Hidden Fortress details
| Format: | PG DVD |
|---|---|
| Starring: | Minoru Chiaki, Eiko Miyoshi, Susumu Fujita, Misa Uehara, Toshiro Mifune, Takashi Shimura |
| Director: | Akira Kurosawa |
| Genres: | Action/Adventure - Thriller, Drama - General, World Cinema - Japanese |
| Studio: | BFI VIDEO |
| Name | Discs | |
|---|---|---|
Hidden Fortress |
PG Feature |
DVD Information
| Run time: | 2 hours 18 minutes |
|---|---|
| Rental release: | 25 Mar 2002 |
| Main languages: | Japanese |
| Subtitles: | English |
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Most helpful review
A Hidden Gem
By Tinderbox from England , 09 Aug 2004[Highly rated reviewer]
Probably most famous for inspiring chunks of "Star Wars", Kurosawa's action-adventure about two greedy peasants and their quest to accompany an endangered princess' retinue across enemy lines is one of his most accessible films. Full of the panorama and exuberant characters of John Ford's Westerns, "The Hidden Fortress" nonetheless keeps the strong Japanese issue of social hierarchy at the centre.
This is mainly due to the character of the Princess, a beautiful, feisty woman who is forced to abandon her royal nature (and, symbolically, her voice) in order to - somewhat paradoxically - preserve her dynasty. Her presence on-screen almost rivals Toshiro Mifune's for dynamism and vitality, perfectly jarring with the grubby misfits who are as eager to get their hands on her gold as they are to see her to safety.
Kurosawa's master-stroke is to give priority to the two farmers' points of view. We identify most with these characters, who learn the hard way to conquer the opportunism that poverty and necessity sometimes require, and because of this "The Hidden Fortress" is a film that can be appreciated by virtually any audience. Great fun.- Was this review helpful to you?
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(39)Coudn't get into this
By BillBoard (15 reviews) from Peterborough , 22 Jan 2011Not that I didn't try, and I can see why this delights so many that have seen it, but it wasn't for me.. too much ham acting, false laughter, over-dramatisation switched me off. If you're a die-hard film buff exploring this genre, don't let me put you off - but it isn't 7 Samurai in my view..- Was this review helpful to you?
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absolutley brilliant
By Dave Hamill from Bristol, UK , 02 Nov 2010epic, intriguing, funny, entertaining and thrilling.... if you love film, you won't be disappointed in this.- Was this review helpful to you?
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"Get away from me! You stink of dead bodies! "
By Nicho (6 reviews) from Oxford , 25 Mar 2010As the doodle on Google's homepage alerted me to the fact that Akira Kurosawa would have turned 100 today, I decided to celebrate with a showing of The Hidden Fortress (1950); and I'm glad I did.
This is a much more epic film than the low-key Rashomon. The story follows a couple of bickering peasant friends who want to be rich. They are travelling the countryside in a region divided by war and end up digging for lost gold at the whips of the victorious clan. They escape and fall in with the remnants of the defeated clan (a distinguished General and a princess) and are tricking into helping them - and thier substantial pile of gold - across the border to reinstate thier clan. Along the way they encounted a number of different people; most notably, the General is forced to show his prowess in combat a handful of times.
What I really liked about this film was the great blending of tones, veering from outright comedy with the two peasants, to extreme tension (the one-on-one fight had me on the endge of my seat), from epic road movie (a la LOTR) to slapstick (any time a hill needed to be negotiated). This is something which can easily not work, but in this case, Kurosawa handles it brilliantly - and the main two characters did make me laugh out loud throughout.
There are a number of really wonderful sequences throughout the film; The Fire Festival, the Horseback pursuit, the one-on-one fight, the final flight, any of the hill-based antics. I also thought that the performances in this were fantastic - Toshirô Mifune was great as the general and the two peasants (Minoru Chiaki and Kamatari Fujiwara) were perfect.
Really great stuff again from Kurosawa and I really want to see more - 10/10- Was this review helpful to you?
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Feel the force
By Rasco (2 reviews) from London , 11 Jul 2009Classic Kurasawa, beautifullly shot and balances humour, hierachy and tradition to perfection. Story told through the eyes of two greedy peasants and there journey to (unwittingly) rescue a princess in hiding - *enter star wars reference here*.
Toshiro MIfune steals the show as usual as Han Solo. Kurasawa still teaches modern day filmaker a lesson in not only framing and lighting but also pacing and action scenes - this film is a perfect example of all of these although not my favorite Kurasawa film. BUt its fitting that this film inspired the favorite film of my youth.- Was this review helpful to you?
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Hidden Fortress, hidden treasure from the past
By a customer from Orpington , 24 Jun 2009Another grand epic film by Akira Kurosawa. Sweeping, stirring music, and a strong and powerful story, with a nice dose of humour. This formed an important influence for George Lucas' Star Wars. The two main characters stealing the gold are very much the archetypal characters for C-3PO and R2-D2, the only difference being that neither are robots! The two thief characters are humorous, tragic and squabbling, all in one. But despite their squabbling, they do have a companionship that is quite touching. The Princess reminds me also very much of Princess Leia, who is feisty and strong, but also beautiful and glamorous. The old general could be interpreted as either an Obi-Wan character, or even as Han Solo.
There are some great sword fights. It is a fantastic Eastern film, but it also has stylings of a Western film. Interesting representations of Japanese culture. I feel I learnt some things about Japan from watching this film. Another great addition to the Kurosawa film collection.
Highly recommended.- Was this review helpful to you?
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