Yojimbo

Movie

1961

1h 50m

Japanese

Drama, Thriller

User Score:

8.4

Critic Score:

Watch on The Criterion Channel

Play Trailer

Yojimbo

Movie

1961

1h 50m

Japanese

Drama, Thriller

Play Trailer

Watch on The Criterion Channel

A nameless ronin, or samurai with no master, enters a small village in feudal Japan where two rival businessmen are struggling for control of the local gambling trade. Taking the name Sanjuro Kuwabatake, the ronin convinces both silk merchant Tazaemon and sake merchant Tokuemon to hire him as a personal bodyguard, then artfully sets in motion a full-scale gang war between the two ambitious and unscrupulous men.

WATCHMODE

8.4

IMDB

CRITIC SCORE

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$3.99HD

$3.59SD

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$13.49SD

Available in 2 other countries.

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Cast

Full Cast & Crew

Toshirō Mifune

Sanjuro Kuwabatake / The Samurai

Unosuke, gunfighter

Nui

Orin

Inokichi

Seibê - brothel operator

Takashi Shimura

Tokuemon, sake brewer

Yoichiro

Kohei's Son

Gonji, Tavern Keeper

Tazaemon

Hansuke

The Cooper (Coffin-Maker)

Susumu Fujita

Homma, Instructor Who Skips Town

Ushitora

Kuma

Ronin Kobuhachi

First Samurai

First Foot Soldier

Kame

Kannuki the Giant

Kohei

Magotaro

Roku - Samurai Whose Arm is Cut

Yutaka Sada

Matsukichi

Directed By: Akira Kurosawa

Written By: Akira Kurosawa (Screenplay), Ryūzō Kikushima (Screenplay)

Featured Comments/Tips

KennethDK says...

9 years ago

Toshiro Mifune is a great actor and the samurai was a fascinating character! This is a fun movie, that's very easy to watch, but it's great nonetheless.

Like - Dislike - Comment - 10 0

JoeyvanAwesome says...

3 months ago

I can't help it, I just don't find Yojimbo super entertaining. For me, the biggest giveaway that this has influenced the Western genre so much, is that I don't particularly enjoy both.

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horoxix says...

3 weeks ago

An incredibly enjoyable, and much more humorous than I expected, film. The main character growth is evident, and the pacing was spot on. Definitely one I want to rewatch with friends.

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jeffsmith99 says...

4 years ago

The experienced heavyweight anti-hero samauri played by Toshiro Mifune was interesting after also watching him play the irreverent rebel samauri want-to-be in the earlier movie Seven Samauri. It is not a "Spaghetti Western", but I have added it to my Spaghetti Western list anyway. Since it was the source of one of the great Spaghetti Westerns, I consider it a Spaghetti Western Prototype, and a must-watch for all Spaghetti Western fans. Check out my list: https://trakt.tv/users/jeffsmith99/lists/spaghetti-westerns-i-want-to-watch Look for the film with english subtitles on a free Roku channel called "Noir Nights"

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Featured User Reviews

AndrewBloom

8/10 8 years ago

I generally like watching old movies. There's a natural selection at play in which anything that's survived long enough for me to hear about in the present day suggests that the film is good, or at least interesting. But there's always a certain amount of mental translation and adjustmen More

Like - Dislike - Comment - 40 0

drqshadow

8/10 4 years ago

Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune collaborate again for the eighth chapter in a long and fruitful cinematic partnership. This act finds Mifune in a classic role: the cynical old samurai who rumbles into a small town, makes an impression and immediately lights the fuse to a long-simmering gang war. C More

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CRCulver

6 years ago

Akira Kurosawa's 1961 film YOJIMBO is a Japanese period drama where wily strategy is worth just as much as prowess with a sword. In the late Edo era (some decades before its end in 1868) a community is plagued by two opposing gangs who have built up a criminal empire of prostitution and gambling. Ev More

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CinemaSerf

3 months ago

I was surprised when I saw this, how late it was set - 19th Century - as I'd always imagined it to be of a more historical nature. That doesn't remotely detract from the story though - as again Kurosawa casts Yoshirô Mifune ("Sanjûrô") in the leading role. Here he is a wandering samurai who arriv More

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