Seven samurai =
Subtitle: Shichinin no samurai
By: Joan Mellen.
Series: BFI film classics
Publisher: BFI Pub.; British Film Institute
Published: 2002
Place of publication: London
Language: eng
Number of pages: 79
Subjects: Kurosawa, Akira, -- 1910-1998 -- Criticism and interpretation; Shichinin no samurai (Motion picture)
Other titles: Shichinin no samurai; Seven samurai
Description: A classic account of a masterpiece by an author who knew Kurosawa.

"In the film "Seven Samurai" (1954) a whole society is on the verge of irrevocable change. Many people consider this film a major achievemnet in Japanese cinema, an epic that evokes the cultural upheaval brought on by the collapse of Japanese militarism in the 16th century, echoing the sweeping changes occuring in the aftermath of the American occupation. The plot is deceptively simple. A village of farmers is beset by a horde of bandits, and in desperation the village hire itinerant samurai to protect their crops and their village. In the end the samurai see off the bandits. Together the samurai reflect the ideals and values of a noble class near the point of extinction. The film may be a technical masterpiece, and despite its movement and violence it appears to be a lament for a lost nobility. In this book Mellen contextualizes "Seven Samurai", marking its place in Japanese cinema, and in director, Akira Kurosawa's career. Mellen explores the film's roots in mediaeval history and the film's visual language." -- ‡c From Amazon.com.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references.