Twilight Samurai

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Review: Certainly not a hack-and-slash samurai flick (which I also love), this is a wonderfully deep and moving story of a lower-rank samurai just at the end of the Tokugawa era. It feels more like the psychodrama which it is, than an action movie.

My wife and I loved it.

Rating:
Summary: Must-see
Review: I didn't see the DVD--saw it on Japanese TV yesterday 12/26/2004, with subtitles by my better half. It is without doubt one of the best movies I have seen in years. Granted, my better half and I both know enough about Japanese history to understand the context--a poor, remote han (barony?) at the end of the Tokugawa period, just before the Meiji "Restoration" in the mid-19th Century; but some scene-setting in the subtitles or the opening would handle that adequately. Basic elements of fine drama--conflicting loyalties, character coming through in the face of apparently impending doom and the knowledge that the world is about to change dramatically, but has not yet changed. Retrospective by narrator at end hints at how the world did change. Incredible use of color, light, and lighting--and this by a director who made his reputation with the longest-running series of formula movie comedies in the world--the Tora-san films! I couldn't have imagined that he had such a film in him. The only thing in the movie that seemed discordant was the choice of music during the end credits. The story is a conflation of three short novels by an outstanding writer of historical fiction, but it works well.

Side-note: In Japanese they aren't "samurai films," but "jidaigeki"--"old-time movies." So swordplay is not an inalienable part of the concept. And far more samurai were administrators and government workers--the equivalent of civil servants--than warriors, anyway.

Rating:
Summary: Very Delicate and Impressive Samurai Story
Review: I have only seen the Japanese version w/ English subtitles...which is probably the only way to go.
This movie is essentially intelligently pieced together. It gives the viewer a chance to picture how some of the samurai struggled towards the end of the Tokugawa period as they were losing their reign on Japan.

Basically a story about a samurai whos wife passed way and is left to care for two young daughters, along with a senile mother. There are few fight scenes, but even an action lover may still be drawn into the slower tempo paced story.

These movies are few and far between and deserve some recognition. Actually, I believe in one of the American Award shows, Twilight was nominated for best foreign film.

This movie is top-notch with a great story, setting, pacing, acting, and understanding. You will definately appreciate the original Japanese language w/ English subtitles as the original actors know how to deliver the lines. So do yourself a favor, and check out that particular version.

Rating:
Summary: This Samurai's Heroism Isn't Wrought with a Sword.
Review: In "The Twilight Samurai", director Yoji Yamada conceived a more realistic interpretation of life in 19th century Japan than is often seen in "samurai films". The result in a genuine period film that spends time on the daily struggles and family life of its protagonist, Seibei Iguchi, without adrenaline-pumping swordplay. Yamada based the film's screenplay on 3 stories by novelist Shuuhei Fujisawa. The story is told partly from the point of view of Seibei Iguchi's daughter, Ito, who is 5 years old in the film, but provides voiceover narration as a grown woman.

Iguchi (Hiroyuki Sanada) is a low-ranking samurai of the Unasaka Clan, living under the Shogunate of mid-19th century Japan, a few years before the Meiji Restoration. Already the days of the samurai seem numbered, which casts a certain fatalism over the events of the film. Iguchi's wife has recently died after a long and taxing illness, leaving him to care for his two young daughters and senile mother with insufficient income. Iguchi actually enjoys the life of a farmer and watching his daughters grow, but his poverty leaves him without even proper clothing to fulfill his professional responsibilities. His spirits are lifted when he learns that Tomoe (Rie Miyazawa), a woman he has adored since childhood, has received a divorce from her abusive husband. But when his clan's leader dies, the ensuing struggle for power may prove fatal for many samurai.

"The Twilight Samurai"'s success depends upon the performance of Hiroyuki Sanada, who makes Iguchi's humility, heartbreak, and eccentricities convincing. Mutsuo Naganuma's delicate, subtly hued cinematography draws our attention to character development and small gestures. This is a period drama, not a martial arts film. There are only one and a half sword fights, which director Yoji Yamada uses to impress upon the audience that samurai didn't conquer one another with quick fatal cuts, as we so often see in movies, but normally delivered and received many cuts and subsequently bled to death. "The Twilight Samurai" is slow and probably a bit too long at 2 hours and 9 minutes. But it is a lovely film of one man's acceptance of the difficulties his life has brought him. Japanese with English subtitles.

The DVD: Bonus features include interviews with director Yoji Yamada and actor Hiroyuki Sanada and 3 theatrical trailers, one of which is for "The Twilight Samurai". The interview with Yoji Yamada (10 minutes) is dubbed in English. The director explains why he wanted to make a realistic period film, why it was well-received by Japanese audiences, and casting actors Sanada and Min Tanaka, who fight in the movie. Hiroyuki Sanada speaks English in his interview (17 minutes). He talks about the character of Seibei Iguchi, his acting career, and his work on the film "The Last Samurai", in which he had a supporting role. The English subtitles for the movie cannot be turned off.

Rating:
Summary: The Peacefulness of Seibei - A Riveting Cinematic Experience
Review: In mid-1800s when the samurai code still was in use, fiefdoms provided wealth for the aristocracy and poor farmers where struggling with starvation, which frequently led to painful death. Samurai where plentiful, many without masters that would provide a steady income that led many to sell their sword to those who could pay. From the west new war technology pushed forward new battle methods that would make close encounters with swords less popular, as the rifle and canon become more prominent. Many samurai grasped the vital importance of the change of war while they struggled to maintain their position in society by taking jobs that did not promote war. Centuries of unease and frequent wars have had their toll on the people, nonetheless, several men of importance still had their own idea of how the future should be shaped, and the Emperor's death would lead to further bloodshed as these men wanted to push their thoughts on the people.

Amidst these difficult times the petty samurai, Seibei Iguchi (Hiroyuki Sanada), lost his wife to illness and was forced to raise two daughters by himself as his mother was slowly slipping into the fog of Alzheimer's, which at the time was referred to as being senile. Seibei spends his days as an accountant where he keeps the records of the amount of food his clan has in storage, and when the days come to an end his coworkers ask if he wants to go to the local tavern after work. Each time Seibei respectfully declines the offer as he begins to walk home to his two daughters, and to begin building insect cages in order to increase their modest family income. Sitting in front of the fire place building the cages Seibei talks with his daughters and presents his interest in their education while his coworkers make fun of him by calling him Sir Twilight as they pour sake down their throats which slips them into a mindlessness of alcohol slumber.

The day comes when Seibei's food storage comes under scrutiny of his clan's lord, which brings Seibei deep embarrassment as the lord notices the subtle stench around him of cod and his raggedy clothes. The smell and torn clothes are a result of Seibei's hard work at home in order to provide for his children as he has neglected is hygiene, and when his great-uncle hears about it he is livid. The great-uncle attempts to set up a marriage for Seibei, which he rejects as he considers it unkind towards the girl after his uncle mentioned that he cannot afford to be picky.

Seibei's politeness and benevolence have acquired him some friends including the samurai Michinojo Iinuma (Mitsuru Fukikoshi) who returns from Edo, today's Tokyo, to displays his empathy to Seibei for his loss of his wife. In the process Seibei learns that Michinojo's sister, Tomoe (Rie Miyazawa), has moved in with him as she had escaped her physically abusive husband, and recently been approved a divorce. The same day Tomoe drops in on Seibei as she wants to visit her childhood friend, and on the evening when he walks her home he finds her former husband drunk and abusively searching for his wife. This leads Seibei to accepting a duel in Michinojo's name as he is aware that his friend would be slaughtered if he would duel with Tomoe's ex-husband who is a strong swordsman. Despite Seibei's attempts to keep silence in regards to the result of the duel it brings him further predicaments as he tries to remain anonymous among the samurai.

Twilight Samurai is an poignant and heartwarming tale of kindness, love, decency, and modesty in a strong patriarchal society where male dominance is projected through strength of war skills. Yoji Yamada lets the camera capture the humble actions of Seibei as he goes about his daily endeavors, which are complemented by his oldest daughter's narration of the way she recalls her father. Through Seibei and the daughter's narration the audience is allowed into the private life of Seibei, which depicts a serenity around him as he embraces life by expressing his affection for watching his daughters grow. The peacefulness around Seibei is enhanced through the cinematography which restrains from using intense colors and sets a calmness around Seibei.

In the tranquility that surrounds Seibei it is also clear that Seibei is aware that the winds are changing as he encourages his daughters to read and study in order to further their ability to think. In many aspects, Seibei is before his time, yet he is still a servant of the old ways, as he finds himself being content enjoying the time together with his family, and not striving for great accomplishments. As the end credits begin to roll the audience will have experienced a riveting cinematic experience, which leaves the audience in tears and deep thoughts pondering their own existence.

Rating:
Summary: A lost way of life
Review: Most people dream of a heroic way of life. Money, power, strength, these are the things most of us dream about. Imagine leaving work immediately each day rather than going out with your friends. Imagine going home to a senile old woman and two small daughters. Imagine having your family and friends scorn you for your poverty. And imagine wanting nothing more out of life.

Seibei is a man who gave up most of his small fortune to give a scornful wife a decent burial, and looks forward to nothing more than time with his family. The beginning of the movie invokes sympathy for a man with no worldly glory in his life. But as it progresses, the viewer discovers that dispite all his hardships Seibei is a very happy man who's greatest love is serving and being near his family. Despite many opportunities for advancements in both rank and pay, he prefers to live humbly and spend every possible minute with his loved ones.

The movie does indeed move slowly, but I hope the viewers are willing to give Seibei a chance to show us that the greatest happiness is in sacrificing for the ones we love.

Rating:
Summary: A film where the message is not lost
Review: Seibei has given up the sword. He could have reached high up in the clan, but he is content working as a scribe, tilling his land, and caring for his daughters and sick mother. Obviously, that cannot be. The clan has its demands and Seibei has to follow orders.
So many films promise the same things as Twilight Samurai, but the difference is that this film actuall delivers. So many films start promising, but then end up with the same boring, repetitive, and poorly choreographed action sequences. This does not mean that the film is boring, quite the contrary! There is so much drama and tension, but it builds up slowly, and the viewer is not offered the usual tension relief of the fights.
Seibei has found out that being a warrior does not mean killing - it is a state of mind, and can be put to good use. Obviously, his clan and family take a dim view of his position!
Seibei cannot stay out of the clan business - it is a turbulent time, and the need for loyal warriors is great. He is ordered to kill a fellow clan member. It would be here where a less succesful film would have deteriorated into mindless hack and slash. Instead, it becomes a meditation on the true meaning of being a warrior and of the true meaning of life. It is a fight between two persons, not between a hero and an enemy. Whoever wins, it is a man with dreams and memories that will die.
Lovers of fighting films however, do not despair - the few actual fighting sequences are absolutely fantastic, and could be used as teaching tools in dojos.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Period Drama; OK DVD
Review: This Japanese Period drama, set in about 1865, 3 years before the Meiji Restoration, is among the best of its genre to be produced. Yoji Yamada wanted to make a period piece that was realistic, and not a "super hero" samurai story where 20 swordsmen are killed in 1 minute by a single non-scratched foe (especially the Japanese TV period dramas and Kurosawa to some extent).

It follows the life of a lower level, 50 koku (30 to live on) accountant samurai in what is now Yamagata Prefecture, beginning with the death of his wife from tuberculosis ("consumption"). We learn later that he had to sell his katana (long sword) to pay for the funeral to meet clan standards, so he was a samurai who had sold the basis for his samurai life (the katana is the soul of the warrior). Heavily in debt, he is carried along by situations of his own and others' making, until he is forced into a conflict he wished to avoid. In some ways, he is the type of hero that you find in Eastwood's "Unforgiven."

The story is slow but steady, and Sanada makes the character of Seibei one that a modern person can easily relate; someone caught inescapably in the rat race of his time.

The DVD is OK with two interviews, one with Yamada and one with Sanada and 3 trailers (2 for other movies), but the subtitles are burned into the film. They are also only in English. This is unfortunate because the actors deliver Japanese that is understandable (compared with a Toshiro Mifune delivery-"Aba yo"), and you have to try to ignore the subtitles to concentrate on the Japanese. (I find myself even reading subtitles for an English movie.) I would be happier if the subtitles could be turned off.

Even with the shortcomings of the DVD, this is a 5-star film.

Rating:
Summary: Jidai-Geki or Gendai-Geki?
Review: Twilight Samurai, while resolutely jidai-geki genre, inhabits liminality between jidai-geki and gendai-geki genre playing at a sense of the intimate with modern day issues in a samurai setting. The movie plays out the life of Iguchi "Tasogare" Seibei (playfully, the "Twilight" Seibei) a down on his luck 50-koku samurai who plugs away under immense pressure to bring up his two daughters while taking care for his senile mother, after the death of his wife from consumption. Seibei is an exceedingly sincere man with a sense pride and dignity - yet he is an enigma, paradox: he is always disheveled, is clearly under extreme pressure, but in no way whines about his situation, keeps to himself and wishes no ill on anyone. Complication comes by way of Tomoe, who comes back unexpectedly, he experiences cognitive dissonance - not sure how to address this new scenario and his feelings. He is acutely aware that he is only a 50-koku samurai with little hope of supporting Tomoe's much less take care of his children and ailing mother. Seibei is compelled to act when Tomoe's violent husband appears and insists that Tomoe come back to him. Seibei finds himself compelled to defend her honor. In this duel, Seibei show his true colors -- he is apparently a master short-swordsman. News of his skill spreads and he is reluctantly drawn into mercenary service in an effort to save face. A far cry from his role in Twilight Samurai Hiroyuki Sanada becomes Seibei. The film is purposeful, succinct and gorgeous in every way. As mentioned previously, the movie plays out its jidai-geki angle but uses a unique approach. Despite the pandering to the jidai-geki genre by ending the movie in true grit violence, the story of Seibei resonates for me on a more personal and intimate level. The intimacies make the characters less of a caricature and have depth. My point is simple - despite the complexity that Mifune Toshiro brought to presence with say Rashomon, we never really knew his character - we never really felt his character. Hiroyuki Sanada takes Seibei to the next level - he keeps it real. These premises reverberate throughout Twilight Samurai and moves it to a level all its own. Twilight Samurai is truly something profound and it should not be missed. It should be seen over and over again to appreciate it on many levels.

Miguel Llora

Rating:
Summary: Horrible DVD quality
Review: You can read the other reviews here to get an idea of the movie, but I have to warn people that the DVD transfer is very poorly done. The video is faded and looks cheaply produced even on a standard TV. The video is non-anamorphic (it's incredible that a NEW movie like this could be encoded this way) so it looks even worse on an HDTV because you'll have to "zoom" in on the picture to get rid of the black bars. The subtitles are burned-in to the video so there's no option to switch languages or turn them off. Finally, the audio is stereo (2 channels) instead of 5.1. It's incredible that such a fantastic, recent movie could get such horrible treatment on DVD. Empire Pictures needs to get with the program.