Sanjuro (1962) — The Final Samurai Showdown

Movie: Sanjuro (Japan, 1962) Scene: The Final Samurai Showdown Aspect Ratio: : 1 Sanjuro is a 1962 black-and-white Japanese film directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring Toshiro Mifune. It is a sequel to Kurosawa’s 1961 Yojimbo. The blood fountain in this scene became iconic almost immediately, and after that, it wasn’t possible to release a Samurai movie without fountains of fake blood spraying everywhere. The scene is also mentioned in the book Alex Cox’s Introduction to Film as an example of a composition that takes full advantage of the aspect ratio.