Seven Samuari

TOPIC:

"THE FILM MUST BE SEEN AS AN EFFORT TO ADDRESS PRESSING QUESTIONS AROUND THE NATURE OF JAPANESE IDENTITY, CULTURE, CLASS STRUCTURE AND NATIONHOOD THAT KUROSAWA AND ALL JAPANESE PEOPLE CONFROUNTED IN THE WAKE OF THE PACIFIC WAR FOREIGN OCCUPATION AND THE SUBSEQUENT REINVENTION OF JAPAN." Patrick Crogan

EVALUATE CROGANS REMARKS ABOUT 'SEVEN SAMUARI'(SHICHININ NO SAMUARI) PARTICUALARY WITH REGARD TO KUROSAWA'S IMAGERY AND NARRATIVE STRUCTURE.

Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai reflects the nature of life in post-1945 Japan. Although the story is set in the turbulent era of 16th century, its characters and themes illustrate the changing period between the 1950's and 1960's in Japan. Kurosawa is said to be the most 'Western of Japanese film makers'. (www.sencesofcinema.com) In Seven Samurai he combined a popular Japanese genre of the Samurai with the American western genre to achieve a westernized window on Japanese stories to achieve cross cultural communication. In this essay I will discuss the imagery and narrative structure of Kurosawa in relation to the post foreign occupation effects on Japanese culture and society.

Seven Samurai is a story about a poor peasant farming village community in the 16th century in an era of civil conflict. Without the protection of a strong feudal warlord's samurai, the village is repeatedly raided by a band of outlaws. The villagers decide to hire master less samurai (ronin) to protect themselves from the bandits.

However this is not a simple task due to the feudal Japanese society of. Samurai are of a higher cast than the peasant farmers. They have a tough time trying to find samurai who will work for social inferiors. There is an uneasy relationship between the farmers and the Samurai. The notion of the possibility of class collaboration and harmony is shown when the Samurai try to win the trust of the farmers. (We learn that these villagers had earlier been hostile to samurai--and one of them, even now, desperately fears that a samurai will run away with his daughter). The breaking down of the cast system is also shown by the acceptance of Kikuchiyo, a orphaned farmer's son, who wants to become a samurai. He performs a crucial pivotal role between the farmers and the samurai, overcoming some of the fears and suspicions of the peasants. This echo's the sweeping cultural changes occurring due to the consequences of the Occupation.

Like most Japanese directors, Kurosawa uses nature and the physical environment imagery to literally dominate Japanese film sets. Rain being a specially common convention in Japanese film. In the final battle, accompanied by hard rain, the bandits are defeated. The rain obliterates class separation, peasants and samurai are all melted into the same class (Kobak, S, The Epic Images of Kurosawa). This reflects the abolishment of the cast system under the foreign occupation and the introduction of democracy.

In the end, the three remaining samurai leave the village while a new generation of village leaders oversees the planting of the rice. One of the village elder commits suicide by deciding stay in his house which was burned by the bandits. One cannot help but see that this the new Japan, detaching from old system. The rebuilding of Japan's economy as an equal, unified nation.

Kurosawa was heavily influenced by western genre influences, especially American director John ford. In Seven Samurai we see the mix of western and Japanese cultural practices for example the lone ranger taking form as the ronin figure.

The mise en scene of the landscape in the opening scene, is extremely crucial to our understanding of the film and Kurosawa's westerness. The idea of the American Landscape as being untamed and lawless is applicable to Seven Samurai, and the peasant village being under attack with no one to guard it. The young wannabe samurai that must prove himself is another common western theme. He needs to become a man and find his identity and prove himself in society. Japanese society had to re-invent itself from the old regime much like the young samurai; Japan was a young reborn country. Kurosawa offers a westernised window on Japanese stories. Extending cross cultural barriers, cross cultural communication. He uses western influences to reflect an image of Japanese tradition and culture- making it universally understandable while addressing the theme that deep down we all share the same traits, social needs and values, although we are different.

The information is carried pictorially. There is little use of dialogue as images tell the story. Real violence happens off screen and is not shown. Many characters die in Seven Samurai but violence and action are not the point of the movie. It is more about duty and social roles. It is the Samurai's duty to protect the weak. Death signifies the idea of rebirth, the rebirth of Japanese identity after the foreign occupation. While it comments on the cheapness of human life and the senselessness of war, that accompanied the turbulent period in the 16th century and the atrocities of the Second World War.

Seven Samurai is heavily rooted in realism. The plot is simple and linear. It allows for dramatic conflict between individuals and for the historical context to be represented.