Masaki Kobayashi's Anti-Samurai Trilogy | Harakiri | Kwaidan | Samurai Rebellion #121

Queen is Dead - A Film, TV and Culture Podcast

Looking for your jidaigeki fix after the finale of FX's "Shōgun" (2024)?

Travel back to the 1960s and watch the jidaigeki phase of one of the most celebrated (and yet still somehow not as widely known) Japanese filmmakers, Masaki Kobayashi. All these films -- "Harakiri" (1962), "Kwaidan" (1964), and "Samurai Rebellion" (1967) -- take place in the Edo period (the early 1600s to mid-1800s) -- right after the explosive battles of the FX series.

In this very special episode, Dhruv and Amartya spend the first half-hour contextualizing the timeline for both those aware and unaware of Jidaigeki films. Then, they make their way through the staunchly anti-authoritarian (hence, anti-samurai) films of Kobayashi that, piece by piece, dismantle what they so proudly call their "code of honor."

Listen to the full episode for a detailed appreciation of Kobayashi's formal excellence, screenwriter Shinobu Hashimoto's mazey screenplays, and composer Tōru Takemitsu's violently unnerving scores—all discordant elements that, when played together, manage to shake the towering foundation of the spick-and-span Samurai.

TIME CODES

Masaki Kobayashi: [00:00 - 06:56]

Jidaigeki Films: [06:56 - 12:14]

Samurai History and Terminology: [12:14 - 27:14]

"Harakiri" (1962): [27:14 - 01:07:53]

"Samurai Rebellion" (1967): [01:07:53 - 01:27:42]

"Kwaidan" (1964): [01:27:42 - 02:07:05]

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