Favorite Yojimbo Role?

[BlackLamaFaction]

Toshiro Mifune's beloved nameless Ronin was portrayed in 4 films that I have seen, each of these films being classics from 3 different directors including two by master Kurosawa. Which is the favorite among fans? Also are there any other Yojimbo roles I am not aware of?

Yojimbo (Kurosawa)- The characters first appearance, the quintessential samurai western. I watched this my first semester in film school. Kurosawa uses every inch of the frame in such a way that without the widescreen version your missing something.

Sanjuro (Kurosawa)- Another adventure of the nameless Ronin. Aiding a group of young samurai bent on cleaning up corruption in their village. Full of scenes you could write whole books on.

Machibuse (Inagaki)- Little action, but engaging character driven story. Yojimbo is on a mission he does not know the details to. He travels to a rural mountain pass and waits for the drama to unfold. A plot full of great twists and turns. Shintaro Katsu as the villian.

Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo (Okamoto)- The two legendary wanderers meet. Tension builds as they find themselves on opposite sides of a plot with a woman between them. Not my favorite Zatoichi or Yojimbo film but great to see these two masters meet.

I love all these films but my favorite is Yojimbo. That film is the reason I am a aware of and love Japanese Cinema today. Of all of Mifunes legendary roles this is my favorite of his characters. He was so natural in this character, as if there were parallels between his real life persona and the wandering ronin.

[vengeanceofhumanlanterns]

Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo. Definitely my favorite film out of the four. Yojimbo would be next. Then Incident At Blood Pass. Sanjuro would be last. The storylines would be the driving force behind my preference.

[Wolcott]

My favorite is definitely Yojimbo as well. I wouldn't change a thing about that film!

I have to say, I actually really dislike Zatoichi meets Yojimbo. I felt that Mifune's character was so different in that film, it shouldn't have even been considered a Yojimbo film. I know it was likely to make more money that way, but still. Zatoichi was great in it, though.

That's just my opinion.

[Tosh]

Original for sure, Toshiro owns the screen.

[chanbara]

Actually MIFUNE played 3 different characters in those 4 films. He played the same character, Sanjuro, in the 2 KUROSAWA films, but the (albeit similar) characters he played after that were not meant to be Sanjuro, just other wandering ronin and sometimes bodyguard (yojimbo). SHINOGI Tozaburo, the character he plays in "Incident at Blood Pass" is probably the most similar in terms of how the character looks and acts (he even rubs his chin and eats really fast like Sanjuro did), but nevertheless a different character. SASA Daisaku, the character he plays in "Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo", bears virtually no resemblance to Sanjuro (other than the fact that MIFUNE is playing the role) and is a secret government agent working for the Shogunate, which flies in the face of Sanjuro's wandering/no allegiance nature. Had the film not had "Yojimbo" in the title, I doubt anyone would've thought he was playing the character he did in the 2 KUROSAWA classics. Along with these films, MIFUNE played a number of other similar wandering suronin (lowly ronin) in a number of TV projects. And of course Jidai-Geki/Samurai films feature countless ronin/yojimbo characters (there's 1 in almost every Zatoichi movie for example).

Anyway, of those 4 movies the 2 KUROSAWA films are my favorites, but I also love the INAGAKI film a lot. And although I love the Zatoichi series, "Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo" is probably one of my least favorites. I like it, but ultimately it's a disappointment on too many levels.

Here’s a list of MIFUNE's wandering ronin / bodyguard characters and the productions they appeared in:

Title: 用心棒 Yojimbo (1961) - MOVIE

Role: 桑畑三十郎 KUWABATA Sanjuro ("mulberry field" Sanjuro)

Title: 椿三十郎 Sanjuro (1962) - MOVIE

Role: 椿三十郎 TSUBAKI Sanjuro ("camellia" Sanjuro)

Title: 五人の野武士 Five Wandering Samurai (1968-1969) - TV SERIES - 26 episodes (only appears in episodes 1, 2, 14, 15, 17, 26)

Role: 船山次郎義景 FUNAYAMA Jiro Takakage

Title: 座頭市と用心棒 Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo (1970) - MOVIE

Role: 佐々大作 SASA Daisaku

Title: 待ち伏せ Incident at Blood Pass (1970) - MOVIE

Role: 鎬刀三郎 SHINOGI Tozaburo ("ridges on a sword" Tozaburo)

Title: SOLEIL ROUGE Red Sun (1971) - MOVIE

Role: 黒田重兵衛 KURODA Jubei

Title: 荒野の素浪人 Ronin of the Wastelands (1972-1973) - TV SERIES - 65 episodes

Role: 峠九十郎 TOGE Kujuro ("mountain pass" Kujuro)

Title: 荒野の用心棒 Bodyguards of the Wastelands (1973) - TV SERIES - 39 episodes (only appears in episodes 3, 5, 7, 9, 11)

Role: 旅の素浪人 Tabi no Suronin (The Traveling Lowly Ronin)

Title: 新・荒野の素浪人 New Ronin of the Wastelands (1974) - TV SERIES - 39 episodes

Role: 峠九十郎 TOGE Kujuro ("mountain pass" Kujuro)

Title: 剣と風と子守唄 Sword, Wind, and Lullaby (1975) - TV SERIES - 27 episodes

Role: 砦十三郎 TORIDE Juzaburo ("fortress" Juzaburo)

Title: 人魚亭異聞　無法街の素浪人 Mermaid Saloon: Lowly Ronin on Lawless Streets (1976) - TV SERIES - 23 episodes

Role: ミスターの旦那 Misutaa no Danna (Mister Danna)

Title: 素浪人罷り通る The Lowly Ronin (1981) - TV MOVIE

Role: 春夏秋冬 SHUNKA Shuto ("spring, summer, autumn and winter")

Title: 素浪人罷り通る　第二部　暁の死闘 The Lowly Ronin: Duel at Dawn (1982) - TV MOVIE

Role: 春夏秋冬 SHUNKA Shuto ("spring, summer, autumn and winter")

Title: 素浪人罷り通る　第三部　血煙の宿 The Lowly Ronin: The Spray of Blood (1982) - TV MOVIE

Role: 春夏秋冬 SHUNKA Shuto ("spring, summer, autumn and winter")

Title: 素浪人罷り通る　第四部　去るも地獄残るも地獄 The Lowly Ronin: Living Hell (1983) - TV MOVIE

Role: 春夏秋冬 SHUNKA Shuto ("spring, summer, autumn and winter")

Title: 素浪人罷り通る　第五部　涙に消えた三日極楽 The Lowly Ronin: The Teenage Orphan Girl (1983) - TV MOVIE

Role: 春夏秋冬 SHUNKA Shuto ("spring, summer, autumn and winter")

Title: 素浪人罷り通る　第六部　矢立峠に裏切りを見た The Lowly Ronin: Betrayal at Yatate Pass (1983) - TV MOVIE

Role: 春夏秋冬 SHUNKA Shuto ("spring, summer, autumn and winter")

Title: 魔境　殺生谷の秘密 The Secret of Cruel Valley (1983) - TV MOVIE

Role: 素浪人 Suronin (The Lowly Ronin)

[BlackLamaFaction]

Thank You for the info Chanbara, your knowledge of this genre is prodigious. I was aware that the character in Zatoichi meets Yojimbo was quite different, I mainly included it because of the title. In Machibuse (Incident At Blood Pass) I wasn't sure what the characters actual name was I didn't remember him giving it, but your right, he did act very similar to the Sanjuro character. I am sorry I didn't clarify I wasn't speaking about the Sanjuro character but the Yojimbo (Bodyguard) roles Mifune has played. Those 4 films were the only ones I was aware of, so thank you for all those other examples. Are any of those T.V movies or series available in the U.S? I would love to get a hold of some of them.

[chanbara]

You bet.

The good folks at http://www.kurotokagi.com/ have custom subbed the first 7 episodes of "Ronin of the Wastelands" so far (see TV Series and New Releases sections) and all 6 "Lowly Ronin" TV movies (see Samurai Movies F-L section).

And the good folks at http://www.samuraidvd.com/ have custom subbed the first 3 episodes of "Mermaid Saloon: Lowly Ronin on Lawless Streets" for far.

And "Red Sun" is available in an excellent widescreen print: http://www.amazon.com/Red-Sun-Charles-Bronson/dp/B000ROAPTA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1276880604&sr=8-1

MIFUNE also made a special guest appearance to mark the 300th episode of Mifune Productions' long running and excellent TV series O-EDO SOSAMO ("Edo Dragnet") playing a very Yojimbo-Sanjuro-LowlyRonin-like character. This was during the year that the awesome SHIHOMI Etsuko was on the show, making it doubly cool.

[Wolcott]

The good folks at http://www.kurotokagi.com/ have custom subbed the first 7 episodes of "Ronin of the Wastelands" so far (see TV Series and New Releases sections) and all 6 "Lowly Ronin" TV movies (see Samurai Movies F-L section).

And the good folks at http://www.samuraidvd.com/ have custom subbed the first 3 episodes of "Mermaid Saloon: Lowly Ronin on Lawless Streets" for far.

Awesome! I didn't know any of those were subbed. I'll have to get on that!

[vengeanceofhumanlanterns]

I'll have to check out Yojimbo tonight and see the difference. Haven't seen it in a few years, but I do remember not being overly impressed with the film. If Kurosawa is the director, that's already one black check mark against it. Very boring , contrived, and overrated director IMO. Throne Of Blood is the only exception. We'll see.

[vengeanceofhumanlanterns]

Come to think of it, I feel Toshiro's role in Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo, is one of his coolest. It's a hardcore Killer's Game type of storyline with desperate characters and tangible resignation. Nine Headed Dragon's advent, with the raging fire, and Akira Ifukube's score. That actor's great too. When Toshiro taunts Zato, LOL! That's great stuff. When Zato dislocates these tough guys arms who are ignorant of who they're ordering around. And Toshiro mocking his posed employer, "SENSEI !!! The movies f-ing sick.

[kungfusamurai]

I always assumed he was playing different characters. The yojimbo name was more of a job description to me. It's like David Chiang playing the rover character (not the same person, but similar) in The Duel and I think Savage Five was the other.

Yojimbo of course was the best portrayal of the character. It was a movie that influence Sergio Leone, and was the inspiration for Last Man Standing, so it's definitely on a level of it's own.

I find ZmY the least favorite, both as a Y flick and as a Z flick. I didn't really see much of the original Y character being portrayed by Mifune, and as far as Z movies go, it was highly disappointing. It was the first film he did with the new company, and it just didn't have that magical feel the earlier films had. And the Z vs Y fight was disappointing. And I didn't like Z's new hairdo .

KFS

[vengeanceofhumanlanterns]

Just rewatched Yojimbo last night. Now I remember why I don't appreciate this film as much as I would've. Tatsuya's character isn't very cool in the badass department. Nine Headed Dragon was way better depicted . Also, Yojimbo being filmed in 1961 gives a little more reason for accepting the quirkyness. Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo is a better film by far in my opinion. And I can't help it, but Yojimbo in ZMY is far more robust and realistic. Kurosawa is way overrated. I don't care if this film influenced Sergio. It dosen't mean the film's better made than it is. Under using Tatsuya was just lazy as far as I'm concerned and on top of it all, Tatsuya could've just offed Yojimbo at any point in the story. If the moral to the story is for bad men to become men by thieving and killing, at least the anti-moral, Kurosawa should've been a bit more brutal with the characters in the story. Kurosawa has this cutsey thing about his directing. Kurosawa dosen't direct films for realism as far as I've been made aware veiwing his films. He seems to push theatrical drama. Which is fine. I just don't prefer my samurai films being overly directed, making the actors look like they're acting, and the dialogue making a weak attempt at everyday thoughts people are thinking inbetween the dramatic scenes. I can't even watch Seven Samurai for this reason and Drunken Angel should've been a far better film. I can understand why Shintaro Katsu brought his own crew to film a movie Kurosawa wanted to make starring Shintaro. He didn't like Kurosawa's style. I have waaay more respect for Katsu and Kengi in the directing of samurai films department.

[BlackLamaFaction]

I can dig what you saying. Kurosawa is one of my favorite directors, however he is not an action film director, or a samurai film director, his influence in cinema in general is to gigantic to see objectively. Yeah the westerns sure, but ask Chang Cheh what he was screening at Shaw studios every weekend, ask Scorsese, Kubrick, Fassbinder, the guy is up there with the Gods of post war 20th century cinema. That being said there were directors who did Samurai films better, Kihachi Okamoto was one of them. I did like what he did in Zatoichi vs. Yojimbo, he made the characters his own, so I see why some fans may have been put off by it. I thought it worked. Kurosawa isn't flawless, I mean Hidden Fortress didn't really do it for me, probably for the same reason you didn't like Yojimbo. It's hard to compare the 50's early 60's stuff to what came later. The late 60's early 70's stuff had a dynamic that wasn't present in the early films as far as action and realism goes, at least the way I see it. There was a revolution in cinema during those years that was felt internationally. It was the same here in the U.S, and Europe as well. Samurai films really seemed to benefit from it.

[Space]

Sanjuro has always been my favorite Kurosawa movie. Even though the plot is a bit choppier than Yojimbo, I thought Mifune was good in it.

Also, it's not 3+ hours, which means I have time to sit and watch it.