Sanjuro is not a film about sword play and is not a samurai drama (all of this is surface structure).
It is a film about the fatal danger democratic societies face today: the danger of being overthrown by the right wing political powers.
In “SANJURO” Kurosawa provides penetrating psychological analysis of right wing-conservative politicians using many Western analogies.
Kurosawa dedicates special attention to the analysis of the psychological condition of young people who unfortunately can be easy target of conservative propaganda.
From Sanjuro, the main character of the film we can learn a lot about the values alternative to the dominant orientation on power, wealth and war.
See analysis of 22 shots from “SANJURO” and an article: “Homeless Guru as a Role Model” at:
www.actingoutpolitics.com
By Victor