A shabby wandering samurai (Toshiro Mifune) arrives in a town split by warring warrior clans and begins playing one side off against the other. Probably the most influential action movie made, this black-and-white amorality tale spawned two major remakes (A Fistful Of Dollars, Last Man Standing), inspired parts of countless others and - - alongside Seven Samurai - - cemented Akira Kurosawa's rep as one of cinema's all-time greats.
DVD Extras:
Commentary by film buff Philip Kemp, biographies of Kurosawa and Mifune, stills gallery.Kemp's highly informed commentary (It's not that difficult to find someone who's willing to talk about old films) may veer towards the academic, but makes a worthwhile addition to a solid disc. Forget your flickery cinematic reissues: this may lack a lot of the average bells and whistles, but the katana-sharp DVD - - which has been digitally remastered from a new print - - is the best possible way to watch Kurosawa's epic
