Mifune officially opened on november 25, 2016 at the ifc center in new york city, over a. Capturing the breadth of toshiro mifunes storied career, if not fully reckoning with the depth of the man, the last samurai is a compelling celebration of one of cinemas greatest stars. The last samurai, opens with a series of clips and photographs of toshiro mifune, the scowlingeyed japanese actor who became, in effect, the worlds first action star. The last samurai is as much a documentary about the golden age of japanese cinema as it is a tribute to its most celebrated star. The last samurai explores the accidental movie career of toshiro mifune, one of the true g. The last samurai 2016 starring keanu reeves and martin scorsese on dvd and bluray. Okazaki cleverly kept his camera on mifune as samurai, the last samurai, which is slightly misleading. Wataru akashi, kyoko kagawa, and takeshi kato mifune.
The last samurai boasts a contextual understanding of mifunes appeal and success, though approaches his twilight as something of a. The last samurai, a new documentary directed by the oscar winning director steven okazaki days of waiting, unfinished business, produced by. The last samurai 2016 trailers and clips this documentary explores the accidental movie career of toshiro mifune, one of the true giants of world cinema. Mifune was one of the greatest actors on the planet, and this documentary chooses to pigeonhole him into his admittedly profound impact as a samurai actor. Together they thrilled audiences and influenced filmmaking. The last samurai, a new film by academy awardwinning filmmaker steven okazaki, explores the accidental movie career of toshiro mifune, one of the true giants of. The last samurai begins by giving us a brief history of japanese cinema until around wwii. Samurai jack season 5 teaser reveals the return of. He is best known for his 16film collaboration 194865 with akira kurosawa in such works as rashomon, seven. This documentary about japans greatest film actor doesnt start off with a flourish of praise and clips from the life and work of toshiro mifune 19201997, legendary for his portrayals of samurai and other madmen. The decline of rerun houses and japanese film retrospectives may have dimmed the memory of an extraordinary actor. A featurelength documentary about the life and films of legendary actor toshiro mifune, weaving together film clips, archival stills, and interviews with such luminaries as steven spielberg and martin scorsese.
The last samurai wouldnt have seen the light of day if mifune hadnt met the virtuoso director kurosawa on one fateful day. A painfully safe documentary about one of cinemas most explosive stars. As samurai films would be mifunes bread and butter, this historical lesson is more than welcome. Mifune made 16 remarkable films with director akira kurosawa during the golden age of japanese cinema, including rashomon, seven samurai and yojimbo. A whole new wave emerged with kurosawas masterpieces, rashomon and the seven samurai, in the early 1950s. The last samurai is a celebration of the originality and influence of the japanese star toshiro mifune 19201997, shown as a rare actor capable of the subtlest stoicism and the. Over the course of his legendary acting career, toshiro mifune was a samurai, a stray dog, and a shoe tycoon. The last samurai, starring wataru akashi and kyoko kagawa mifune. Most of the early japanese films were based on kabuki theater and samurai tales. The last samurai looks great for a standard definition disc.
Oscars best picture winners best picture winners golden globes emmys san diego comiccon new york comiccon sundance film festival toronto intl film festival awards central festival central all events. The last samurai, also known as mifune, is a 2015 biographical documentary directed by steven okazaki. Hopefully, there will be a more thoughtful documentary that will illustrate that mifune was much more than a samurai actor. The last samurai, a new film by academy awardwinning filmmaker steven okazaki, explores the accidental movie career of toshiro mifune, one of the. It chronicles the life of toshiro mifune, a japanese actor and international star most noted for playing samurai characters in films by akira kurosawa. Mifunes opening twenty minutes provide background on the 1900 to 1920s popularity of japanese lonesamurai movies dubbed chanbara, because that was the. The last samurai drama 2016 kdrama romance drama mystery drama online free. Yet the doc fails to provide any trenchant analysis of these seminal films. The last samurai, also known as mifune, is a 2015 biographical.
Check out the trailer for steven okazakis film about toshiro mifunes career. Toshiro mifune, hideko takamine, hiroshi akutagawa. Mifune made 16 remarkable films with director akira kurosawa, including such masterpieces as. The last samurai reveals him as a formidable and mercurial talent, both onscreen and off, and offers rare insights into his background that draw intriguing parallels with lee marvin. He is known for his incredible collaborations with akira kurosawa 19101998. The last samurai official trailer 1 2016 documentary.
Nearly 20 years after his death and in the runup to his centenary, toshiro mifune remains a true giant of japanese cinema. He may have been the most famous samurai actor of all time, but i think mifune would have been disappointed with this narrow look at his film career. Mifune made 16 remarkable films with director akira kurosawa during the golden age of japanese cinema, including. The last samurai is a perfectly serviceable documentary on the great japanese actor toshir mifune if you arent looking for any information you couldnt find on the mans wikipedia page. He was a muse for one of the greatest filmmakers of the 20th century, a beacon for. Mifune made 16 remarkable films with director akira kurosawa during the golden age of japanese cinema, including rashomon, seven samurai, hidden fortress and yojimbo. The last samurai 2016 including budget, domestic and international box office gross, dvd and bluray sales reports, total earnings and profitability. The last samurai, which recently screened at both the venice and telluride film festivals, will arrive in theaters courtesy of strand releasing this december. The last samurai, a documentary on the actor directed by steven okazaki and narrated by keanu reeves the script is by okazaki and stuart galbraith iv got off on a somewhat bad foot for me. He is best known for his 16film collaboration 194865 with akira kurosawa in such works as rashomon, seven samurai, the hidden fortress, throne of blood, and yojimbo. The last samurai 2016 is available on netflix united states.
The last samurai, a new film by academy awardwinning filmmaker steven okazaki, explores the accidental movie career of toshiro mifune, one of the true giants of world cinema. He also portrayed miyamoto musashi in hiroshi inagakis samurai trilogy and one. The last samurai official trailer 1 2016 documentary this story revolves. Explaining mifunes place in the firmament of pop culture, the narration says of his collaborations with director akira kurosawa, without them there would have been no. To fans of japanese film, mifune needs no introduction. See full nov 25dec 1 schedule below, plus weekend classics schedule here. The last samurai stars keanu reeves, steven spielberg, martin scorsese the movie has a runtime of about 1 hr 20 min, and received a score of out of 100 on. The mandalorian season 2 wont be delayed by coronavirus, says disney ceo cate blanchett. Doing the rounds of this years film festivals and screened at this years british film institutes london film festival is mifune. The last samurai official trailer 1 2016 documentary this story revolves around a japanese samurai known as mifune.
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