Samurai Trilogy Box Set (The Criterion Collection) [DVD]

You can never go wrong with the quality presented by a Criterion Collection release. These movies have never looked as good as they do here. The trilogy based on the legendary swordsman Musashi Miyamoto's life. Starring Toshiro Mifune as the lead character Musashi. If you a samurai movie you should already know, this series is a must have for your collection. These deserve to be considered right up there with all of Kurosawa's masterpiece films Seven Samurai, Rashomon, Yojimbo, Sanjuro, etc.... (most of his films also star Toshiro Mifune)

Musashi Miyamoto was one of the most famous swordsmen in ancient Japan. Not only that, but he was unique. He was not a famous shogun, warlord or general, but a common peasant who taught himself how to fight. This was a fictional three part movie series featuring Toshira Mifune as Musashi in one of his most well known non-Akira Kurusawa roles. The story is part self-realization, part love story with a woman named Otsu (Kaoru Yachigusa) who would follow Musashi throughout his life, and part samurai flick.The first film in the series covers Musashi’s start when he was like a wild animal. First he took part in the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 hoping to become famous but he was on the losing side. He found himself alone afterward. His one friend abandoned him and his village rejected him. At one point he was even strung up on a tree. This is what made him like a beast. It wasn’t until he learned to control himself that he could become the warrior he always wanted to be. Kurosawa always complimented Mifune on his raw energy he conveyed with his acting so he played this part perfectly.To highlight the drama they introduced Otsu a woman from his village. The two fell in love but he chose becoming a samurai over her. She would be the main co-star throughout the trilogy.From there the following movies establish Musashi as a famous sword fighter. At the same time Otsu continues to follow him up and down Japan as he searches for the perfect fight. By the third film this started getting playedout however and too melodramatic. They introduce the famous two swords style of Musashi which was what he was known for. There’s also Sasaki Kojiro (Koji Tsuruta) who would lead to the greatest fight of Musashi’s career.Overall this is a fine movie series. Director Hiroshi Inagaki did an excellent job. There’s lots of bright colors and nature which was a big part of traditional Japanese film making. There’s enough sword fights to keep you interested, and it was only at the end that the drama got too much with Otsu.C

Cannot play on American blu-ray players, what the heck! Why sell a product in the US that cannot be used here. No identifiers as to the region on blu-ray case. Looks like Amazon ended up with this by mistake and keeps selling this over and over to customers. Take this out of the the inventory for good!

Finally upon receipt of the above (this had to be reordered due to long delay) the disk was noncompliant on my Sony Blu Ray.Yes, I read the disclaimer."Playback Region B/2 :This will not play on most Blu-ray players sold in North America, Central America, South America, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. Learn more about Blu-ray region specifications here "However, how were the two most recent reviewer(s) (2020) who were also verified purchasers (U.S.) able to playback if there Blu Ray-was not compliant? Unless both reviewers had Playback Region B/2 players which should be noted along with Verified Purchase.Seller may want to provide list of complaint U.S. players. I am returning Blu-Ray disks.Note: I had to order this a second time since the first fell into a dormant order bucket and was cancelled. I have the DVD set that was produced under Criterion Collection and was hoping to upgrade playback quality.

Spectacular. I have only watched the first part yet, but I can say these movies are among the best of the genre. You have Toshiro Mifune playing Musashi Miyamoto! What else you want? And there are the extras, the historical commentaries of William Scott Wilson. The image has great quality, and is high definition (at least the most hd a 50's movie dvd can be). To appreciate it well you have to adjust the screen because the format is a bit odd.If you are into japanese martial arts with swords, like Iaido or Kendo, or just like chanbara films, this trilogy is a must.You can see how the character develops through time, how he grows, and becomes wiser... and sharper.Of course is not the real history of Musashi, but is a good place to start. Then go read the books.

Hiroshi Inagaki's classics of 1950s Japanese cinema, "Samurai I:Musashi Miyamoto", "Samurai II:Duel At Ichijoji Temple" and "Samurai III:Duel At Ganryu Island" better known collectively as the Samurai Trilogy all make their UK Blu ray debuts as part of The Criterion Collection. Replicating everything that graced the 2 disc US package from the high definition picture and lossless audio through to the extras and glossy insert booklet these are of course region B compatible for the UK, Europe and Australia.Synopsis:Based on the life and times of the legendary Musashi Miyamoto, philosopher, artist and quite possibly the greatest swordsman and Samurai in Japanese history not to mention author of the highly influential martial arts text book "The Book Of Five Rings". As important to Japanese culture as the likes of Robin Hood or Billy The Kid would have been to western audiences of the time Miyamoto has been dramatised on every available medium from television, radio and literature through to stage and in the case of this review screen. Over a series of three films spanning well over five hours the narrative follows Musashi Miyamoto portrayed by Akira Kurosawa regular Toshirô Mifune from restless hot headed peasant boy called Takezo through to briefly soldier, wanted fugitive, object of female desire and finally master swordsman whilst in this time amassing victories in many duels and discovering his inner strengths all culminating in a life brimming with recognition and self discovery.Monumental in their scope The Samurai Trilogy produced at the renowned Toho Studios has often been described as the Japanese "Gone With The Wind" so broad and deep was it's sprawling and ambitious narrative despite being less flamboyant or creative when compared to Kurosawa's more commercially famous work of the same period with the story told in a rather conventional and straightforward manner. The less frantic and more deliberate pace of Inagaki's pictures coupled with Toshirô Mifune's charismatic performance as Miyamoto help the viewer to understand the transformation of the character through the different stages in his development and although it takes three movies to cover all of this they are never once dull with the spiritual character building side often being punctuated by intense (though remarkably bloodless) duels and large scale battles. In all essence these three separate pictures could be seen as one long continuous feature with recurring characters and themes and as thus should be viewed in order (and preferably over a short period of time) so as to fully understand and appreciate the epic storytelling.Ravishingly shot in vivid Eastman colour (some of the first to be done so in Japan) with imagery that resembles painterly works of art there is no doubting that these movies look very special rivaling the big studio classics of the West and remain thoroughly enchanting and visually exquisite. Shot in a variety of locations from the consistently scenic Japanese countryside through to folklore inspired soundstages there are many moments which give the impression that feudal Japan was shrouded in an almost fairytale ambiance. Photographed in 1.33:1 like the vast majority of pre 1960 Japanese cinema, director Hiroshi Inagaki achieved a fantastic sense of space and depth despite the narrow window boxed framing with perfectly assembled compositions that would make John Ford proud. Incidentally US actor William Holden a self proclaimed fan of Asian cinema famously picked up the American rights for the first movie in the trilogy and pushed for it to be nominated for the best foreign language film at the Academy Awards of 1955 which it did so beating Kurosawa's "Seven Samurai" in the process.There is no doubting that The Samurai Trilogy is an incredibly important series of films who's influence can be seen throughout Japanese and Western cinema alike. Undoubtedly these are less well known than Kurosawa's Samurai pictures and the vastness of the storylines coupled with the occasionally melodramatic tone could be a little heavy going for novices of Japanese cinema who are possibly best advised to check out some of the more flamboyant and action packed Kurosawa pictures first. For the initiated though Hiroshi Inagaki's Samurai Trilogy comes highly recommended as a set of lavish and beautifully photographed historical costume dramas loaded with colour and cultural symbolism that lovers of World Cinema are sure to enjoy all the more thanks to this new two disc Blu ray set from Criterion.Picture:All three of Hiroshi Inagaki's movies slice onto Blu ray courtesy of Criterion in rather splendid AVC encoded MPEG-4 1080p transfers framed at the correct fullscreen aspect ratio of 1.33:1. According to the restoration notes in the included liner booklet these were taken from 35mm low contrast prints pulled from the original camera negatives and look simply ravishingly here in high definition. Now this is where I admit this is the first time I have seen these movies so unfortunately I don't already have a benchmark set but judging by the restoration work here I doubt these have ever looked better. Clarity and detail are exceptional from the intricate patterns in costuming, sets and props whilst texturing in foliage, rustic villages and dusty tracks is visibly open to study. Depth and dimensionality are also strong perfect for some of the almost three dimensional camera set ups and beautifully choreographed battle scenes throughout. Contrast is crisp and natural for the daytime exteriors whilst also being appropriately dark and moody for the many scenes shot on the lavish soundstages which when coupled with inky blacks create wonderful levels of shadow detail. Most importantly colours appear rich and vivid. The first film is alot more subdued in terms of colour palette with a more earthy appearance especially for the muddy war time segments. As the films progress the colours become more striking from the vibrant clothing worn by certain cast members through to the well saturated red and orange of the sunrise for the beach set finalé. Thankfully everything is handled admirably in this department, always retaining distinct true to life hues indicative of the age of the pictures at hand and skin tones too are authentic to the source and period.As is always the case with Criterion great steps were put into place to restore these 60+ year old features to their former glory and the results are pleasing with no obvious traces of print damage although source related problems do persist at certain points with odd colour fluctuations especially noticeable during the first duel in Samurai II. The natural grain structure has been preserved but again can differ from one scene to the next mostly appearing organic but on occasion looking slightly uneven. Thankfully it doesn't appear as if Criterion have used any overt manipulation during the mastering process meaning these retain their solid filmic quality.Sound:All three movies make their transition to high definition audio with uncompressed 24bit 1.0 LPCM monaural soundtracks in their original Japanese at 1152kbps complete with English subtitles. These sound flat but authentic with clear dialogue and foley effects but no real depth although the clanging of swords does sound suitably metallic and sharp. Music reproduction is equally clear if slightly top heavy lacking in range especially low frequencies. I did notice a few age related anomalies with occasional distortion to voices most notably during "Duel At Ichijoji Temple" but in the whole it is hard to really fault the lossless audio tracks here.Extras:The supplementary features here mirror the region A release from Criterion and whilst not being as fulfilling or enlightening as what was found on other classic movies in the collection are interesting enough if all to brief nonetheless.Each instalment of the trilogy receives a separate although regrettably short interview with translator and film historian William Scott Wilson who discusses the events of the film it accompanies. All are exclusives to The Criterion Collection running at just u see 10 minutes apiece and are presented in 1080p.Also included are the theatrical trailers for each movie presented in 1080i.As is always the case with Criterion a glossy insert is also included as part of the package. This particular release contains a rather handsome 24 page illustrated booklet with input from Stephen Prince and again William Scott Wilson.Conclusion:Epic in scope and simply gorgeous to look at Hiroshi Inagaki's Samurai Trilogy will hopefully garner a whole new audience thanks to its inclusion in the UK branch of The Criterion Collection. Identical in terms of quality to it's US counterpart with the same superb quality transfers this of course comes highly recommended to adventurous newcomers and fans of World Cinema alike.

I wanted this set for several years but was put off by the price. After I finally found it in the £20 range I bought it and am glad I waited. The trilogy is good, not great. The middle film is by far the best with the first and third parts only really working in the framework of the trilogy (the second film being able to stand on its own). Worth twenty quid or so, and nice to see Mifune playing a samurai in colour, but at full price buy the Kurosawa BFI boxset first.

The trilogy reflects the life of Miyamoto Mushashi, a famous samurai of the early 16th/17th Century. It is roughly based on the book "Musahshi" by Eiji Yoshikawa - a must read for lovers of Japanese culture. It begins at the battle of Sekigahara which was the start of the Edo period and the shogunate of Tokugawa Ieyasu.Mushashi developed his own style of swordsmanship and was the exponent of the two sword fighting technique - the first to do so. Through his training, mediation and experience he masters the arts of painting, wood carving and through the "Way of the Sword" he finds the meaning of life and love with the beautiful Otsu who remains steadfast through all the trials. The book has many humourous sides involving Jotato and Iori, young boys who he adopts in real life, but the film focuses only on Jotaro. This does not deter from the film and I hope that those who enjoy the film will go on to read "Mushashi".

Not taking into account the awesomeness of this classic trilogy, I fount the picture detail and colors of this remastered version to be amazing. Could not believe a 50 year old movie could look so good, even on a modern 55" TV.

Amazing Samurai trilogy on blu ray. I had the videos.. then the dvds.. now the blu ray..These have the Japanese language with English subtitles. This is also in the original square tv format so not wide-screen but that's how it was filmed.