Lucybespro It is a performances centric movie

CommentsXp Best movie ever!

Kamila Bell This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Josephina Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

lastliberal Unlike the more familiar Seven Samurai, remade as The Magnificent Seven, this film only features three. Really, it is only one for most of the movie, then another joins in, and finally the third.The story is familiar. The Samurai feel sorry for the poor peasants and one even gives up his luxurious life in the Magistrate's service to fight the evil tax collector that is bleeding the peasants dry.It's the film debut for Hideo Gosha, and he does a great job of mixing samurai fighting and humor and concern for the poor into an enjoyable film that was beautifully shot.I am certainly going to look for more of his work.

chaos-rampant Hideo Gosha's first in a series of great movies leading up to his double triumph of Hitokiri and Goyokin in 1969, is a simple but engaging chambara with a sociopolitical angle that has more in common with Kurosawa's work than the stylistic flourishes and visual grammar the director developed later in his career.Very similar to Seven Samurai in terms of style and themes, this is another take on the familiar story of cynical samurais helping out poor peasants in their fight against the oppression of the rich and powerful. Three lowly peasants kidnap a daimyo's daughter and demand a tax reform that will ease the economic burden for all the peasants in the nearby villages. It's all well plotted and interesting for the duration with great performances all around and near superb swordplay action. Gosha's two Samurai Wolf films as well as Sword of the Beast would make ideal companion pieces as an entry point to the director's output. Fans of Kurosawa's jidaigeki work are likely to appreciate it just as well.

Chung Mo Excellent black and white cinematography, solid acting, well done action and a reasonably good story make this a satisfying film. The story of wandering samurai coming to the aid of impoverished farmers is not new and the characters are stock but this isn't a real problem if you are looking for something to sit back and enjoy easily. The direction is very assured and it's remarkable that this is a first directorial effort. The actors are appealing and the film never gets bogged down in long exposition or beauty shots. The comparison to a spaghetti western is apt.The film seems like it was intended to start a series based on the three characters. Too bad that didn't happen.

shinobirastafari This one is Gosha's first directorial attempt, and what a debut! Though some of the performances are occasionally a bit overwrought, there are also many instances where Gosha reveals his sense of the camera. Of course, there are Gosha's typical studied camera angles and compositions (you see some interesting "moving camera" work, which significantly predates the attempts of "pioneering" US directors). However, "Sanbiki no samurai" also showcases Gosha's ability to tell a story through facial expressions, rather than simply relying upon dialogue.This is all film-school wankery. The bottom line is that "Sanbiki" is a gripping chambara flick, with a solid morality tale disguised as a cynical amorality tale. (Note that a common theme through many Japanese "chambara" is that of cynical ex-samurai who ultimately decides to risk life and limb for some hopeless but noble "little guy" cause.)This theme was repeatedly, um, emulated by the likes of Sergio Leone with his spaghetti westerns. However, my point is that such tales are just plain entertaining. The three actors playing the samurai also turn in great performances. Viewers new to Hideo Gosha may wish to start with "Goyokin" or "Hitokiri" (a/k/a "Tenchu"), but if you've seen those two already (or if they're already checked out), then this is still a definite movie to catch!