The Kurosawa Century #3: Samurai Code and Mentorship: Yojimbo (1961); Sanjuro (1962); Red Beard (1965)

Yojimbo (1961, 110 Minutes) Toshiro Mifune stars as a wandering samurai who gets caught up in a local power struggle in Yojimbo . With a masterful soundtrack by Masuru Sato and Kurosawa leaning into a pulpier style, it set the template for 60s cinema that would influence all action movies to come after. The template for the story, a hired gun comes into town and plays both sides can be traced to…