The Twilight Samurai: Difference between revisions

The Twilight Samurai
The Twilight Samurai
	The Twilight Samurai poster
Directed by	Yôji Yamada
Written by	Yôji Yamada; Shuhei Fujisawa; Yoshitaka Asama
Starring	Hiroyuki Sanada; Rie Miyazawa
Distributed by	Shochiku Co., Ltd.; Empire Pictures
Release date	November 2 2002
Running time	129 min.
Language	Japanese

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The Twilight Samurai (たそがれ清兵衛, Tasogare Seibei) is an Academy Award nominated 2002 Japanese film directed by Yoji Yamada. Set in mid-19th century Japan, a few years before the Meiji Restoration, it follows the life of Seibei Iguchi, a low-ranking samurai employed as a bureaucrat. Poor, but not destitute, he still manages to lead a content and happy life with his daughters and senile mother. Sadly, through an unfortunate turn of events, the turbulent times conspire against him.

The film is different from many other samurai-themed films in that it concentrates on showing the main character's everyday struggles, instead of focusing on action-oriented battles. Thus, the film carries very few fight scenes.

The Twilight Samurai was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at the 76th Academy Awards, losing to the Canadian film Les Invasions Barbares. Twilight Samurai also won an unprecedented 12 Japanese Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Longest Monologue.

Plot

Template:Spoiler At the start of the film, the main character, Iguchi Seibei, becomes a widower as his wife dies from tuberculosis, a common illness at the time. His samurai colleagues give him the condescending nickname "Tasogare Seibei," or "Twilight Seibei," because when it gets dark in the evening, he disappears to look after his senile elderly mother and two young daughters, Kayano and Ito, instead of going out with the others.

Things change when Seibei's childhood friend and the sister of one of his samurai friends, Tomoe, returns to town. Recently divorced from an abusive husband, she quickly bonds with Seibei's children. When her former husband returns in search of her, Seibei defends her honor in a duel, beating the husband, Koda, with only a bokuto (wooden practice sword) even when Koda battled with a steel sword. However, when Tomoe's brother, Iinima Michinojo, asks Seibei to marry her, Seibei refuses, citing his low standing and how he doesn't want her to live in poverty.

The final turning point in the film happens when Seibei's clan, having heard of his prowess with a sword, wants him to kill a former samurai retainer, Yogo Zen'emon, who refused to commit seppuku after acting against the interests of the clan. Seibei is also promised a rise in standing for this service. He is reluctant at first, but has no choice but to agree to do the task. Seibei's kodachi (short sword) fighting style is matched up against Zen'emon's ittōryū (single long sword) swordsmanship in an intense duel indoors. In the end, Seibei kills Zen'emon and finally gets to marry Tomoe.

In a brief epilogue, his younger daughter explains that their happiness was not to last: he died three years later in the Boshin War, Japan's last civil war.

Cast

Hiroyuki Sanada - Seibei Iguchi
Rie Miyazawa - Tomoe Iinuma
Nenji Kobayashi - Choubei Kusaka
Ren Osugi - Toyotarou Kouda
Mitsuru Fukikoshi - Michinojo Iinuma
Hiroshi Kanbe - Naota
Miki Itô - Kayano Iguchi
Erina Hashiguchi - Ito Iguchi
Reiko Kusamura - Iguchi's Mother
Min Tanaka - Zenemon Yogo
Keiko Kishi - Ito
Tetsuro Tamba - Tozaemon Iguchi

External links

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-'''''The Twilight Samurai''''' (たそがれ清兵衛, ''Tasogare Seibei'')  is an [[Academy Award]] nominated [[2002]] [[Japan]]ese [[film]] directed by [[Yoji Yamada]].  Set in mid-[[19th century]] Japan, a few years before the [[Meiji Restoration]], it follows the life of Seibei Iguchi, a low-ranking [[samurai]] employed as a bureaucrat. Poor but not destitute, he still leads a happy life with his daughters and senile mother. Sadly, the turbulent times conspire against him.
+'''''The Twilight Samurai''''' (たそがれ清兵衛, ''Tasogare Seibei'')  is an [[Academy Award]] nominated [[2002]] [[Japan]]ese [[film]] directed by [[Yoji Yamada]].  Set in mid-[[19th century]] Japan, a few years before the [[Meiji Restoration]], it follows the life of Seibei Iguchi, a low-ranking [[samurai]] employed as a bureaucrat. Poor, but not destitute, he still manages to lead a content and happy life with his daughters and [[senile]] mother. Sadly, through an unfortunate turn of events, the turbulent times conspire against him.
-The film is different from many other samurai-themed films in that it concentrates on showing the main character's everyday struggles instead of focusing on battles. The film carries very few fight scenes.
+The film is different from many other samurai-themed films in that it concentrates on showing the main character's everyday struggles, instead of focusing on action-oriented battles. Thus, the film carries very few fight scenes.
-''The Twilight Samurai'' was nominated for the [[Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film]] at the [[76th Academy Awards]], losing to the [[Canada|Canadian]] film ''[[Les Invasions barbares]]''. Twilight Samurai also won an unprecedented 12 [[Japanese Academy Awards]], including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Actress.
+''The Twilight Samurai'' was nominated for the [[Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film]] at the [[76th Academy Awards]], losing to the [[Canadian]] film ''[[Les Invasions Barbares]]''. Twilight Samurai also won an unprecedented 12 [[Japanese Academy Awards]], including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Longest Monologue.
 ==Plot==