Director: Yôji Yamada
Writers: Shûhei Fujisawa, Yôji Yamada
Stars: Hiroyuki Sanada, Rie Miyazawa and Nenji Kobayashi
Rating: 7/10
The Twilight Samurai is about 19th century samurai widower named Seibei Iguchi. Seibei struggles to make ends meet while raising his two daughters and senile mother. He is driven into debt by the extravagant funeral for his wife and quickly rushes home rather than socialize with his coworkers after work. This along with his rather unkempt appearance alienates him from the other samurai working on keeping track of supplies for their lord's castle.
The reappearance of his friend's now divorced sister Tomoe brings happiness to his household as his daughters now have a motherly figure around. Things get complicated after Seibei walks Tomoe home and her drunk ex-husband shows up. Seibei ends up accepting a challenge to a duel with him going against their clan's rules. With both participants facing death should their lord hear of their duel Seibei shows up with a wooden training sword rather than his real sword. This of course offends his challenger who never the less accepts.
Once word of Seibei's fighting skills is spread throughout the castle he is recruited to kill a samurai who has refused to accept his orders to commit harakiri. The aging samurai has already killed the first swordsman sent to take him out and refuses to leave his house. Seibei makes his way into the house not expecting what to find. After a conversation in which he learns that he and the rogue samurai have much in common he must never the less follow through with his orders.
Anyone expecting a lot of action will be disappointed. It takes a while for things to get moving but much like his coworkers the audience discovers there is more to Seibei than meets the eye.
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