Sanjuro

"You cut well, but the best sword stays in its sheath!"

1962 1h 36m JA

🙌

7.9

BANGER

🔥

100%

CERTIFIED FRESH

💯

METACRITIC

⭐

IMDB

★7.9TMDB · 757🍅100%Rotten Tomatoes●83Metacritic★8IMDB · 43,865

DramaActionComedy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In this companion piece and sequel to "Yojimbo," jaded samurai Sanjuro helps an idealistic group of young warriors weed out their clan's evil influences, and in the process turns their image of a proper samurai on its ear.

“You cut well, but the best sword stays in its sheath!”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Toshirō Mifune
Sanjûrô Tsubaki / The ronin
Tatsuya Nakadai
Hanbei Muroto
Keiju Kobayashi
The Spy
Yūzō Kayama
Iori Izaka
Reiko Dan
Chidori, Mutsuta's daughter
Takashi Shimura
Kurofuji
Kamatari Fujiwara
Takebayashi
Takako Irie
Mutsuta's wife

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Akira Kurosawa
Writers: Akira Kurosawa, Ryuzo Kikushima, Hideo Oguni
Languages: Japanese
Countries: Japan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

64 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Sanjuro Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Akira Kurosawa, shot by Fukuzo Koizumi. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Masaru Satō. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Akira Kurosawa shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Toshirō Mifune and Tatsuya Nakadai and Keiju Kobayashi carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "You cut well, but the best sword stays in its sheath!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0056443 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Akira Kurosawa directs. Fukuzo Koizumi behind the camera. Masaru Satō scores. Akira Kurosawa cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

164 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Part of the "Sanjuro Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
3Directed by Akira Kurosawa, shot by Fukuzo Koizumi. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Masaru Satō. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Akira Kurosawa shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Toshirō Mifune and Tatsuya Nakadai and Keiju Kobayashi carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "You cut well, but the best sword stays in its sheath!".
8IMDB entry: tt0056443 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 10 themes, including "japan", "samurai", "corruption", "temple".

The technical file

Cinematography: Fukuzo Koizumi
Original score: Masaru Satō
Editing: Akira Kurosawa
Production design: Yoshirō Muraki
Runtime: 96 min · 1h 36m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: JA
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Sanjuro (1962)
Rotten Tomatoes: 100% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 83/100
IMDB rating: 8/10 · 43,865 votes
MPAA: Not Rated
US box office: $46,808

Awards

1 win & 1 nomination total

Part of

Sanjuro Collection

The masterless samurai Sanjuro, who slyly manipulates two warring clans to his own advantage in a small, dusty village, was so entertainingly embodied by the brilliant Toshiro Mifune that it was only a matter of time before he returned in a sequel. Made just one year later, Sanjuro matches Yojimbo’s storytelling dexterity yet adds layers of world-weary pragmatism that brings the two films to a thrilling and unforgettable conclusion.

Also by

Akira Kurosawa

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-08-14
★ 7/10
This is a superb adventure story with Toshirô Mifune reprising his role from "Yojimbo" as the wandering samurai warrior. This time he arrives in a village facing some local corruption. The "Chamberlain" has been framed by the superintendent of a clan, who tries to secure his tenuous position by killing off any detractors. "Sanjûrô" decides to help protect them, and is soon drawn into the battle that requires all of his skills and know-how (of course, they are completely outnumbered). The plot interveaves a story of local politics nicely with a lust for power, and a coming of age for many of the locals who are in awe of their warrior leader. Takako Irie is quite interesting as the wife of the arrested Chamberlain; she looks every inch the prim and proper Japanese wife, but is frequently (and to Mifune's chagrin, on occasion) the character delivering some quite insightful and learned comment; she seems to have the measure of the Samurai! I found Mifune's performance to be engaging and charming - he deals with his men as a teacher might his pupils, sometimes with humour, other times with discipline - but always with care; and that speaks more to the way Kurosawa develops the characterisations - with integrity and class. It's still got it's fair share of action and there are loads of sword-fights to keep the plot moving along until it all comes to an head. It's odd that almost 60 years later, this has never been given the Hollywood treatment - perhaps that's a good thing?

Production companies