Seven Samurai

By: Adam Bekhet

Seven Samurai is a well known film due to it’s famous plot line. It has been adapted to western film, most notably in The Magnificent Seven.

Directed by Akria Kurosawa, the epic storyline of recruiting protagonists was new to samurai films at the time. Kurosawa gained fame not only due to his excellent film-making and story telling ability, but also due to his ability to influence westerns through his work. His work is often referenced to this day regarding modern day film.

A small village was ransacked by bandits who come to take their crops. They decide to come back after the harvest. to protect themselves from danger and loss of food, the village elder decides to hire samurai to defend the city. After finding a samurai who is not motivated by money, but rather by doing the noble thing to do, they begin to assemble a team. After assembling a team they make their way back to the village. They don’t immediately see eye to eye. After finding common ground the villagers learn to trust the samurai. After much fighting and preparation they fend off the bandits, but not without loss. Villagers, including the town elder die. Four of the seven samurai die. Kambei, the most noble and first recruited samurai looks at the grave of the fallen samurai and says that the victory belongs to the farmers, but the victory does not belong to the samurai.