Matialth Good concept, poorly executed.

Kien Navarro Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Kaelan Mccaffrey Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

Rosie Searle It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

WILLIAM FLANIGAN Viewed on DVD. Restoration = ten (10) stars; costumes = nine (9) stars; cinematography = eight (8) stars. Director Masaki Kobayashi has created a film comprising not much more than postures and posturing. (Even shots of a feudal lord's castle (only the top half is shown) look suspiciously like a collection of still-photo "postures"!) It is prodding and much too long. Actors/actresses seem trapped by the director's fixation on exquisite costumes worn in splendid settings (this is a black & white film that "cries out" for color) rather than having depth added to mostly cardboard, two-dimensional characters. The result is that little, if any, rapport with the audience is allowed to develop (except for the leading actor to some extent), and the viewer ends up with less than minimal interest in what happens to the protagonists. Kobayashi ends matters with what has got to be one of the longest (and silliest) action death scenes in the history of the cinema complete with way-over-the-top hammy acting by the lead actor. (Thank heavens (O-Kaga-Sama De!) for the fast-forward button on player remotes!) Cinematography (wide screen, black & white) is excellent and appears to be purposely dynamic (lots of zooming and tracking shots) to help counter the static nature of postured scenes. Deep-focus interior lighting is also outstanding. There is no film score. Instead, the sound track mostly consists of drumming ensembles complete with typical cries from the players (great performances, but a bit disconcerting). In case you may be wondering about the film's title as written in Romaji Japanese ("Joiuchi: Hairyou Tsuma Shimatsu"), it literally says nothing about Samurai or a rebellion; but this off-the-wall translation has come to be universally referred to as "Samurai Rebellion" (or "Rebellion"). Worth watching, but only with plenty of caffeine (and a fully functioning remote). WILLIAM FLANIGAN, PhD.

masercot Not a lot of action in this movie, 'til the end...This one is more of a Greek tragedy. The main characters, the elder Sasaharas, are compelled to do the honorable thing in regards to a young woman who has been foisted on the family. The honorable thing is in direct conflict with their duty of serving their lord. It is also an act that will lead directly to the destruction of their clan and themselves.Great performances by Mifune and Tatsuya Nakadai keep the viewer interested. Yoko Tuskasa puts in some nice work as Ichi, the bride. The rest of the cast is very competent, as well.This movie is less about swordplay than it is about the interpersonal and political maneuvering between the clan and the diamyo.Definitely recommended!

samuraifa451 Toshiro Mifune works with director Masaki Kobayashi in the samurai film "Samurai Rebellion" but the results are not what they should be. When their lord requests the marriage of his mistress to his son, Isaburo (Mifune) is reluctant to comply. However, two years later, the two start to develop feelings for each other and Isaburo starts to change his mind. Though when the lord orders for her return both Isaburo and his son Yogoro (Go Kato) decide to take a stand. If nothing else, "Samurai Rebellion" is worth a watch because of its gorgeous cinematography and Mifune's intense performance. The problem starts when it gets less and less believable. At a number of points it seems as if Isaburo cares about their relationship than anyone else in the cast, his son included. As a result a few moments near the end almost come off like a soap opera. "Samurai Rebellion" is not a bad film but it is not the best film in either Mifune's or Kobayashi's repertoire.

fabiogaucho Harakiri is a far more successful story for the simple reason that it is not so completely one-sided. In Harakiri, the hero thinks he proves that the Samurai code is a sham because it cannot make sense when the survival of the samurais as a class is endangered - but eventually we have the feeling that the code is even more necessary in those difficult times, even if it is a sham. There is a "big picture".In Samurai Rebellion, Kobayashi is trying to write a Shakespearean tragedy, but he clearly missed some of tragedy's subtleties. Tragedies are never so one-sided, never simply the hero that is in the right against the power that is in the wrong. In a word, it is never just the individual x authority clash that sums up this movie. If Kobayashi had payed more attention to Greek tragedies and to Shakespeare (Richard II is a good start), he would find out that a necessary element is that authority is in danger when it violates the individual's rights defined by tradition, even if it ultimately prevails. In here, the rebel's isolation is complete, and his insistence in rebellion is just self-affirmation ("I never felt so alive", the hero proclaims - how tacky is that?). Even that proclamation of authenticity is somehow fake: Mifune's character emboldens the young couple because he sees in them an alternative to the unhappy marriage he has always had. That is not finding oneself, it is projection. In the end, all that's left is folly.But if the movie fails as tragedy, it works pretty well as an action/drama, and is not a lesser samurai flick. Kobayashi aims too high and misses, but still hits something.