Social Responsibility in Akira Kurosawa’s Movie, Seven Samurai

Social Responsibility in Akira Kurosawa’s Movie, Seven Samurai

It is truly a corrupt time when keepers of the peace must create unrest in order to survive. In sixteenth century Sengoku jidai Japan, it is survival of the fittest; a major part of this survival is what class one has been born into. Organized politics have been said to be a luxury of developed civilizations. Given that a poor farming village in sixteenth century Japan is hardly developed, the harsh rules of nature are ascribed to instead. Weakened by a continuing drought topped with unrelenting bandit raids, they must appeal to those who are stronger for help. However, in this land where the strong are successful, this will mean anyone who comes to the aid of these farmers will be stooping to work for their social inferiors.

It is understood that violence has a starring role in samurai movies. In recent markets, a movie with as much blood as dialogue, though harshly criticized, will do decently in the box office. For the most part, Western cinema has been blamed as the cheapener of something that once was art. However, Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai approaches mortal combat from a different perspective. The scavenging bandits kill indiscriminately, taking what they want and destroying the rest. The honorable samurai, on the other hand, use their sword sparingly. The movie’s first killing is given to Kambei, who draws his sword on a kidnapping robber only to save another life. Credit is due to Kurosawa who takes care not to make light of death. In a particularly haunting scene, a bandit lays impaled on a villagers spear. This portrayal of the impact taking a life can have is something often overlooked a genre that usually glorifies the act.

Kurosawa’s greatest achievement with Samurai is his statement on social responsibility. Kambei and his team of samurai choose to help the villagers despite the lack of a reward or even glory. By helping those less fortunate to achieve a semblance of at least a productive way of life and exterminating those who are willing to exploit others for personal gain, a nation can be at peace and therefore prosperous.