Customer Reviews

Samurai Films

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This was one of those 'faith' purchases I make every now and then. It was 'recommended' by Amazon based on my other purchases, which was appropriate as I write about Asian films and have purchased related books from Amazon in the past. Because the book seemed interesting and was reasonably priced, I decided to take a chance on it. While it has its faults, overall I'm quite happy I bought it and consider it a worthwhile addition to my collection.

Roland Thorne is a writer based in Australia and this is his first book. He rather broadly defines samurai films to include other Japanese swordplay movies. This is actually tipped off by the cover photo of Takeshi Kitano in his 2003 version of 'Zatoichi,' which he both directed and starred in. Zatoichi is a blind masseur and master swordsman, despite his visual handicap, but he most definitely is not a samurai. Still, Thorne shouldn't be faulted for this decision, as he has picked terrific films to discuss, whether actually concerning samurai or considering swordspersons in general. Furthermore all his picks are readily available on DVD.

The first charters briefly discuss the history of the samurai and of samurai films, some important directors, and a few of the major stars. The bulk of the book is devoted to actual reviews , and takes a chronological approach. Information about each film - including the Japanese title- is followed by sections devoted to plot summary, analysis, and a verdict of the films worthiness.

The writing at times is a bit repetitive, and Thorne has a tendency to overuse the phrases "worthy of mention, 'should be commended,' and variations of them. Also the images are somewhat disappointing: most of them appear to be screenshots that are not particularly sharp.

Still, he writes about films that anyone interested in samurai or Japanese swordplay films should know about. I've seen almost all the films covered and I think Thorne has done an essentially sound job in describing and discussing them. I learned a fair number of new things. It's a very worthwhile guide book for viewers new or relatively new to the genres. If you're already very knowledgeable, however, it will not be off particularly great interest.