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Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto

December 07, 2023

Musashi Miyamoto (Japanese: 宮本武蔵, Hepburn: Miyamoto Musashi) is a 1954 Japanese film directed and co-written by Hiroshi Inagaki and starring Toshiro Mifune. The film is the first film of Inagaki's Samurai Trilogy of historical adventures.[3][2]

Musashi Miyamoto
Theatrical release poster
Directed byHiroshi Inagaki
Screenplay by
  • Tokuhei Wakao
  • Hiroshi Inagaki[1]
Based onMusashi,[2]
by Eiji Yoshikawa
Produced byKazuo Takimura[1]
Starring
CinematographyJun Yasumoto[1]
Music byIkuma Dan[1]
Production
company
Distributed byToho
Release date
  • 26 September 1954 (1954-09-26) (Japan)
Running time
93 minutes[1]
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese

The film is adapted from Eiji Yoshikawa's novel Musashi,[2] originally released as a serial in the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun, between 1935 and 1939. The novel is loosely based on the life of the famous Japanese swordsman Miyamoto Musashi.

The film was followed by Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple (1955) and Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island (1956).

The film won a Special/Honorary Award at the 1955 Academy Awards for outstanding foreign language film.

Plot edit

Following the battle of Sekigahara, Takezo (Toshiro Mifune) and his friend Matahachi (Rentarō Mikuni) find themselves on the losing side. Instead of the grand victory and glory Takezo had anticipated, he finds himself a hunted fugitive, having to assist a severely injured Matahachi. The pair seek shelter with a widow and her daughter who unknown to them are connected to local brigands. The brigands soon show up and ask for tribute from what the women have stripped off dead samurai, and Takezo has to fight them off. Both women attempt to seduce Takezo but are rejected. The widow then tells Matahachi that Takezo tried to assault her and convinces him to escort her and her daughter to Kyoto. Matahachi agrees even though he loves (and is betrothed to) Otsu (Kaoru Yachigusa), a woman from his village.

Takezo thinks his friend Matahachi has deserted him, and he makes his way home - on the way breaking through a roadblock, injuring several of the local lord's men manning it - and returns to his village. He tells Matahachi's family that he is still alive but will not reveal why Matahachi has not returned. Matahachi's mother does not believe him, and sets a trap for his capture, but he escapes and she is arrested for treason along with many members of her clan. There is a village-wide search for Takezo, organized by the lord. Even after using his relatives as bait, the villagers cannot catch Takezo.

Otsu, meanwhile, gets a letter signed by the widow Oko saying that Matahachi has gone off with her and to forget him, which leaves her devastated. Matahachi's mother, however, continues to insist that Otsu is her daughter-in-law and must live with her.

Takezo is finally captured by the Buddhist priest Takuan Sōhō, who tells the lord that he must be allowed to use his own methods to control him. The priest believes that he can straighten Takezo out, but Takezo again escapes with Otsu's help. Otsu now understands that Takezo was trying to shield her from the knowledge that Matahachi had abandoned her, and begs him to let her travel with him. They flee together but are soon tracked down. Otsu is captured, but Takezo fights his way out. Takezo learns that Otsu has been taken to Himeji Castle and breaks in to rescue her, but is once more tracked down by the priest Takuan. He is tricked and locked in a room in the castle for three years, told to study the ways of the samurai to earn his release while Otsu safely waits for him in a hiding place chosen by Takuan.

The end of the film shows Takezo being released and granted his samurai name 'Musashi Miyamoto'. He then leaves to search for enlightenment, leaving two messages for Otsu: "Soon I will be back" and "Forgive me".

Historical background edit

The film begins in the year 1600 with Tokugawa Ieyasu's victory in the battle of Sekigahara, which cleared the path to the Shōgunate for Tokugawa Ieyasu; however, it took three more years to consolidate the position of power over the other clans. The historical Miyamoto Musashi is believed to have fought in this battle.

Cast edit

Production edit

Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto was the second Toho film production in color and the first in the Eastman Color process.[4]

Release edit

Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto was released in Japan on 26 September 1954 where it was distributed by Toho.[1] It was distributed theatrically in the United States as Samurai (The Legend of Musashi) by Fine Art Films with English-subtitles and English narration on 19 November 1955.[1][4]

The film was released to home video in Australia and New Zealand by Madman Entertainment as Samurai Musashi Miyamoto.[5]

Reception edit

Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto received widespread critical acclaim upon its release in 1954 and has continued to be highly regarded in the decades since. The film was a commercial success in Japan and gained recognition internationally, solidifying its status as a classic of Japanese cinema. It won several awards, including the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1955, further cementing its critical and commercial acclaim. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 100% based on 5 reviews, with an average score of 8.7/10.[6]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Galbraith IV 2008, p. 104.
  2. ^ a b c "宮本武蔵". Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  3. ^ "宮本武蔵". Kinema Junpo. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  4. ^ a b Galbraith IV 2008, p. 105.
  5. ^ Report, Spotlight (2013-07-14). "The Samurai Trilogy - DVD Review". Spotlight Report. Retrieved 2021-07-12.
  6. ^ "Samurai I - Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com. 1955-11-18. Retrieved 2023-11-07.

Sources edit

External links edit

December 07, 2023
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This article includes a list of general references but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations October 2017 Learn how and when to remove this template message Musashi Miyamoto Japanese 宮本武蔵 Hepburn Miyamoto Musashi is a 1954 Japanese film directed and co written by Hiroshi Inagaki and starring Toshiro Mifune The film is the first film of Inagaki s Samurai Trilogy of historical adventures 3 2 Musashi MiyamotoTheatrical release posterDirected byHiroshi InagakiScreenplay byTokuhei Wakao Hiroshi Inagaki 1 Based onMusashi 2 by Eiji YoshikawaProduced byKazuo Takimura 1 StarringToshiro Mifune Rentarō Mikuni Kuroemon OnoeCinematographyJun Yasumoto 1 Music byIkuma Dan 1 ProductioncompanyToho 1 Distributed byTohoRelease date26 September 1954 1954 09 26 Japan Running time93 minutes 1 CountryJapanLanguageJapaneseThe film is adapted from Eiji Yoshikawa s novel Musashi 2 originally released as a serial in the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun between 1935 and 1939 The novel is loosely based on the life of the famous Japanese swordsman Miyamoto Musashi The film was followed by Samurai II Duel at Ichijoji Temple 1955 and Samurai III Duel at Ganryu Island 1956 The film won a Special Honorary Award at the 1955 Academy Awards for outstanding foreign language film Contents 1 Plot 2 Historical background 3 Cast 4 Production 5 Release 6 Reception 7 References 7 1 Sources 8 External linksPlot editFollowing the battle of Sekigahara Takezo Toshiro Mifune and his friend Matahachi Rentarō Mikuni find themselves on the losing side Instead of the grand victory and glory Takezo had anticipated he finds himself a hunted fugitive having to assist a severely injured Matahachi The pair seek shelter with a widow and her daughter who unknown to them are connected to local brigands The brigands soon show up and ask for tribute from what the women have stripped off dead samurai and Takezo has to fight them off Both women attempt to seduce Takezo but are rejected The widow then tells Matahachi that Takezo tried to assault her and convinces him to escort her and her daughter to Kyoto Matahachi agrees even though he loves and is betrothed to Otsu Kaoru Yachigusa a woman from his village Takezo thinks his friend Matahachi has deserted him and he makes his way home on the way breaking through a roadblock injuring several of the local lord s men manning it and returns to his village He tells Matahachi s family that he is still alive but will not reveal why Matahachi has not returned Matahachi s mother does not believe him and sets a trap for his capture but he escapes and she is arrested for treason along with many members of her clan There is a village wide search for Takezo organized by the lord Even after using his relatives as bait the villagers cannot catch Takezo Otsu meanwhile gets a letter signed by the widow Oko saying that Matahachi has gone off with her and to forget him which leaves her devastated Matahachi s mother however continues to insist that Otsu is her daughter in law and must live with her Takezo is finally captured by the Buddhist priest Takuan Sōhō who tells the lord that he must be allowed to use his own methods to control him The priest believes that he can straighten Takezo out but Takezo again escapes with Otsu s help Otsu now understands that Takezo was trying to shield her from the knowledge that Matahachi had abandoned her and begs him to let her travel with him They flee together but are soon tracked down Otsu is captured but Takezo fights his way out Takezo learns that Otsu has been taken to Himeji Castle and breaks in to rescue her but is once more tracked down by the priest Takuan He is tricked and locked in a room in the castle for three years told to study the ways of the samurai to earn his release while Otsu safely waits for him in a hiding place chosen by Takuan The end of the film shows Takezo being released and granted his samurai name Musashi Miyamoto He then leaves to search for enlightenment leaving two messages for Otsu Soon I will be back and Forgive me Historical background editThe film begins in the year 1600 with Tokugawa Ieyasu s victory in the battle of Sekigahara which cleared the path to the Shōgunate for Tokugawa Ieyasu however it took three more years to consolidate the position of power over the other clans The historical Miyamoto Musashi is believed to have fought in this battle Cast editToshiro Mifune as Miyamoto Musashi a k a Takezo Rentarō Mikuni as Honiden Matahachi Kuroemon Onoe as priest Takuan Takuan Sōhō Kaoru Yachigusa as Otsu Mariko Okada as Akemi Mitsuko Mito as Oko Eiko Miyoshi as Osugi Matahachi s mother Akihiko Hirata as Seijuro Yoshioka Kusuo Abe as Temma Tsujikaze Eitaro Ozawa as Terumasa Ikeda Akira Tani as Kawarano Gonroku Seijiro Onda as chief official Fumito Matsuo as petty official 1 Masanobu Okubo as petty official 2 Jiro Kumagai as villager 1 Akira Sera as villager 2 Yasuhisa Tsutsumi as villager 1 Yutaka Sada as soldier 1 Shigeo Kato as soldier 2 Junichirō Mukai as soldier 3 Kiyoshi Kamoda as roving warrior 1 Michio Sakurai as roving warrior 2 Kyoro Sakurai as roving warrior 3 Masao Masuda as woodcutter Daisuke Katō Kanta Kisaragi Yoshio Kosugi Sōjin Kamiyama William Holden as narrator in the original U S version uncredited Production editSamurai I Musashi Miyamoto was the second Toho film production in color and the first in the Eastman Color process 4 Release editSamurai I Musashi Miyamoto was released in Japan on 26 September 1954 where it was distributed by Toho 1 It was distributed theatrically in the United States as Samurai The Legend of Musashi by Fine Art Films with English subtitles and English narration on 19 November 1955 1 4 The film was released to home video in Australia and New Zealand by Madman Entertainment as Samurai Musashi Miyamoto 5 Reception editSamurai I Musashi Miyamoto received widespread critical acclaim upon its release in 1954 and has continued to be highly regarded in the decades since The film was a commercial success in Japan and gained recognition internationally solidifying its status as a classic of Japanese cinema It won several awards including the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1955 further cementing its critical and commercial acclaim On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval rating of 100 based on 5 reviews with an average score of 8 7 10 6 References edit a b c d e f g h Galbraith IV 2008 p 104 a b c 宮本武蔵 Agency for Cultural Affairs Retrieved 27 December 2020 宮本武蔵 Kinema Junpo Retrieved 27 December 2020 a b Galbraith IV 2008 p 105 Report Spotlight 2013 07 14 The Samurai Trilogy DVD Review Spotlight Report Retrieved 2021 07 12 Samurai I Rotten Tomatoes www rottentomatoes com 1955 11 18 Retrieved 2023 11 07 Sources edit Galbraith IV Stuart 2008 The Toho Studios Story A History and Complete Filmography Scarecrow Press ISBN 978 1461673743 External links editMusashi Miyamoto at IMDb Samurai I Musashi Miyamoto at AllMovie Samurai I an essay by Bruce Eder at the Criterion Collection in Japanese http www jmdb ne jp 1954 cd002800 htm Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Samurai I Musashi Miyamoto amp oldid 1183928363, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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