Yojimbo (Criterion Collection)

The film that helped inspire the western classic "A Fistful of Dollars," Akira Kurosawa's "Yojimbo" (1961) is a sly commentary on the action movie genre that follows a war-weary samurai (Toshiro Mifune) who becomes the champion of a small village caught in the grip of a feud between two rival factions. With Kamatari Fujiwara, Eijiro Tono. And, Mifune returns as the somewhat shabby samurai "Sanjuro" (1962) in Kurosawa's rousing sequel. This time, he comes to the aid of nine young warriors attempting to bring about the end of a corrupt regime. Tatsuya Nakadai, Keiju Kobayashi, Takashi Shimura also star. 3 2/3 hrs. Total. on two discs. Widescreen (Enhanced); Soundtrack: Japanese DTS HD 3.0 Master Audio; Subtitles: English. In Japanese with English subtitles.