Viewed on DVD. Restoration = eight (8) stars; score =eight (8) stars; subtitles = eight (8) stars; lighting = four (4) stars. Director Akira Kurosawa's first released film exhibits uneven inter-scene direction and an overall lack of energy and excitement. The directorial reins are often not held with a firm hand and occasionally seem to be dropped completely. The plot revolves around the fierce competition between two schools of hand-to-hand combat during the late 1800's, and, accordingly, contains the ingredients for a heavy-duty action movie. But Kurosawa's execution is generally limp (with the exception of the first street fight that kicks off the film). Interior arena (i.e., tournament) shots fail to capture much of the excitement and action the viewer might be expecting to see; the actors seem to be performing many of their own stunts; and professional stunt men seem be in very short supply. It gets worse. The climatic, grudge fight (which the film has been building up to) is all but hidden from the viewer: it takes place in a field of tall grass which pretty much obscures what is happening! The opening credits indicate that a portion of the film was removed by Japanese military authorities, and it's interesting to speculate on what may have been censored and where censorship may have occurred. But judging from the extant print (the one allowed to be exhibited circa 1943), the film could have benefited from the removal of even more footage on artistic rather than political grounds! Cinematography (narrow- screen, black and white) is fine although inter-scene lighting is startlingly uneven. The latter adds to the bumpy road encountered by the viewer: film fluidity is poor and the nuts-and-bolts of the editing process are on full, distracting display. Film score is excellent, but totally Western. Subtitles are just right and show that the writer knows her/his grammar. Restoration is quite good except it missed vertical wear lines and dirt toward the end of the movie. WILLIAM FLANIGAN, PhD
Review of Sanshiro Sugata
