Why We Live

In feudal Japan, during a bloody war between clans, two cowardly and greedy peasants, soldiers of a defeated army, stumble upon a mysterious man who guides them to a fortress hidden in the mountains.

Runtime

2h 19m

Director

Akira Kurosawa

Cast

Toshirō Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Minoru Chiaki

While her son, Kichi, is away at war, a woman and her daughter-in-law survive by killing samurai who stray into their swamp, then selling whatever valuables they find. Both are devastated when they learn that Kichi has died, but his wife soon begins an affair with a neighbor who survived the war, Hachi. The mother disapproves and, when...

Runtime

1h 45m

Director

Kaneto Shindō

Cast

Nobuko Otowa, Jitsuko Yoshimura, Kei Satō

Returning to their lord's castle, samurai warriors Washizu and Miki are waylaid by a spirit who predicts their futures. When the first part of the spirit's prophecy comes true, Washizu's scheming wife, Asaji, presses him to speed up the rest of the spirit's prophecy by murdering his lord and usurping his place. Director Akira Kurosawa'...

Runtime

1h 48m

Director

Akira Kurosawa

Cast

Toshirō Mifune, Isuzu Yamada, Takashi Shimura

A feudal epic presenting the tale of a petty thief who is recruited to impersonate Shingen, an aging warlord, in order to avoid attacks by competing clans. The impostor becomes comfortable living his life among nobility, but his responsibilities to his station grow more demanding the longer he occupies it.

Runtime

3h

Director

Akira Kurosawa

Cast

Tatsuya Nakadai, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Kenichi Hagiwara

Pursued by formidable Chinese assassins, young Kotaro and his dog run into No Name, a mysterious stranger who gets pulled into the chase. The unlikely companions form a bond over saving the dog from a poison attack, but chaos erupts when the assassins find Kotaro, and No Name must face his past before a horrible fate is met again.

Runtime

1h 43m

Director

Masahiro Ando

Cast

Tomoya Nagase, Yuri Chinen, Koichi Yamadera