Seven Samurai (The Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]

Description

One of the most thrilling movie epics of all time, Seven
Samurai (Shichinin no samurai) tells the story of a sixteenth-century village
whose desperate inhabitants hire the eponymous warriors to protect them from
invading bandits. This three-hour ride from Akira Kurosawa—featuring legendary
actors Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura—seamlessly weaves philosophy and
entertainment, delicate human emotions and relentless action, into a rich,
evocative, and unforgettable tale of courage and hope. TWO-BLU-RAY SPECIAL
EDITION FEATURES New, restored high-definition digital transfer, with the
original uncompressed monaural soundtrack and an optional DTS-HD Master Audio
soundtrackTwo audio commentaries, one featuring film scholars David Desser,
Joan Mellen, Stephen Prince, Tony Rayns, and Donald Richie, and the other
Japanese film expert Michael JeckFifty-minute documentary on the making of
Seven Samurai, created as part of the Toho Masterworks series Akira Kurosawa:
It Is Wonderful to CreateMy Life in Cinema, a two-hour video conversation from
1993 between directors Akira Kurosawa and Nagisa Oshima“Seven Samurai”:
Origins and Influences, a documentary looking at the samurai traditions and
films that helped shape Kurosawa’s masterpieceTheatrical trailers and
teaserGallery of rare posters, behind-the scenes photos, and production
stillsNew and improved English subtitle translationPLUS: Essays by Kenneth
Turan, Peter Cowie, Philip Kemp, Peggy Chiao, Alain Silver, Stuart Galbraith,
Arthur Penn, and Sidney Lumet and an interview with Toshiro Mifune from 1993
Unanimously hailed as one of the greatest masterpieces in the
history of the motion picture, Seven Samurai has inspired countless films
modeled after its basic premise. But Akira Kurosawa’s classic 1954 action
drama has never been surpassed in terms of sheer power of emotion, kinetic
energy, and dynamic character development. The story is set in the 1600s, when
the residents of a small Japanese village are seeking protection against
repeated attacks by a band of marauding thieves. Offering mere handfuls of
rice as payment, they hire seven unemployed “ronin” (masterless samurai),
including a boastful swordsman (Toshiro Mifune) who is actually a farmer’s son
desperately seeking glory and acceptance. The samurai get acquainted with but
remain distant from the villagers, knowing that their assignment may prove to
be fatal. The climactic battle with the raiding thieves remains one of the
most breathtaking sequences ever filmed. It’s poetry in hyperactive motion and
one of Kurosawa’s crowning cinematic achievements. This is not a film that can
be well served by any synopsis; it must be seen to be appreciated (accept
nothing less than its complete 203-minute version) and belongs on the short
list of any definitive home-video library. –Jeff Shannon

Features:

Product Details:

• Genre: Action & Adventure
• Format: Mono, Blu-ray, Black & White, Full Screen, NTSC, Special Edition, Subtitled
• Contributor: Noriko Sengoku, Eijiro Tono, Haruo Nakajima, Fumiko Homma, Isao Yamagata, Daisuke Kato, Ko (Isao) Kimura, Shojiro Motoki, Atsushi Watanabe, Yoshio Inaba, Gen Shimizu, Yoshio Kosugi, Senkichi Omura, Isao Kimura, Takashi Shimura, Yoshio Tsuchiya, Akira Kurosawa, Kokuten Kodo, Kamatari Fujiwara, Toshiro Mifune, Sojin Jr., Kuninori Kodo, Ichiro Chiba, Keiji Sakakida, Kichijiro Ueda, Bokuzen Hidari, Minoru Chiaki, Jiro Kumagai, Ko Kimura, Toranosuke Ogawa, Seiji Miyaguchi See more
• Language: English, Japanese
• Runtime: 3 hours and 27 minutes
• Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.33:1
• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ Unrated (Not Rated)
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 5.92 Ounces
• Item model number ‏ : ‎ CTIN1877
• Director ‏ : ‎ Akira Kurosawa
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Mono, Blu-ray, Black & White, Full Screen, NTSC, Special Edition, Subtitled
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 3 hours and 27 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ October 19, 2010
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Ko (Isao) Kimura, Toshiro Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Yoshio Inaba, Seiji Miyaguchi