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Poster for The Retired Samurai

The Retired Samurai

Seen it?

1987 | 45 min | Drama, History

Monday Morning Maybeearly rating

Why it’s a Monday Morning Maybe

You might want to keep your phone out for these.

Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.

Is it for you?

Who'll love it
Made for history buffs.
The mood
Thoughtful and character-driven.
The pace
Takes its time with its characters, at 45 min.
What might put you off
It's in Japanese, so expect subtitles (or a dub).

Japan's greatest jidaigeki star, Mifune Toshiro is Shogun's Advisor Okubo Hikozaemon who must be coaxed out of retirement to save Shogun Iemitsu from danger. The elderly Hikozaemon has been belittled of late and has seemingly lost the will to live, much less the desire to assert himself and make Iemitsu listen to reason. The plot thickens when a lovely young woman enters the picture. Can she change Hikozaemon's mind, and thus alter the path of Japanese history? No longer a young man, can Hikozaemon gain the shogun's ear, and succeed in warning him of the evil plot to overthrow him?

How it earned its rating

  • CriticsNot counted

    Not enough reviews on record yet

  • AudiencesNot counted

    Not measured yet: not enough ratings

  • AwardsNot counted

    Awards data unavailable, so this isn't counted

  • Reach & staying powerNot counted

    Streaming release that reached a small audience so far

  • Buzz & cultural impactWeak

    Not enough engagement data yet

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Cast & crew

Directed by Akinori Matsuo

  • Toshirō MifuneHikozaemon Ōkubo
  • Misako Tanaka
  • Ryo Tamura
  • Shunji Fujimura
  • Daijiro Tsutsumi