Great Movie
I recorded this off TCM the other week and finally got around to watching it. It's a great movie - not quite a new favourite of mine, but - looking at the user reviews - all 10/10s - some from people who haven't seen the film in some 40 years (!) - having watched the film I can understand why it's stuck with them so. Mifune's performance is incredible and it gets better and better as his character gets older as the film goes along. It's also a really moving and sentimental film in all the best ways.
It's a shame about the lack of discussion and votes on it. I think it's worthy of the same status and recognition as Inagaki's Samurai trilogy, at least (I liked it much more than the Samurai trilogy), and would have if only more people were to see it. I see a lot of posts about how a proper DVD or video version of it has never come out, and that's indeed unfortunate, though I notice the film is now available on Hulu Plus, through the Criterion Collection (so you can watch it online there if you're in the States and you fork out the $8 per month or however-much), and presumably that means they got the rights to it and could give it the full blu-ray/DVD treatment one of these days. I reckon it deserves it.
Anyone else catch it on Turner Classic earlier this month? Or watch it through Hulu Plus, or wherever else?
--- grethiwha -------- My Favourite Films:
http://www.imdb.com/list/Bw65XZIpkH8/