The British Film Institute has officially announced and detailed its upcoming
Kurosawa Samurai Collection. The five-disc set will be available for purchase on September 22.
Seven Samurai
Seven Samurai tells the story of a group of 17th-century warriors recently detached from the powerful masters who once paid them. Veteran samurai Kambei (Takashi Shimura) is the leader of the group hired by the residents of a village suffering at the hands of a marauding band of thieves. Five of his cohorts are trained warriors, but the sixth, Kikuchiyo (Toshiro Mifune), is actually the son of a farmer, desperate to earn his spurs on the battlefield. The basics of the story served as the blueprint for the western classic
The Magnificent Seven.
Throne of Blood
Akira Kurosawa's film version of
Macbeth, transfers the action to medieval Japan. A samurai warrior (Toshiro Mifune) is urged to murder his lord (Takashi Shimura) and his best friend (Minoru Chiaki) by a forest spirit and an ambitious wife (Isuzu Yamada). Kurosawa renders 'the Scottish play' through the conventions of traditional Japanese Noh theatre, creating what was reputedly TS Eliot's favourite film. The famous ending sees Toshiro Mifune caught under hails of arrows.
The Hidden Fortress
Winner of the Best Director Award at the 1959 Berlin Film Festival,
The Hidden Fortress is regarded by many to be one of Kurosawa's finest, and has been acknowledged by George Lucas as the principle inspiration for
Star Wars. Set in 16th-century Japan, the story centres on rival clans, hidden gold and a princess in distress. Tahei (Minoru Chaiki) and Matashichi (Kamatari Fujiwara) are two cowardly soldiers on the run from an advancing enemy army. As they search the country for a cache of secret gold, they join forces with Rokurota Makabe (Toshiro Mifune), a samurai warrior who is escorting a fiesty princess (Misa Uehara) through enemy territory. The mismatched travellers then have to fight a number of battles before they finally come within sight of their goal.
Yojimbo
Kurosawa combines elements of the western and the film noir in the classic adventure
Yojimbo. Yojimbo (Toshiro Mifune), a freelance Samurai warrior, sells his services to rival factions in a small Japanese village. When he is betrayed, he turns his skills against his former employers, determined that the two warring sides should destroy each other.
Yojimbo was later remade by Sergio Leone as the Clint Eastwood spaghetti western
A Fistful of Dollars.
Sanjuro
In the samurai spoof
Sanjuro, a sequel of sorts to
Yojimbo, shabby samurai Sanjuro (Toshiro Mifune) teams up with eight young warriors who seek out corruption among the elders of their clan. They also embark on a mission to rescue a kidnapped chancellor from a corrupt war lord.
Special Features:
- All films presented in High Definition
- Original theatrical trailers
- The Art of Akira Kurosawa (2013, 49 mins): Asian-cinema expert Tony Rayns discusses Kurosawa's career and influence
- Interview with filmmaker George Lucas (2001, 8 mins)
- Interview with filmmaker Alex Cox (2003, 9 mins)
- Introduction to Sanjuro by Alex Cox (2003, 5 mins)
- Full-length audio commentary for Throne of Blood by Japanese-film expert Michael Jeck
- Full-length audio commentary for Yojimbo by film critic Philip Kemp
- Fully illustrated booklet with essays by Philip Kemp and Nigel Andrews, contemporary reviews and full film credits