Michael Burke                                                                                  Japanese Film 299

March 24, 2014                                                                                Mizenko Sensei

Analysis of the Scene in Seven Samurai Where the Samurai Arrive in the Village

Seven Samurai is a film about a village that hires samurai to fight off bandits who are stealing their crops. This is a bold move for the farmers to ask the samurai, one done out of desperation. Samurai did not often fight for peasants and they rarely fought with only food as their reward. They usually expected to receive money and glory.  The peasants were often worried about something going wrong. This was due to poor living conditions and a history of people that were stronger and more powerful than them taking their valuables. In the film the peasants were afraid because until then their only experience with outsiders especially those with a higher rank than them were negative.

After much discussion in the village, a few of the farmers go into a town to find samurai who are willing to fight the bandits in exchange for food. They convince a samurai to help them and he decides they need at least seven samurai to stand a chance against the bandits. But by the time they have to leave to defend the village, there are only six samurai willing and able to perform the mission. A seventh samurai, Kikuchiyo, was determined to be part of their group. They met him several times before they left but the other six samurai did not think he was worth taking because he did not live by their code. He stole a family tree and lied about his family, and he was drunk when they tested him. But he is very persistent so he follows them to the village.

When the group arrives at the village, the farmers remain hidden in their homes even though Rikichi calls out several times that they should come out because the samurai have arrived. So the six samurai meet with the village elder. The elder wants to make the samurai understand the reasons for the peasants’ behavior, so they can work together. He explains that the peasants will not come out because they are afraid of the samurai. They are afraid of outsiders because of their experiences in the past. At this point, we are starting to see that this whole idea might not work because of the differences between the two groups. The samurai assumed that the peasants would welcome them with open arms and would work with them. When Kambei says, “But Old Man, why do the villagers fear us? What can they expect from us under such circumstances?” we realize that the samurai do not know how to respond to this situation. They are at a loss on how to move forward. Then, all of a sudden, in the middle of their conversation, the alarm sounds.

The alarm serves to pull the people out of their houses. They run into the center square, squealing and calling to the samurai for help. The high-angle shot shows the peasants running about haphazardly, bumping into each other and kicking up dust. The dust adds to the sense of confusion and we see in the peasants. The chaos amongst the villagers shows us how afraid they all are, whereas the calm focused looks the samurai have as they run shows us that they are strong warriors who are ready for anything. This is another powerful and important contrast Kurasawa makes between the peasants and the samurai. It is this difference that allows the samurai to take control of the situation and calm the peasants.

When the peasants gather around the samurai and Kambei asks who sounded the alarm, we learn that Kikuchiyo did. At this point, Kikuchiyo jumps down with the peasants and calls out, “Remember how you welcomed us when we got here, but as soon as I bang on this it’s – Samurai sirs! Samurai please!” This shows us that although he is silly Kikuchiyo can be resourceful and is good at bringing people together. Since he was a farmer in the past, he understands their way of thinking.

When the elder comes out he walks up to Kikuchiyo and Kikuchiyo asks, “Got a problem gramps?” In response the elder says, “Nope. All is well now.” We understand from this that the elder approves of Kikuchiyo and his methods in bringing everyone together and showing the villagers that they have nothing to fear.

Then Heihachi says, “Looks like he is good for something after all. There are seven of us at last.” Because the lowest estimation of samurai they needed was seven this realization, along with the fact that the villagers now trust them, shows us that there is hope that they can succeed in their fight against the bandits.

This is a pivotal scene in the film because it is the first scene where you see there is hope that the bandits will be stopped. The peasants are now listening to the samurai and are willing to have them there in the village to help.  Also, in this scene the samurai acknowledge Kikuchiyo and appreciate the skills he will bring to their team. They accept him as one of them. This is important because it gives them the minimum seven samurai needed to complete their mission. Even though Kikuchiyo isn’t a conventional samurai, he is charismatic and good at lifting people’s spirits. He is the one who gets the villagers out of hiding and shows them there is nothing to fear from the samurai. He relates to them because he used to be in a similar situation, so he knows how they feel. Because he has straddled both worlds, Kikuchiyo becomes the connection between the two groups. Without Kikuchiyo, the samurai would have had difficulty getting the farmers to work with them, and their mission could have been in jeopardy.

I found this to be a powerful scene because it shows us the differences between classes, but it also shows us the importance of working together. Each group brings their own strengths to a situation. In the film the Samurai looked down on Kikuchiyo and did not really understand the peasants. One of the things about the scene that gets the messages across is the camera work. For most of the clip we would see the samurai or the peasants not both. This emphasizes the emotional distance between them. Also we would be looking up at the samurai or down on the peasants. This reflects people’s admiration for the samurai and lack of respect for the peasants. Kikuchiyo was on the same level as the peasants when he was talking to them and up with the samurai at other times, again showing why he was the perfect person to get both groups to work together.

Another important mechanic is the use of sound. The alarm got our attention. Even without seeing the characters’ reactions, we would know something important was happening. When the samurai were running, there was strong, heroic music playing. When Kikuchiyo was talking, the music was a less powerful and less complex song. When we saw the peasants leave their houses, they were screaming and pleading for the samurai to help them. As the samurai and peasants come together in the square both of their sounds are heard at the same time. This signifies the possibility of them working together as a team.

These camera and sound techniques showed the differences between the samurai, peasants, and Kikuchiyo, but also the events that brought them together. Akira Kurosawa was a skillful director who shared his vision very effectively.   

Shot Analysis

Shot1:

The scene opens with the samurai meeting with the village elder. The room is dark and shadowy, but light is reflecting off their faces. There is a slow quiet beating sound in the background. The head samurai Kambei sits on the floor with the elder in the front of the shot. The camera focuses on a medium shot of them. The samurai sits with a straight back while the older man is hunched over. The other samurai and the villagers who brought the samurai are in the background, observing the conversation but not speaking. The elder is explaining that the peasants are afraid of everything including the samurai. The samurai asks the elder, “But Old Man, why do the villagers fear us? What can they expect from us under such circumstances?”

Shot 2:

The scene cuts to a close-up of the village elder. An urgent hammering sound is heard and the village elder snaps his head up to attention and his eyes go wide in fear.

Shot 3:

The camera cuts to a close-up shot of Yohei. He has on one of his almost comical scared faces. His eyes are wide with fear. His mouth is open and you hear him taking gulping breaths. The sound of the alarm continues while he jumps up and runs around.

Shot 4:

The alarm continues to sound as the peasants come running out of their homes scattering clouds of dust and dirt.  Everything is in chaos and you hear them squealing and calling out in fear.

Shot 5:

The camera cuts to a shot of the samurai running purposefully to the center of the village. You see each one running in a straight line with determination in their faces. As they run in this direct fashion, you hear a dramatic fight song playing.

Shot 6:

The camera, with a high-angle shot, cuts again to the peasants running around in a disorderly fashion as you hear the alarm and them squealing and calling out. Dust is swirling.

Shot 7:

The camera cuts again to the samurai running one-by-one down the path to the peasants, followed by the villagers who brought them to the village, while the song plays again. They all run straight towards the camera, then cut off to the left. Yohei follows with a fearful expression and hesitates briefly before continuing to the center of the square.

Shot 8:

The samurai arrive in the middle of the square, push through the crowd and jump up onto a platform. You hear both the samurai’s song and the villagers calling out and see dust swirling around the peasants. Kambei tell the peasants to quiet down, which they do immediately. The peasants gather around the samurai.

Shot 9:

In a medium shot, Kambei starts questioning the peasants. He asks who sounded the alarm and Kikuchiyo replies, “I did.” He sounds the alarm again by hammering on a branch, then jumps down amongst the peasants and teases them about their behavior – how they ignored the samurai until they thought the bandits had come and then they begged for help. A simpler, less complicated tune plays in the background. 

Shot 10:

The village elder arrives and walks up to Kikuchiyo. The villagers look intently back and forth between him and Kikuchiyo. Kikuchiyo and the elder are the dominant characters and are in the front center. When Kikuchiyo asks him if he has a problem the elder replies, “Nope. All’s well now.” The tune continues to play.

Shot 11:

As the tune continues to play, the camera cuts to a low-angle shot of the samurai, standing in a row on the platform. They laugh and Heihachi says that Kikuchiyo is good for something and that now they have a seventh samurai.