Samurai Rebellion (Criterion Collection) — dvd review
Over the next few weeks we will be reviewing the films comprising the Criterion’s Rebel Samurai DVD box set, a collection of “Sixties Swordplay Classics” honoring directors who sought to enact political and social change by expressing conscientious objections to the status quo through period dramas. While each film is available on its own, outside of the set, we will be covering them in spine number order (310 to 313). The first film of the set, Masaki Kobayashi’s Samurai Rebellion, easily fits the bill of Rebel.
The Film:
Based on the novel Hairyo Tsuma Shimatsu (Receive the Wife) by Yasuhiko Takeguchi, (whose Harakiri was also translated to film by Kobayashi), Samurai Rebellion embodies many of the themes of epic storytelling in a surprisingly modest package. Both beautiful and inspiring, Samurai Rebellion is a meditation on honor, sacrifice, love, heroism, and integrity in the face of tyranny.
A respected family reluctantly takes in their philandering daimyo’s cast off mistress, thirty years his junior and mother to his son. Ichi, the lord’s decrees, must marry their eldest son, Yogoro (Go Kato, Fighting Elegy, Tamala 2010), and leave behind her son and lavish lifestyle. Though initially awkward, the pairing proves fortunate, the two falling deeply in love. After two years they bear a child, Tomi (Wealth). When the loss of an heir leaves Ichi’s son the next in line for the throne, the daimyo asks for Ichi back, as leaving the mother of an official-to-be married to a mere vassal being grossly improper. The lovers refuse, initiating a chain of events setting both themselves and their family targets of retribution at the hands of their feudal leaders.
Though the relationship between Yogoro and Ichi serves as the crux of the story, by far the most intriguing character isYogoro’s father, Isaburo Sasahara, played by Toshiro Mifune (Seven Samurai, The Hidden Fortress). While renowned for his skill with a sword, Isaburo is a decidedly nonviolent man. His most secret dueling technique involves a method of allowing an enemy to attack until they collapse in exhaustion, sealing victory without delivering a single blow. This same strength through passivity is evidenced in his daily life. For twenty years Isaburo has complied with every whim of both the daimyo and his domineering shrew of a wife. In Yogoro’s relationship with Ichi, Isaburo recognizes a purity of love entirely absent from his own marriage. The desire to preserve their happiness forces Isaburo to choose between what is right and what is law — between action and continued inaction. This multi-layered persona would appear any sensible actor’s dream role. Ironically Mifune was preoccupied with a personal financial endeavor at the time, so his performance was not as honed as it could have been, but somehow his portrayal of Isaburo still manages to rank with some of his best work.
Kobayashi explores the themes of government oppression and struggle in near every frame of Samurai Rebellion. The film opens with shots of the daimyo’s imposing estate. Immense, rigid, unforgiving, the building embodies all the characteristics of the resident Lord’s uncompromising rule. There is a motif of forced imprisonment throughout, as structures, shadows, and even objects such as the lord’s arsenal of rifles evoke a sense of prison bars. There are simple shots of character interactions, Isaburo’s footprints on a carefully raked rock garden, conveying dissidence without uttering a single word. And of course there’s the final battle with the lone, brave swordsman pressing ever forward, thorough the volleys of cowardly, hidden snipers.
A powerful and moving film, Samurai Rebellion’s themes of doing right in the face of an oppressive wrong resonate all the more fully today. A masterpiece of the genre, weaving together heartbreaking drama, skilled performances, beautiful cinematography, and large scale action, Samurai Rebellion is a must have for any fans of either subversive or Samurai cinema.
The DVD:
There is something about the black and white film that lends itself to the dramatic far more successfully than the colorized counterparts. Compositions seem more refined, more artistic, and more engaging within the limited light spectrum. Samurai Rebellion is no exception to the phenomena. Thankfully Criterion’s famed film restoration processes have been more than kind to it. Presented in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio, the high contrast blacks and whites are represented as faithfully as with the original prints. Likewise the original mono soundtrack has been restored to its original quality.
The disc is relatively light on extras, containing only a trailer and an brief clip of an 1993 interview with Masaki Kobayashi, conducted by filmmaker Masahira Shinoda (Samurai Spy, also included in the Rebel Samurai Collection), where they discuss various obstacles encountered with Mifune in the making the film, and its initial reception in Europe and Japan. One interesting anecdote regards the method used by Kobayashi to capture inaudible lines dialogue uttered by Mifune (Mifune was a soft talker) through a sound system at NHK, and thus make them audible for the final product. There is also an in-depth essay by Japanese film historian, Don Ritchie, though as it contains a few spoilers I recommend reading this only after having viewed the film.
I must also note the graphic design of both the jacket sleeve and the title menus for the disc. While some of the Criterion titles of late have been pretty hit and miss when it comes to design, I quite like the look of these.
All in all this is a quality disc. Picture and sound are impeccable, and the sheer caliber of the movie more than makes up for the lack of any perceived commentary track or making of documentary. The Criterion Collection’s release of Samurai Rebellion is an excellent addition to any cineaste’s library.
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