
Minoru Itô	...	Samurai
Haruya Sakamoto	...	Samurai
Kyorô Sakurai	...	Samurai
Hideo Shibuya	...	Bandit
Kiyoshi Kamoda	...	Samurai
Senkichi Ômura	...	Bandit Who Escapes
Takashi Narita	...	Bandit Who Escapes
Shôichi Hirose	...	Bandit
Kôji Uno	...	Bandit
Masaaki Tachibana	...	Bandit
Kamayuki Tsubono	...	Bandit
Taiji Naka	...	Bandit
Chindanji Miyagawa	...	Bandit
Shigemi Sunagawa	...	Bandit
Akira Tani	...	Bandit
Akio Kusama	...	Bandit
Ryûtarô Amami	...	Bandit
Jun Mikami	...	Bandit
Haruo Nakajima	...	Bandit
Sanpei Mine	...	Farmer
Masahide Matsushita	...	Samurai
Kaneo Ikeda	...	Samurai
Takuzô Kumagaya	...	Gisaku's Son (as Jirô Kumagaya)
Ippei Kawagoe	...	Farmer
Jirô Suzukawa	...	Farmer
Junpei Natsuki	...	Farmer
Kyôichi Kamiyama	...	Farmer
Haruo Suzuki	...	Farmer
Gorô Amano	...	Farmer
Hikaru Kitchôji	...	Farmer
Kôji Iwamoto	...	Farmer
Hiroshi Akitsu	...	Gono Husband
Akira Yamada	...	Farmer
Kazuo Imai	...	Farmer
Eisuke Nakanishi	...	Farmer
Toku Ihara	...	Farmer
Hideo Ôtsuka	...	Farmer
Shû Ôe	...	Farmer
Yasuhisa Tsutsumi	...	Farmer in Front of Gono
Yasuo Ônishi	...	Farmer
Tsuneo Katagiri	...	Farmer in Front of Gono
Megeru Shimoda	...	Farmer
Masayoshi Kawabe	...	Farmer
Shigeo Katô	...	Farmer
Yoshikazu Kawamata	...	Farmer
Takeshi Seki	...	3rd Coolie
Haruko Toyama	...	Gisaku's Daughter-in-Law
Tsuruko Mano	...	Woman Farmer in Front of Gono
Matsue Ono	...	Woman Farmer
Tazue Ichimanji	...	Woman Farmer (as Tazue Ichimanji)
Masako Ôshiro	...	Woman Farmer
Kyôko Ozawa	...	Woman Farmer
Michiko Kadono	...	Farmer's Wife
Toshiko Nakano	...	Farmer's Wife
Shizuko Azuma	...	Farmer's Wife
Keiko Mori	...	Farmer's Wife
Michiko Kawabe	...	Farmer's Wife
Yûko Togawa	...	Farmer's Wife
Yayoko Kitano	...	Farmer's Wife
Misao Suyama	...	Woman Farmer
Toriko Takahara	...	Woman Farmer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Takeshi Katô	...	Samurai Wandering Through Town (uncredited)
Tatsuya Nakadai	...	Samurai Wandering Through Town (uncredited)
Ken Utsui	...	Samurai Wandering Through Town (uncredited)
Ren Yamamoto	...	Farmer (uncredited)

Directed by
Akira Kurosawa

Writing credits
Akira Kurosawa		(screenplay) &
Shinobu Hashimoto		(screenplay) &
Hideo Oguni		(screenplay)

Produced by
Sôjirô Motoki	....	producer (as Sojiro Motoki)

Original Music by
Fumio Hayasaka

Cinematography by
Asakazu Nakai		(photography) (as Asaichi Nakai)

Film Editing by
Akira Kurosawa

Production Design by
Takashi Matsuyama

Art Direction by
Sô Matsuyama		(art direction) (as So Matsuyama)

Costume Design by
Kôhei Ezaki
Mieko Yamaguchi

Makeup Department
Midori Nakajo	....	hair stylist
Junjirô Yamada	....	hair
Junjirô Yamada	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Hiroshi Nezu	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Sakae Hirosawa	....	assistant director
Hiromichi Horikawa	....	assistant director
Toshi Kaneko	....	assistant director
Masaya Shimizu	....	assistant director
Yasuyoshi Tajitsu	....	assistant director

Art Department
Kôhei Ezaki	....	art consultant
Kôichi Hamamura	....	property master
Yoshirô Muraki	....	assistant art director

Sound Department
Ichirô Minawa	....	sound effects editor
Masanao Uehara	....	sound assistant
Fumio Yanoguchi	....	recording

Camera and Electrical Department
Masao Fukuda	....	still photographer
Mitsuo Kaneko	....	assistant lighting technician
Shigeru Mori	....	lighting technician
Takao Saitô	....	assistant camera

Editorial Department
Hiroshi Nezu	....	editing manager

Music Department
Masaru Satô	....	assistant to composer

Other crew
Shigeru Endo	....	archery
Kôhei Ezaki	....	folklore researcher (as Kohei Ezaki)
Yuji Hamada	....	accountant
Ienori Kaneko	....	archery
Toshio Nakane	....	acting office
Teruyo Nogami	....	script supervisor
Takeharu Shimada	....	production assistant
Yoshio Sugino	....	fencing

Production Companies

• Toho Company (presents)

Distributors

• Toho Company (1954) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Columbia Pictures (1956) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) (1972) (USA) (TV) (US network premiere)
• AVCO Embassy Pictures (1982) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Films Incorporated (1982) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Janus Films (1982) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Landmark Films (1982) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Embassy Home Entertainment (1987) (USA) (VHS)
• Criterion Collection, The (1989) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Criterion Collection, The (1991) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Criterion Collection, The (1998) (USA) (DVD)
• Cowboy Pictures (2002) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Toho Company (2002) (Japan) (DVD)
• Shoval Film Production (2003) (Israel) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Bright Angel Distribution (2004) (Netherlands) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Madman Entertainment (2004) (Australia) (DVD)
• Total Film Home Entertainment (2004) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Total Film Home Entertainment (2004) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Nihon Eiga Satellite Broadcasting (2007) (Japan) (TV)
• Aito Mäkinen (1963) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Asociace Ceských Filmových Klubu (ACFK) (2009) (Czech Republic) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Atlantic Film (2002) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Cinédis (1955) (France) (theatrical)
• Dianafilmi (1981) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Eurooppalainen Filmi (1959) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Jaguar Film (1965) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Rosenbergs Filmbyrå (1965) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Sputnik (2004) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Studio 43 (????) (France) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI) (2002) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Television och Smalfilm (1965) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• trigon-film (2012) (Austria) (theatrical)
• trigon-film (2012) (Germany) (theatrical)
• trigon-film (2012) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Continental Home Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2009) (USA) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2010) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution Sverige AB (2007) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (200?) (Finland) (DVD)
• Suomen Kunnallispalvelu (1994) (Finland) (VHS)
• Tocantins (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Toho Company (2009) (Japan) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Toho Video (1996) (Japan) (VHS)
• WoWow (2012) (Japan) (TV)
• YLE Teema (2005) (Finland) (TV)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1964) (Finland) (TV)
• trigon-film (2012) (Germany) (DVD) (special edition - full version)
• trigon-film (2012) (Switzerland) (DVD) (special edition)
• trigon-film (2013) (Germany) (DVD) (Blu-ray) (special edition)

Other Companies

• Toho Developing Co.  film developing
• Toho Genzosho  video editing

Also Known As:

"Shichinin no samurai" - Japan (original title)

Runtime:

207 min | 160 min (international version) | Argentina:163 min | Sweden:202 min (2002 re-release) | UK:150 min (original version) | UK:190 min (1991 re-release) | USA:141 min | USA:203 min (re-release) | USA:207 min (restored version) | Spain:202 min (DVD edition)

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono | Stereo (re-release prints)

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Australia:PG | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:11 (re-rating) (2002) | Sweden:15 (original rating) | Switzerland:14 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (1991) | USA:Unrated | West Germany:16 | Iceland:12 | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | Brazil:10 | Czech Republic:U | Spain:T | Australia:M (VHS version) | South Korea:15

Filming Locations:

Japan

Company:

Toho Company

Trivia:

Director Trademark: [Akira Kurosawa] [names]Kikuchiyo is a girl's name made up of two parts, like Betty Sue in America. That's why the samurai laugh so hard at the name. Obviously Toshirô Mifune's character is illiterate, and it's a very subtle thing that the other samurai choose to tease him about the age and not choosing a girl's name! Kiku translates to Chrysanthemum and Chiyo to one thousand generations. This is in fact one of several occasions in which Mifune's character in a Kurosawa film has a name composed of a plant and a number of years.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the first scene when the people in the village are discussing what to do with the bandits, it's visible that they are wearing bald-wigs.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Bandit second-in-command:We'll take this place next.
Bandit Chief:We took it last autumn. They haven't got anything worth taking yet. Let's wait.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Zombie Brigade (1986)

Memorable characters and one of the best action movies of all times

Having seen Kurosawa's Seven Samurai at least 10 times, I still see something new every time I watch it. I don't see how anyone, especially a non-Japanese, could possibly absorb this movie in less than 2 or 3 viewings. I've always been surprised at how each of the 7 samurai can make such an individual impression on you even if you can't understand Japanese. Although Toshiro Mifune is often considered the star, for me its Takashi Shimura who is firmly fixed at the center of the movie. He is the guiding moral force from the moment of his appearance in the film and can capture the viewer's attention in a way similar to Alec Guinness. Mifune's character can be annoying at first in his loutish behavior, but he gains stature throughout the film and eventually becomes a unifying force second only to Shimura. Minoru Chiaki as the woodcutting samurai provides a subtle humor and the others look to him to boost their morale. Daisuke Kato is another very familiar face to Japanese movie fans and provides an excellent foil to Shimura as his second in command. Yoshio Inaba is very good as the samurai who is recruited by Shimura and quickly builds a strong rapport with him. Seiji Miyaguchi as the "expert" warrior, dedicated to honing his skill as a swordsman is a very low key yet likeable character. Ko Kimura as the young hero-worshipping samurai, as well as the love interest of the peasant girl, wishes to be a great samurai, but is easily distracted by a field of flowers or a pretty face. The peasants in the village being defended by the samurai each have their own defining characteristics as well.

In addition to the wealth of interesting characters, we have a terrific action plot--the defending of the village from 40 marauding bandits by the small troop of samurai--, and a more subtle secondary plot involving the distrust of the samurai by the villagers due to the historical interaction of these two classes in feudal Japan. All of these plot and character elements are woven together into an unforgettable epic, but, at least in my opinion, its not one that can be absorbed in a single sitting. While it's similar in this sense to another of my favorite epics, Leone's Once Upon a Time in the West, it is more complex given the number of characters.

I can only say that your patience with this film will probably be well rewarded if you take the time to give it multiple viewings. You will also have the pleasure of seeing many of the samurai and villagers pop up in other Kurosawa films and films of other Japanese directors. If you like Mifune and Shimura in this one, catch them in Stray Dog and Drunken Angel in very different settings and parts.

This one is 10 out of 10 without a doubt.