Samurai Trilogy [Criterion Collection] (Blu-ray)

The Samurai Trilogy directed by HIROSHI INAGAKI (The Rickshaw Man) and starring the inimitable TOSHIRO MIFUNE (Seven Samurai) was one of Japan’s most successful exports of the 1950s, a rousing, emotionally gripping tale of combat and self-discovery. Based on a novel that’s often called Japan’s Gone with the Wind, this sweeping saga fictionalises the life of the legendary seventeenth-century swordsman (and writer and artist) Musashi Miyamoto, following him on his path from unruly youth to enlightened warrior. With these three films - 1954’s Oscar-winning Musashi Miyamoto, 1955’s Duel at Ichijoji Temple, and 1956’s Duel at Ganryu Island - Inagaki created a passionate epic that’s equal parts tender love story and bloody action.