In A Fractured Society

Today has been a ball buster and it's far from over. So I'll keep this brief. This is more a recommendation than a post. If you've never seen the film Yojimbo by Akira Kurosawa, I suggest renting it. It's an incredible black and white samurai film set at the end of Japan's feudal era (Sergio Leone's western A Fistful of Dollars is based almost scene by scene on this film).


Pictured: Toshiro Mifune in Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo

The samurai, now masterless and dwindling in number, have become vagabonds and mercenaries. This story follows Sanjuro, a rogue samurai played by Toshiro Mifune (a genuine badass), who stumbles into the middle of a bloody war between feuding silk merchants. There is also an interesting dialogue about the introduction of the handgun into Japanese society, and how it is supposedly more useful and powerful than the sword.