The Seven Samurai: And Other Screenplays (Classic Screenplay Series) [Paperback]

Akira Kurosawa (Author), Donald Richie (Translator)

Book Description

Series: Classic Screenplay Series | Publication Date: May 13, 1992

These three screenplays are based on Kurosawa's shooting scripts.

Ikiru (1952) tells the painful and intimate story of a Japanese civil servant coming to terms with old age and death. In Seven Samurai (1954) the inhabitants of a small Janpanese village employ a roaming band of samurai to defend them. In Throne of Blood (1957), based on Macbeth, a samurai is encouraged by his wife to kill his lord.

This edition also includes a critical introduction to each screenplay.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Writer/director Akira Kurosawa is considered one of history's greatest filmmakers. His films have profoundly affected the style and content of international cinema; in America, for example, his indelible influence can be found in everything from classic Westerns to Star Wars. When he died in 1998, he had written 62 films (and had directed 32 of these).

Product Details

• Paperback: 227 pages
• Publisher: Faber & Faber (May 13, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 057116224X
• ISBN-13: 978-0571162246
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,222,499 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Akira Kurosawa is the most important Asian filmmaker., February 7, 2002

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[e-mail] (Chinatown, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Seven Samurai: And Other Screenplays (Classic Screenplay Series) (Paperback)

Not only because he is a great director, but because he knows Asian literature. In Seven Samurai, Kurosawa quotes from an important book: Water Margin. Water Margin has influenced Asian thinking throughout the centuries. As a matter of fact, there is a part where a teacher organizes seven volunteers. Obviously, an influence on Seven Samurai. Take it from Kurosawa, who knows his stuff.