Movie: The Twilight Samurai

Actors: Hiroyuki Sanada, Rie Miyazawa
Director: Yoji Yamada, Producer:

The Twilight Samurai (Tasogare seibei, 2002) is superb, indeed the word `masterpiece` would be apt: it is the only samurai movie I`ve seen which deals with the day to day, rather mundane, existence of a samurai warrior and isn`t all about spectacular sword fighting. This is a drama about family life and the fact that the main protagonist is a samurai in Japan just prior to the Meiji Restoration is (almost, but not quite) immaterial.

A must-see movie, it is as good as any of the Kurosawa films dealing with samurai that I have seen although not so epic or spectacular. Indeed the strength of the movie is its realism and its low-key, non-sensationalist, refreshing, approach. (In Japanese with English subtitles).