The Seven Samurai Scenes

I recently watched The Seven Samurai for the second time and the second time around I was able to think deeper about certain scenes than I had before. So, seven of the best scenes are talked about below:

1. When Manzo cuts off Shino’s hair-

I can understand the protection a man can feel over his daughter and Manzo proved it with his actions by cutting off his daughter’s hair. Socially, long hair is a sign of feminism and by cutting it off he took that away from her. He did it in order to “protect” her but he actuaally hurt her emotionally and it showed he didn’t trust the samurai…the men that were going to help him and the other farmers.

2.  When Kikushiryo sounds the alarm

 

When the samurai first arrive at the farmer’s village, the farmers ignore them and hide. They don’t trust the samurai and don’t want to welcome them in. Kikushiryo gets angry at this and sounds the “bandit alarm” and once all of the farmers are startled, only then do they beg the samurai to help them and show them open arms. I really liked this scene because he gave the farmers a reality check and showed them that they needed the samurai.

3. When Kambei shaves his head

 

During this scene, I didn’t really realize what the big deal was with Kambei cutting his hair off but then I soon seen that the other samurai all had a ponytail and then I realized he was going against his social beliefs to save a child’s life. He was to dress as a farmer and trick the man who had kidnapped a child. It worked and I think this proved that Kambei was a respectable samurai. He sacrificed something important to help another person.

4. When Katushiro gives them money

I thought this was a very compassionate scene. Katushiro is a young man and he isn’t a skill samurai yet. He feels pity for the farmers who don’t have enough rice and he gives them money to go buy some. The farmer’s were speechless because they couldn’t fathom a samurai would help them like that and they were just so greatful they could only look at him with joy.

5. Kikuchiryo realizes his parents died the same way the child’s did

Throughout the movie the audience learns that Kikuchiryo was born to farmers and he is able to feel and relate to what the farmers are going through because his family has been in that situation. Towards the end we see that Kikuchiryo’s parents died from the hands of bandits and he, like the boy in his arms, were left as orphans and went through hard times as a farmer’s child.

6. When Rikichi sees his wife

Rikichi has been holding something back from the samurai and he gets mad every time they mention him finding a wife. When Rikichi and some of the samurai go to invade the bandit’s camp, he finds his wife and she, out of shame, runs back into the burning shack. She had been taken by the bandits and abused. Rikichi, I’m sure, cared about her and loved her and he wouldn’t have judged her from what had happened.

7. When Kambei says they haven’t won but the farmers have

 

In the end, the samurai helped the farmers as a good deed. They lost more than the farmers had in the battle and the farmers came out victorious. The samurai lost their close friends and skilled fighters. Deep down they know they did the right thing but still can’t help but find it evident that they got nothing in return.