Stubborn firebrand Sanshiro arrives in town looking for a Jujitsu master though his journey to get one is an unorthodox one. After joining a group of locals out to beat up master Yano – who has caused scandal with his new art of ‘Judo’ – Sanshiro discovers that the target is the man he really needs as a master and begs to be accepted as a student. Yano agrees and while Sanshiro’s brutish strength makes him a formidable pupil, his lack of humility blocks his progress. Only a few strong life lessons help turn Sanshiro into the honourable master Yano hopes he might become.

We get Kurosawa’s first film in a truncated version; it was originally 97 minutes, but all that is left for modern audiences is this 80 minute version. This is apparent in the sudden narrative jumps during the film, with gaps explained by cue cards. That naturally means that ‘Sanshiro Sugata’ doesn’t flow quite as well as you might expect from a master film-maker like Kurosawa; quite a few characters and scenes are left hanging, giving a delicious hint of something greater that we will sadly never see.

Despite this, Kurosawa’s first film is the tentative steps of one of the greatest directors of all time. His deft touch is felt throughout the film with his thoughtful, contemplative style shining through – patient, introspective shots of characters and masterful use of every frame, things that would be Kurosawa staples, are clearly here. It’s rough around the edges to be sure, but there’s much to be savoured here; Kurosawa gets more out of this condensed 80 minutes than many filmmakers get from three hours or so.

It’s a crying shame that ‘Sanshiro Sugata’ may never be seen in its original length. It would have been great to see more of the exotically dressed, hirsute anti-hero Higaki; he lights up the screen when he’s on it so his sudden defeat at the end feels somewhat cheap. Nevertheless, ‘Sanshiro Sugata’ is a fine piece of cinema, albeit a flawed one.

Author
Recent Posts

Andrew Saroch

Related Posts