Sanjuro (Blu-ray)
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
Studio: Criterion
Year: 1962
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 1080p AVC codec
Running Time: 96 minutes
Rating: NR
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 3.0; PCM 1.0 Japanese
Subtitles: English
Region: A
MSRP: $ 39.95
MSRP: $ 39.95
Release Date: March 23, 2010
Review Date: March 10, 2010
The Film
4/5
After the overwhelming international acclaim and stellar box-office returns for Akira Kurosawa’s Yojimbo, the Toho studio prevailed upon the director to do a follow-up right away. Kurosawa was in the midst of working on a different script with a main character who was more of a thinker than a man of action, but he began to tinker away at the script to be able to work in a variation of the Sanjuro character from the previous film. The result was Sanjuro, another triumph for both the director and his celebrated star Toshiro Mifune.
A group of nine young and inexperienced samurai clansmen led by Iro Izaka (Yuzo Kayama) has become disenchanted with the dull politics of Izaka’s uncle, the town chamberlain Mutsuta (Yunosuke Ito) and decide to back the (unknown to them) scheming town superintendent Kurojuji (Takashi Shimura). Their hotheadedness is luckily thwarted by traveling ronin Sanjuro (Toshiro Mifune) who helps the young men see over time that they’re being shammed into supporting the wrong side. Sanjuro’s job in reestablishing the law-abiding officials into power is made more difficult not only by the continual bad decisions made in haste by the inexperienced samurai youth but also by the superintendent’s fierce second-in-command Hanbei Muroto (Tatsuya Nakadai), a seasoned warrior who’s no one’s fool.
The script for the film by Ryuzo Kikushima and Hideo Oguni and reworked by Kurosawa in order to more comfortably place an experienced swordsman among the naïve younger clan doesn’t quite have the same outrageous sense of fun that was present in Yojimbo. Here the comedy is gentler and less prevalent (though a scene where Sanjuro’s nap is continually interrupted by the buzzy chattering of the youths under his watch is hilariously played by the star), and there is more emphasis on plotting the overthrow of the villains (and then replotting new strategies once the young men foul things up) than in humorous set pieces. Yes, there are the expected number of samurai action scenes with Mifune just as dazzling with the blade as before, and that climactic showdown with his nemesis still lingers in the mind long after the film is over. Kurosawa really uses the widescreen intelligently. Since he has nine young men along with his star, there are numerous times when they span the width of the frame with Mifune placed in some prominent position in front or in their midst as they stretch to the edges of the image. In the midst of a high body count, he’s managed to inject quite a bit of beauty into his imagery, especially a gorgeous camellia and rock garden with a temptingly soothing babbling brook which features significantly in the film’s exciting climax.
Toshiro Mifune was already established as one of international cinema’s most charismatic players, and his performance here is iconic in every respect even though some might feel he overplays the character’s grubby scratching and posing just a bit too thickly. As an evil archenemy for Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai (so wonderful as the psycho killer in Yojimbo) again scores as the man you love to hate, a rooted, fiercely professional samurai who is all business and a superb antagonist for our hero. Yuzo Kayama is by far the most impressive of the nine stooges, one of the few who tries to use his head before blundering off in another ill-considered attempt at saving the day. Keiju Kobayashi as a soft-spoken spy, Takako Irie as the delicate elderly wife of the captured chamberlain, and Yunosuke Ito as the man everyone is trying to rescue all make positive impressions in their limited amount of screen time.
Video Quality
4.5/5
The film’s theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1 is delivered in a 1080p transfer using the AVC codec. For the most part, it’s a dazzling transfer with superb sharpness that brings forth lots of intricate details in tree bark, stones, and, of course, facial features. Contrast has been perfectly set even though black levels don’t quite reach the depths found in the finest black and white transfers. The pale white subtitles are certainly readable in this encode. The film has been divided into 20 chapters.
Audio Quality
3/5
The Blu-ray disc offers a choice of a DTS-HD Master Audio 3.0 sound mix which attempts to recreate the Perspecta Stereo track of the original release and a PCM (1.1 Mbps) 1.0 audio track for those who would prefer a mono sound experience. I listened to part of the film with each audio option and much preferred the DTS lossless stereo track. It offers an impressive spread across the front soundstage with the various sound elements and also features a more full bodied rendering of the sound, slightly less tinny and hissy than the PCM mono track. In both, there were faint hints of flutter to be heard, but it seemed more prominent in the PCM audio mix.
Special Features
3/5
The audio commentary is by Kurosawa scholar Stephen Prince who also offered the commentary on Yojimbo. It’s a wonderfully fluid and intelligent discussion of the director’s art with scene-by-scene analysis and additional information about how the film fits within the director’s oeuvre.
All of the video segments are presented in 1080i.
“Akira Kurosawa: It Is Great to Create!” is another in the series of excerpts from the television examination into Kurosawa’s filmography, this time focusing on Sanjuro. Several actors from the film as well as important production personnel and Kurosawa himself comment on their remembrances of the film’s production.
There are two trailers offered: a teaser trailer which runs 26 seconds and the theatrical trailer which runs 2 ½ minutes.
A stills gallery contains ten black and white behind-the-scenes shots showing Kurosawa working on the film’s production.
The enclosed 20-page booklet contains a chapter listing, complete cast and crew lists, a note from Kurosawa about the movie, a brief appreciation of the film by movie writer Michael Stagow, and reminiscences on the film’s production by production designer Yoshiro Muraki, actor Keiju Kobayashi, and script assistant Yeruyo Nogami.
The Criterion Blu-rays include a maneuvering tool called “Timeline” which can be pulled up from the menu or by pushing the red button on the remote. It shows you your progress on the disc, the title of the chapter you’re now in, and index markers for the commentaries that go along with the film, all of which can be switched on the fly. Additionally, two other buttons on the remote can place or remove bookmarks if you decide to stop viewing before reaching the end of the film or want to mark specific places for later reference.
The Criterion Blu-rays include a maneuvering tool called “Timeline” which can be pulled up from the menu or by pushing the red button on the remote. It shows you your progress on the disc, the title of the chapter you’re now in, and index markers for the commentaries that go along with the film, all of which can be switched on the fly. Additionally, two other buttons on the remote can place or remove bookmarks if you decide to stop viewing before reaching the end of the film or want to mark specific places for later reference.
In Conclusion
4/5 (not an average)
The second of two action films about the traveling ronin, Sanjuro comes to Blu-ray in a stunning widescreen transfer that does the film justice. (The two films featuring this character – Yojimbo and Sanjuro – are also available in a box set from Criterion.) Highly recommended!
Matt Hough
Charlotte, NC
