Samurai III- Duel at Ganryu Island (1956) [Film Review]

Samurai III- Duel at Ganryu Island; or, The Final Showdown

Musashi Miyamoto returns once again in this final instalment of the Samurai Trilogy by Hiroshi Inagaki.

Release Info

Directed by: Hiroshi Inagaki Starring: Toshiro Mifune, Kōji Tsuruka Kaoru Yachigusa, Mariko Okada
Language: Japanese Original Title: Miyamoto Musashi kanketsuhen: Kettō Ganryūjima Runtime: 104 min

Plot

After the infamous battle with the samurai clan from Kyoto, Musashi Miyamoto arrives in Edo Province and considers taking up the position of a teacher to a Shogun. Nevertheless, Sasaki Kojiro tracks down the hero and after performing a killing spree on a few local samurais, he convinces Miyamoto to take up a duel with him. Musashi agrees, but postpones the duel for another year. Later he settles in a village that is constantly raided by bandits. Eventually Otsu and Akemi find out Musashi’s whereabouts, but the time has come for the final match with Kojiro.

The best entry in the trilogy

This is basically pretty much what can be said about this sequel. Thankfully, the number of characters and side-plots has been limited and the focus was narrowed down to Miyamoto and Kojiro. In this particular sequel, we get a lot of samurai fights and action sequences, like the raid on defenceless villagers. However, for some viewers it may seem too similar to the scenes from Seven Samurai (1954). Actually, I'm inclined to think that the plot line from Kurosawa’s film was ripped off for the purposes of this motion picture. Apart from that, the twisted Musashi’s relationship with Otsu got finally(!) resolved. Was it just me or Akemi seemed emotionally unstable psychopath

 Everything in the movie is a build up leading to the final confrontation with Kojiro, which is literally awesome. Allegedly, the fight indeed occurred at Ganryu Island in 1612 and Kojiro lost by being blinded by the rising sun. Samurai III brilliantly recreates that event, but also provides an explanation for Miyamoto’s actions. Namely, Musashi felt that Sasaki Kojiro was much better samurai him and would undoubtedly defeat him. That’s why Musashi cheated out and postponed the match. A year later, during the final showdown, he used his wits rather than swordsmanship skills in order to defeat the opponent. This was due to the fact that unlike Kojiro, Musashi has found a meaning in life, which was not samurai fame but love for Otsu. In my personal opinion, his crying in the boat departing from Ganryu Island is, in fact, crying out of shame (and respect) for taking the life of such a skilled, but also untamed in his actions, samurai as Sasaki Kojiro was.

Recommendations

I recommend this movie to those who have seen both previous parts and liked them. Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island is a perfect concluding chapter of the whole trilogy about the adventurous life of Musashi Miyamoto and a fine addition to the canon of chambara films. Definitely, a must-see movie.

Overall score: 9/10