Seven Samurai

Released Nov 19, 1956

3h 28m

Action

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100%

Tomatometer

100 Reviews

97%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

A samurai answers a village's request for protection after he falls on hard times. The town needs protection from bandits, so the samurai gathers six others to help him teach the people how to defend themselves, and the villagers provide the soldiers with food. A giant battle occurs when 40 bandits attack the village.

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Critics Consensus

Arguably Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece, The Seven Samurai is an epic adventure classic with an engrossing story, memorable characters, and stunning action sequences that make it one of the most influential films ever made.

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

The glorious vigour and strength of this film is presented with such theatrical relish and flair: its energy flashes out of the screen like a sword.

Rated: 5/5

Oct 27, 2021

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Marjory Adams

Boston Globe

There are many excellencies in [Seven Samurai]. The acting of the men who are unknown to American audiences but whose talents are obvious; the careful building of suspense; the realism of the battle scenes... [and] the beauties of the countryside.

May 4, 2021

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Helen Bower

Detroit Free Press

[Seven Samurai ] rates my unqualified whoops of approval.

May 4, 2021

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Megan Fisher

Loud and Clear Reviews

Seven Samurai is one of the crown jewels of cinema, a movie that could be screened for visiting aliens in order to show what the art form can achieve.

Aug 1, 2024

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Jana Monji

Age of the Geek

The 4K restoration isn't without problems, but it does allow one to better appreciate the beauty of Akira Kurosawa's black-and-white masterpiece. The film is male-centric, but more important are some cultural points within the script.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 14, 2024

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Siddhant Adlakha

JoySauce.com

Few filmmakers have Kurosawa's ability to make the frame feel so vast.

Jul 12, 2024

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Jack

It’s literally one of the most influential movies ever. Just go watch it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/22/24

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Dan B

Everything. The greatest film ever made.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/31/24

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aya t

One of several Great Samurai films. Funny Kurosawa went over budget several times. Was supposed to be 6 samurai but it looked boring so they added mifune's character as comic relief letting him runaway with improv overacting lol. One of the 1st movie to use telephoto lens. American westerns copied this to make the magnificent 7. Pixar for bugs life. Also a space movie, battle beyond the stars, the mandalorian s.1 ep4, Seven warriors, 7 swords, China gate. The hidden fortress is also great ( basis for star war new hope). Yojimbi and sanjuro remade into Eastwood spaghetti westerns. I still prefer Lone wolf n cub series cuz of the ninjas. Also the miyamoto musashi trilogy. Shadow hunters and demon spies (more Shinobi).

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

10/09/24

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JUSTIN VEE ACE CRITIC

THE BEST SAMURAI FILM/MOVIE EVER MADE AFTER HARAKIRI WHICH IS THE BEST IN MY OPINION

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

10/08/24

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M

An absolute legend. 3 1/2 hours but they go fast. A chance to see this on a big screen is not to be missed.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

10/07/24

Full Review

Audience Member

The greatest Japanese film in history! Today I concluded my viewing of some of the greatest works of Japanese cinema, and I concluded by re-watching this masterpiece by Akira Kurosawa, which I consider to be the greatest Japanese work, the greatest samurai film in history, and the best Kurosawa film. I watched this film last year and it was a wonderful experience, but after re-watching and enjoying the film, I felt its greatness and beauty, and I must have I pay tribute to the role of the legend Toshiro Mifune as Kikuchio, in which he embodied a fun but sad character and gave us the most beautiful sacrifices at the end of the film. In fact, all the acting crew excelled in their roles and each character had its own aesthetics. The film was a mixture of war, battles, poverty, wisdom, planning, romance, courage and comedy, which Toshiro Mifune created. In general, the movie was legendary and one of the best movies in history, and the closing scene was perfect and what a great masterpiece

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

10/06/24

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Akira Kurosawa

Director

Toshiro Mifune

Kikuchiyo

Takashi Shimura

Kambei Shimada

Yoshio Inaba

Gorobei Katayama

Seiji Miyaguchi

Kyuzo

Minoru Chiaki

Heihachi Hayashida

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Synopsis

A samurai answers a village's request for protection after he falls on hard times. The town needs protection from bandits, so the samurai gathers six others to help him teach the people how to defend themselves, and the villagers provide the soldiers with food. A giant battle occurs when 40 bandits attack the village.

Director: Akira Kurosawa
Producer: Sojiro Motoki
Screenwriter: Shinobu Hashimoto, Akira Kurosawa, Hideo Oguni
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Production Co: Toho Company
Genre: Action
Original Language: Japanese
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 19, 1956, Wide
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Jul 5, 2024
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 29, 2011
Box Office (Gross USA): $474.2K
Runtime: 3h 28m
Sound Mix: Mono
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.37:1)

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