64
Metascore
14 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75The A.V. ClubNoel MurrayThe A.V. ClubNoel MurrayMifune: The Last Samurai is less a comprehensive overview of the actor’s life than it is an analysis of what that life meant.
- 75RogerEbert.comGlenn KennyRogerEbert.comGlenn KennyWhat the movie is very good at revealing and expanding upon is how this reluctant actor became such a masterful one.
- 75Movie NationRoger MooreMovie NationRoger MooreEven if it is too brief and leaves too much out to be “definitive,” it serves up heaping helpings of Mifune’s film work and bits of home movies and the like to create a fascinating man-behind the stoic face/samurai icon below-the-topknot portrait of Mifune.
- 70The New York TimesBen KenigsbergThe New York TimesBen KenigsbergIt’s a brisk and energetic primer for those who don’t know his movies or are ready to watch them again. And it doubles as a history of the chanbara (sword fighting) genre, providing an opportunity to sample clips from seldom-seen or partially lost silent films.
- 67The Film StageEd FranklThe Film StageEd FranklMifune: The Last Samurai, the well-assembled documentary on the life of actor Toshirô Mifune, the long-time Akira Kurosawa collaborator, should be a worthy introduction to one of Japanese cinema’s greatest icons, if a little light on more revelatory findings.
- 50Slant MagazineKeith WatsonSlant MagazineKeith WatsonIn many ways, Toshirô Mifune the man remains just as mysterious after watching Steven Okazaki's film as he was before.
- 50The Hollywood ReporterStephen FarberThe Hollywood ReporterStephen FarberThe subject is a rich one, but the film simply isn’t incisive enough.
- 50Village VoiceSimon AbramsVillage VoiceSimon AbramsOkazaki gets close to, but never sheds enough light on, Mifune's elusive personality.
- 42IndieWireDavid EhrlichIndieWireDavid EhrlichA thin, dull, and by-the-numbers biography that fails to capture its subject’s irrepressible spirit or properly contextualize his importance.