It took me a very long time to get around to watching Seven Samurai in full. I had the DVD for nearly a year before I tried tackling the whole thing head-on. It really is hard to get away from the conditioning of Dolby Surround sound, full colour non-subtitled 90 minute pictures we're so used to now. But when I did, I was glad of it.
Lets forget the fact that this picture, much like Citizen Kane before it, set the standards which would come to be developed upon and eventually rendered to the point of cliché in every movie of the genre that would follow. Lets forget it may not have the conventional bells and whistles of most pictures these days.
What it does have is stylish direction, breathtaking acting and identifiable characterisation in spades. Indeed, after the first hour, the body language said so much I needed only glance at the subtitles to follow the plot. My personal favourite actor is the first of the seven to be recruited, the restrained and noble elder who goes on to mold his ragtag bunch into a streamlined fighting force. The scene where he arranges for each samurai a reaction test before even SPEAKING to them, is a highlight of the first hour of the film.
The pace doesn't feel sluggish or rushed. There are no moments of exposition that feel over-elaborate or forced; everything is revealed in good time. Like all great directors Kurosawa knows how to make you live and breathe the atmosphere of the characters. Rather than making the samurai and the townspeople they defend seem all-holy forces of good he introduces conflict, making them imperfect yet with pure motives that may transcend any shortcomings.
Overall, this is one picture that you could spend as long describing as you could watching. Some may argue it has dated badly. Although not every scene has the same impact as it did upon release, every single one counts and contributes to what, 53 years later, still stands as one of the greatest achievements of 20th century cinema. I just hope we don't have to wait until 2053 to see something that matches it in majesty and scope.
8/10
Lets forget the fact that this picture, much like Citizen Kane before it, set the standards which would come to be developed upon and eventually rendered to the point of cliché in every movie of the genre that would follow. Lets forget it may not have the conventional bells and whistles of most pictures these days.
What it does have is stylish direction, breathtaking acting and identifiable characterisation in spades. Indeed, after the first hour, the body language said so much I needed only glance at the subtitles to follow the plot. My personal favourite actor is the first of the seven to be recruited, the restrained and noble elder who goes on to mold his ragtag bunch into a streamlined fighting force. The scene where he arranges for each samurai a reaction test before even SPEAKING to them, is a highlight of the first hour of the film.
The pace doesn't feel sluggish or rushed. There are no moments of exposition that feel over-elaborate or forced; everything is revealed in good time. Like all great directors Kurosawa knows how to make you live and breathe the atmosphere of the characters. Rather than making the samurai and the townspeople they defend seem all-holy forces of good he introduces conflict, making them imperfect yet with pure motives that may transcend any shortcomings.
Overall, this is one picture that you could spend as long describing as you could watching. Some may argue it has dated badly. Although not every scene has the same impact as it did upon release, every single one counts and contributes to what, 53 years later, still stands as one of the greatest achievements of 20th century cinema. I just hope we don't have to wait until 2053 to see something that matches it in majesty and scope.
8/10