For Friday 23 November 2007

YOJIMBO

For Friday, 23 November 2007

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Yojimbo (Akira Kurosawa, 1961) is one of the legendary Japanese films, whose influence has extended to many Hollywood directors, all of whom look upon Kurosawa as a master on many levels.
    Especially Kurosawa's use of scope has had influence on Western directors. Direct influence is shown in Hollywood versions of Kurosawa's films, including Rashomon, Yojimbo, and The Seven Samurai. George Lucas also claimed Kurosawa's The Hidden Fortress as an influence on Star Wars.
    Kurosawa of course was influenced by Western culture (Ran is an adaptation of Shakespeare's King Lear) and the Samurai films show the influence of Hollywood Westerns (Kurosawa claimed admiration for John Ford and was supposedly influenced in his use of the coffin motif in Yojimbo by the similar use of the sound of a carpenter building coffins in High Noon (1951).
    Besides the still Study Pictures for Yojimbo, consider here the framing in the opening credit sequence, with Sanjuro's (Toshiro Mifune's) dynamic entry into film space from screen right (above, left).
    Later, Kurosawa dramatizes Sanjuro's decision to remain in town despite the killings by showing him move from a weak one-quarter position to a full frontal position (above, right).
    Finally, Kurosawa dynamizes Sanjuro's resolve to fight the bad men by having him walk directly into the camera with a slight dolly back for effect (above, right).
    Note at the end of this sequence Kurosawa's use of a wipe (the next scene gradually "wipes off" the previous scene, from right to left). This device, rarely used in Hollywood, was a favorite device of Kurosawa's, where most Hollywood directors would prefer the dissolve or the straight cut. This device gives Kurosawa's film the effect of staged action, especially effective in Yojimbo, which is really about Sanjuro's staged actions throughout the film.

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