View source for Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto

{{Short description|1954 Japanese film by Hiroshi Inagaki}}
{{more footnotes needed|date=October 2017}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Musashi Miyamoto
| image          = Musashi Miyamoto poster.jpg
| alt            = 
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| native_name    = <!-- {{Infobox name module|language|title}} or {{Infobox name module|title}} -->
| director       = [[Hiroshi Inagaki]]
| producer       = Kazuo Takimura{{sfn|Galbraith IV|2008|p=104}}
| screenplay     = {{plainlist|* Tokuhei Wakao
* Hiroshi Inagaki{{sfn|Galbraith IV|2008|p=104}}}}
| story          = 
| based_on       = {{Based on|''[[Musashi (novel)|Musashi]]'',<ref name=aca/> |[[Eiji Yoshikawa]]}}
| starring       = {{plainlist|* [[Toshiro Mifune]]
* [[Rentarō Mikuni]]
* Kuroemon Onoe}}
| narrator       = 
| music          = [[Ikuma Dan]]{{sfn|Galbraith IV|2008|p=104}}
| cinematography = Jun Yasumoto{{sfn|Galbraith IV|2008|p=104}}
| editing        = 
| studio         = [[Toho]]{{sfn|Galbraith IV|2008|p=104}}
| distributor    = Toho
| released       = {{Film date|df=yes|1954|9|26|Japan}}
| runtime        = 93 minutes{{sfn|Galbraith IV|2008|p=104}}
| country        = Japan
| language       = Japanese
| budget         = 
| gross          = 
}}

{{nihongo|'''''Musashi Miyamoto'''''|宮本武蔵|Miyamoto Musashi|lead=yes}} is a 1954 Japanese film directed and co-written by [[Hiroshi Inagaki]] and starring [[Toshiro Mifune]]. The film is the first film of Inagaki's ''[[Samurai Trilogy]]'' of historical adventures.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kinenote.com/main/public/cinema/detail.aspx?cinema_id=24152&key_search=%E5%AE%AE%E6%9C%AC%E6%AD%A6%E8%94%B5|title=宮本武蔵|publisher=[[Kinema Junpo]]|access-date=27 December 2020}}</ref><ref name=aca>{{cite web|url=https://www.japanese-cinema-db.jp/Details?id=5477|title=宮本武蔵|publisher=[[Agency for Cultural Affairs]]|access-date=27 December 2020}}</ref>

The film is adapted from [[Eiji Yoshikawa]]'s novel ''[[Musashi (novel)|Musashi]]'',<ref name=aca/> originally released as a serial in the Japanese newspaper ''[[Asahi Shimbun]]'', between 1935 and 1939. The novel is loosely based on the life of the famous [[Japanese people|Japanese]] [[swordsman]] [[Miyamoto Musashi]].

The film was followed by ''[[Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple]]'' (1955) and ''[[Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island]]'' (1956).

The film won a Special/Honorary Award at the [[28th Academy Awards|1955 Academy Awards]] for outstanding foreign language film.

== Plot ==
Following the [[battle of Sekigahara]], Takezo (Toshiro Mifune) and his friend Matahachi ([[Rentarō Mikuni]]) find themselves on the losing side. Instead of the grand victory and glory Takezo had anticipated, he finds himself a hunted fugitive, having to assist a severely injured Matahachi. The pair seek shelter with a widow and her daughter who unknown to them are connected to local brigands. The brigands soon show up and ask for tribute from what the women have stripped off dead samurai, and Takezo has to fight them off. Both women attempt to seduce Takezo but are rejected. The widow then tells Matahachi that Takezo tried to assault her and convinces him to escort her and her daughter to [[Kyoto]]. Matahachi agrees even though he loves (and is betrothed to) Otsu ([[Kaoru Yachigusa]]), a woman from his village.

Takezo thinks his friend Matahachi has deserted him, and he makes his way home - on the way breaking through a roadblock, injuring several of the local lord's men manning it - and returns to his village. He tells Matahachi's family that he is still alive but will not reveal why Matahachi has not returned. Matahachi's mother does not believe him, and sets a trap for his capture, but he escapes and she is arrested for treason along with many members of her clan. There is a village-wide search for Takezo, organized by the lord. Even after using his relatives as bait, the villagers cannot catch Takezo.

Otsu, meanwhile, gets a letter signed by the widow Oko saying that Matahachi has gone off with her and to forget him, which leaves her devastated. Matahachi's mother, however, continues to insist that Otsu is her daughter-in-law and must live with her.

Takezo is finally captured by the [[Buddhist]] priest [[Takuan Sōhō]], who tells the lord that he must be allowed to use his own methods to control him. The priest believes that he can straighten Takezo out, but Takezo again escapes with Otsu's help. Otsu now understands that Takezo was trying to shield her from the knowledge that Matahachi had abandoned her, and begs him to let her travel with him. They flee together but are soon tracked down. Otsu is captured, but Takezo fights his way out. Takezo learns that Otsu has been taken to [[Himeji Castle]] and breaks in to rescue her, but is once more tracked down by the priest Takuan. He is tricked and locked in a room in the castle for three years, told to study the ways of the samurai to earn his release while Otsu safely waits for him in a hiding place chosen by Takuan.

The end of the film shows Takezo being released and granted his samurai name 'Musashi Miyamoto'. He then leaves to search for enlightenment, leaving two messages for Otsu: "Soon I will be back" and "Forgive me".

== Historical background ==
The film begins in the year 1600 with [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]]'s victory in the [[battle of Sekigahara]], which cleared the path to the [[Shōgun]]ate for [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]]; however, it took three more years to consolidate the position of power over the other clans. The historical Miyamoto Musashi is believed to have fought in this battle.

== Cast ==
{{div col}}
* [[Toshiro Mifune]] as [[Miyamoto Musashi]] a.k.a. Takezo
* [[Rentarō Mikuni]] as Honiden Matahachi
* Kuroemon Onoe as priest Takuan ([[Takuan Sōhō]])
* [[Kaoru Yachigusa]] as Otsu
* [[Mariko Okada]] as Akemi
* [[Mitsuko Mito]] as Oko<!--Matahachi's wife ACCORDING TO THE IMDB, should be Akemi's mother? -->
* Eiko Miyoshi as Osugi, Matahachi's mother
* [[Akihiko Hirata]] as Seijuro Yoshioka
* Kusuo Abe as Temma Tsujikaze
* [[Eitaro Ozawa]] as [[Terumasa Ikeda]]
* Akira Tani as Kawarano-Gonroku
* Seijiro Onda as chief official
* Fumito Matsuo as petty official 1
* Masanobu Ôkubo as petty official 2
* Jiro Kumagai as villager 1
* Akira Sera as villager 2
* Yasuhisa Tsutsumi as villager 1
* Yutaka Sada as soldier 1
* Shigeo Kato as soldier 2
* Junichirō Mukai as soldier 3
* Kiyoshi Kamoda as roving warrior 1
* Michio Sakurai as roving warrior 2
* Kyoro Sakurai as roving warrior 3
* Masao Masuda as woodcutter
* [[Daisuke Katō]]
* Kanta Kisaragi
* Yoshio Kosugi
* [[Sōjin Kamiyama]]
* [[William Holden]] as narrator in the original U.S. version (uncredited)
{{div col end}}

==Production==
Director [[Hiroshi Inagaki]] had done a serial on [[Musashi Miyamoto]] in 1941 but prints of it were apparently destroyed due to its feudalistic theme. <ref>{{Cite news |title=Screen: Inagaki's 'Samurai Part II':Part of Trilogy at 55th St. Playhouse Toshiro Mifune Stars in 1956 Movie |work=The New York Times |date=21 October 1967 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1967/10/21/archives/screen-inagakis-samurai-part-iipart-of-trilogy-at-55th-st-playhouse.html |access-date=2024-01-31 |last1=Crowther |first1=Bosley }}</ref> He also directed ''Kanketsu Sasaki Kojirô: Ganryû-jima ketto'' (1951), which had Mifune as Miyamoto. ''Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto'' was the second Toho film production in color and the first in the [[Eastman Color]] process.{{sfn|Galbraith IV|2008|p=105}}

==Release==
''Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto'' was released in Japan on 26 September 1954 where it was distributed by [[Toho]].{{sfn|Galbraith IV|2008|p=104}} It was distributed theatrically in the United States as ''Samurai (The Legend of Musashi)'' by Fine Art Films with English-subtitles and English narration on 19 November 1955.{{sfn|Galbraith IV|2008|p=104}}{{sfn|Galbraith IV|2008|p=105}}

The film was released to home video in Australia and New Zealand by [[Madman Entertainment]] as ''Samurai Musashi Miyamoto''.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Report|first=Spotlight|date=2013-07-14|title=The Samurai Trilogy - DVD Review|url=https://spotlightreport.net/movies/the-samurai-trilogy-dvd-review|access-date=2021-07-12|website=Spotlight Report|language=en-US}}</ref>

== Reception ==
Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto received widespread critical acclaim upon its release in 1954 and has continued to be highly regarded in the decades since. The film was a commercial success in Japan and gained recognition internationally, solidifying its status as a classic of Japanese cinema. It won several awards, including the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1955, further cementing its critical and commercial acclaim. On [[review aggregator]] [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film holds an approval rating of 100% based on 5 reviews, with an average score of 8.7/10.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1955-11-18 |title=Samurai I - Rotten Tomatoes |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/samurai_i_musashi_miyamoto |access-date=2023-11-07 |website=www.rottentomatoes.com |language=en}}</ref> 

== References ==
{{reflist}}

===Sources===
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last=Galbraith IV |first=Stuart |title=The Toho Studios Story: A History and Complete Filmography |year=2008 |publisher=[[Scarecrow Press]] |isbn=978-1461673743}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb title|0047444|title=Musashi Miyamoto}}
* [https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/22-samurai-i ''Samurai I''] an essay by Bruce Eder at the [[Criterion Collection]] 
* {{in lang|ja}} http://www.jmdb.ne.jp/1954/cd002800.htm

{{Samurai Trilogy}}
{{Hiroshi Inagaki}}
{{AcademyAwardBestForeignLanguageFilm 1947–1960}}
{{Japanese submissions for the Academy Award}}
{{Academy Honorary Award}}

[[Category:1954 films]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1600s]]
[[Category:Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award winners]]
[[Category:Films awarded an Academy Honorary Award]]
[[Category:Jidaigeki films]]
[[Category:1950s samurai films]]
[[Category:Japanese epic films]]
[[Category:1950s Japanese-language films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Hiroshi Inagaki]]
[[Category:Films based on Japanese novels]]
[[Category:Films set in castles]]
[[Category:Toho films]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Miyamoto Musashi]]
[[Category:1950s martial arts films]]
[[Category:1950s Japanese films]]
[[Category:Films scored by Ikuma Dan]]