IMDb RATING
8.2/10
131K
YOUR RATING
A crafty ronin comes to a town divided by two criminal gangs and decides to play them against each other to free the town.A crafty ronin comes to a town divided by two criminal gangs and decides to play them against each other to free the town.A crafty ronin comes to a town divided by two criminal gangs and decides to play them against each other to free the town.
- Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 5 wins & 2 nominations total
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAkira Kurosawa told Toshirô Mifune that his character was like a wolf or a dog and told Tatsuya Nakadai that his character was like a snake. Inspired by this direction, Mifune came up with Sanjuro's trademark shoulder twitch, similar to the way a dog or wolf tries to get off fleas.
- GoofsIn the initial fight scene, The Samurai cuts the first two adversaries in the mid-section, then slices the last man's arm off. That last man is first seen from behind holding the sword in his right arm above his head, but the arm holding the sword shown moments later is a left arm.
- Alternate versionsThe initial US release ran only 75 minutes, 35 minutes shorter than the original version at 110 minutes.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The 62nd Annual Academy Awards (1990)
Featured review
Kurosawa.
Only a handful of directors know atmosphere the way Akira Kurosawa does, only a handful. Yojinbo opens with a tracking shot of a ronin samurai walking down a dusty road. The camera wisely stays behind the samurai, played by Toshiro Mifune, so we cannot see his face or expressions. This samurai is desperate. Mifune has no master and no money. Kurosawa doesn't let you see his desperation, instead focusing on the back of his head and his profile to set up one of the most memorable characters in cinema history. The film has been copied many times, its practically the most influential film of the modern action genre. Yojinbo isn't action packed however, Kurosawa takes his time setting up characters and plot. The fact that this masterless samurai has deep compassion for strangers is different than most modern action movies alone. Toshiro Mifune is magical in the lead role. His presence is felt all throughout the film even when he isn't on camera. All film buffs should watch this film, it is a perfect example of a director and actor with confidence in their craft.
helpful•16818
- Peach-2
- Sep 26, 1999
Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $46,808
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $15,942
- Jul 28, 2002
- Gross worldwide
- $46,808
- Runtime1 hour 50 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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![Toshirô Mifune and Tatsuya Nakadai in Yojimbo (1961)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZThiZjAzZjgtNDU3MC00YThhLThjYWUtZGRkYjc2ZWZlOTVjXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTA4NzY1MzY@._V1_QL75_UX90_CR0,1,90,133_.jpg)