One of the finest films I’ve ever seen, in any genre. Watched it many years ago and found it dull when I was young, but as an adult, this is some of the most gripping and emotionally resonant cinema I’ve ever seen.
The way Kurosawa frames his shots is unlike anybody else to ever do it. Just gorgeous. For a 4:3 film, it’s shockingly widescreen in its scope. It almost feels like it’s in colour at times.
Every one of its many main characters truly develops and changes. They have flaws, and motivation. Nobody has plot armour. The action looks like it could be straight off a real battle field. At one point, I was considering how difficult it looks to actually stab another human. To pierce flesh with a long stick. The effort it entails, and the toll it takes on its killer. All for what? Who wins?
A real masterpiece.