Comparing Yojimbo (Jouro, And The Ringo Kid (1981)

Similarly to Stagecoach (Ford, 1939), Yojimbo (Kurosawa, 1961) also features the lone entrance of its main protagonist, Kuwabatake Sanjuro. However, unlike in Stagecoach (Ford, 1939), which features the Ringo Kid’s rather abrupt entrance well into the film, Yojimbo (Kurosawa, 1961) starts right off the bat with its main protagonist. The opening shots of Yojimbo (Kurosawa, 1961) also begin with a closeup of the back of Sanjuro, as he walks down the path to the town. This initial scene already sets up a somewhat mysterious air about the main character, as the audience initially knows nothing about him. While the Ringo Kid had already formed a plan from the very beginning to avenge his father and brother, Sanjuro’s motives are initially unclear to the audience. As he first enters the desolate town, it appears that his primary incentive is …show more content…
The scene’s expansion outwards to reveal the nearby setting serves to further reveal and emphasize the samurai’s isolation and mysteriousness, and even his loneliness of sorts amongst the deserted paths snaking through the grasslands. Moreover, the use of architectural framing in the form of the leading lines of the dusty paths leading off to the front and to the sides also help connect the background to the focus in the center of the crossroads, where Sanjuro stands. The scene then transitions to a medium shot of Sanjuro tossing up a stick, before focusing in on the stick from a high angle view and finally tilting up to track Sanjuro as he walks down the path the stick points towards. Architectural framing in the form of the bending path is also utilized again in this shot to also connect the house in the background to Sanjuro in the foreground, and allow the audience to somewhat anticipate what may soon