The Samurai Papers Part VIIA: The Hidden Fortress

This is the seventh installment in my ongoing series of reviews called The Samurai Papers. The previous reviews in this series are: Yojimbo, Seven Samurai, Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto, Hagakure, Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai, and Sanjuro.

This section of the series will be presented in two parts. The first part (that’s the one you’re reading right now) will discuss Akira Kurosawa’s The Hidden Fortress. The second part will discuss Star Wars. Just to be up front about things let me warn you now: slavish admirers of all things George Lucas are likely to be enraged by what I have to say. The final point of these two reviews is that Lucas is a big slimy thief who couldn’t create an original story to save his life! Further, Lucas couldn’t direct his way out of a paper bag! .

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s begin the review proper.

Let me tell you a story: A long time ago, in a country far away...

Two peasants who have just escaped from a terrible war where they have seen much carnage and destruction are wandering through the Japanese country side. One peasant is tall and thin, the other is shorter and rounder. Just to be clear on this, they are the comedy relief. They snipe and carp at each other (providing a lot of humor along the way). The tall one blames the other for the dreadful situation they have found themselves in. But, it seems clear that under all the banter, they truly care for each other. They are close friends. If you haven’t guessed already, these two are prototypes for C-3PO, and R2D2. They behave exactly as Lucas’ “creations” would later. They display all of the same sorts of behavior, and even serve the same purpose in the film. We watch through the eyes of the peasants, just as in that later film we would watch the action through the eyes of the ‘druids.

In addition to this, the opening sequence looks eerily like the opening of Star Wars. The visual similarity is impossible to miss. R2’s trip through the sand mirrors greatly the same journey made by Kurosawa’s peasants.

They meet up with a bandit, played by Toshiro Mifune (Yojimbo, Inchon). The three of them strike a bargain, which involves some stolen gold. They are going to work together to smuggle this gold into a nearby kingdom. Mifune leads them to the Eponymous hidden fortress. There they find a mysterious young girl.

Now for a big twist: this girl is an exiled Princess, who is fleeing an evil and powerful clan. The bandit (Mifune) is no bandit after all; he is a great warrior sent to protect her. Mifune is in fact an older general who has long served her family. Think here of Leia, and Obi-Wan. Think about it. Let just restate: Princess on the run, protected by aging warrior who has served her family (“Help me Obi-Wan; you’re our only hope”). Anyone who doesn’t see the similarity is, frankly, blind.

The group sets out across the country side, eluding and fighting enemies at every turn. Sound familiar? If not, exchange “space” for “country side”. Now does it sound familiar? The group must cross the border into safe territory. In that sentence replace “safe territory” with “Alderon”. See?

The Hidden Fortress even ends with a scene that looks strikingly like the final scene of Star Wars.

Are there other similarities? Yes, my friend, there are. Lucas has boldly stolen Kurosawa’s style of editing. The “wipe” transition was a favorite of Akira. You see it again and again in his films. He was one of the first film makers to make great use of this technique. Star Wars is lousy with wipes. In fact, most people now associate the wipe with Lucas, and wrongly believe that it had only been used in serials and shorts prior to Star Wars.

The pacing is remarkably similar between these two films. Even the music bears some resemblance (although this resemblance is slight).

Before we discuss Lucas and his theft more, let me give some serious time to actually reviewing this film. Kurosawa’s directing is, as always, superb. He manages to create tension and excitement, while simultaneously building a comic undertone that really draws the film together. His pacing is superb. The film starts slowly, but then quickens its pace as the story (and the action) progresses. Toward the climax things seem to move at a fever pitch.

And lets not forget Kurosawa’s composition. As I have pointed out in other reviews, our old friend Akira was a painter before he was a film maker. He brought this talent to the screen with him. Kurosawa could always find the unique angle, the interesting and arresting framing, the perfect composition. He shoots through objects, around objects, and sometimes past the action. In doing so he makes every shot visually exciting.

Toshiro Mifune is one of my favorite actors. His body of work is amazing. This film is no exception to that rule. He comes across as virile, strong, and deadly. He is playing here a slightly younger, much more powerful version of Lucas’ Obi-Wan Kenobi. In battle scenes he excels. Holding a sword Mifune seems super human, some sort of Japanese Ubermensch. However, it is in the quiet moments that his strength, his ferocity comes across. He has a subtle intensity that is unparalleled in film. Many reviewers have compared Mifune to John Wayne. In reality, Wayne was a one trick pony (although it was a great trick, and no one could do it better). Mifune, on the other hand was a largely versatile actor who could carry off nearly any role.

To see the true range of Toshiro Mifune’s ability see his film High and Low, which was based on a novel by Ed McBain. In it he plays an aging business man dealing with a kidnapping scheme. He brings to that role great pathos, and silent strength.

This film is a must see for lovers not only of samurai films, but cinemaphiles in general and Lucas fans in particular. It is an important part of film history, and a hugely entertaining work of art.

Now that we’ve done that, let’s get back to George Lucas. Old George admits that he was “inspired” by this film. Inspired is, however, much too weak a word for what we see when we compare the two films. If we watch closely we see instance after instance of extreme similarities between the two films. Characters are copied completely. The base of the story is exactly the same. Certain events occur in the same way. The pacing is similar. The editing is very similar. Everything about these two films match up.

The primary difference between these two movies is this: Kurosawa was an artist. He managed to make great art that was simultaneously hugely entertaining. Lucas, on the other hand, was a hack. He made bubble gum entertainment. The fact that he stole from a great master, and could not at least transcend the genre in which he transplanted the story, is a strong pointer to the fact that he is a man of little talent. For proof of Lucas’ lack of talent see the two recent films in his Star Wars series. These films are hugely derivative, over long, badly paced, and directed with all the skill of a blind, one armed barber.

So, to restate what I have been saying: George Lucas is a talent less hack, who stole from a great director and then made billions of dollars passing a great man’s work off as his own.

End of rant.

In the next installment of this series I will review Star Wars. I will say even more nasty and inflammatory things about George Lucas. I will also reveal, that despite all of its flaws (and the fact that it is the product of theft) I like that film. And I will say some good things about Star Wars.

This has been the seventh installment of the Samurai Papers. The previous reviews in this series have been:

Yojimbo
Seven Samurai
Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto
Hagakure
Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai
Sanjuro