Sanjuro country of origin Japan
Sanjuro (Japanese: 椿三十郎, Hepburn: Tsubaki Sanjūrō) is a 1962 Japanese jidaigeki film directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring Toshiro Mifune. It is a sequel to Kurosawa's 1961 Yojimbo.Originally an adaptation of the Shūgorō Yamamoto novel Hibi Heian, the script was altered following the success of the previous year's Yojimbo to incorporate the lead character of that film.Release
Sanjuro was released on January 1, 1962 in Japan where it was distributed by Toho. The film was also released in the same year in the United States.Reception
Sanjuro was Toho's highest-grossing film in 1962, coming second place for the highest grossing Japanese productions in 1962. It earned ¥450.1 million in distributor rentals at the Japanese box office in 1962, exceeding King Kong vs. Godzilla, which had sold 11.2 million tickets in Japan that year.Mifune's sword fighting in the film was used in an extensive illustrated example of "samurai virtuosity with his sword" in This Is Kendo, a 1989 kendo manual published in English.The film has been positively received by critics. It holds a 100% rating on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes based on 23 reviews, with a weighted average of 8.38/10. The site's consensus reads: "Technically impressive and superbly acted, Sanjuro is a funny, action-packed samurai adventure featuring outstanding cinematography and a charismatic performance from Toshiro Mifune". In 2009 the film was voted at No. 59 on the list of The Greatest Japanese Films of All Time by Japanese film magazine Kinema Junpo.
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