Akira Kurosawa: Every Movie Ranked Worst To Best
2. Seven Samurai (1954)
Considered by many to be Kurosawa's crowning achievement, Seven Samurai is the definition of an influential classic. Like so many of the Emperor's other projects, it helped spawn entire genres and moviemaking techniques, and has never truly been matched by its legions of imitators.
The sprawling epic tells the story of a defenceless village in 16th century Japan who hire a group of rōnin to protect them from bandits.
From this simple idea, Kurosawa made a three-hour masterpiece that features more exquisite action sequences, enthralling character interactions and visual splendour than many great directors manage in their entire careers.
From its revolutionary use of a multi-camera setup to capture the film's final battle, to the work of its spotless ensemble cast and magnificent score, Seven Samurai is unquestionably a flawless vision of cinematic genius, so much so that it would be #1 on this list if it wasn't for one other film...