For his third feature Kurosawa was encouraged to make a sequel to the highly popular Sanshiro Sugata and though his enthusiasm for the project was lacking, this is a satisfying follow up to the entertaining story of a young judo disciple in 1880s Japan, picking up shortly after the first left off.

Made just as Japan was losing the war, there is anti-American propaganda within it but only when required, this was no doubt forced into the film and Kurosawa evidently didn't care for it as it quickly reverts to being a character drama. Though a rather superfluous addition, it does develop Sugata's arc further - now that he has achieved success he's faced with the problems that this brings,…

“It’s not at all about Judo defeating Jujutsu, it’s all about the survival of the Japanese martial arts.”

I’ve been told that, over the course of his 50 year career, Akira Kurosawa directed precisely one and a half propoganda films under direct instruction from Japan’s wartime government. The full propoganda film was 1944’s The Most Beautiful, a drama chronicling the lives of women working in a factory producing military equipment for the war effort (which I plan to watch at some point or other) and the other, half propoganda film is Sanshiro Sugata Part II. I went in to this fully expecting to hate it, I wasn’t in love with its predecessor, Kurosawa’s directorial debut, plus I wasn’t really excited…

For his third feature Kurosawa was encouraged to make a sequel to the highly popular Sanshiro Sugata and though his enthusiasm for the project was lacking, this is a satisfying follow up to the entertaining story of a young judo disciple in 1880s Japan, picking up shortly after the first left off.

Made just as Japan was losing the war, there is anti-American propaganda within it but only when required, this was no doubt forced into the film and Kurosawa evidently didn't care for it as it quickly reverts to being a character drama. Though a rather superfluous addition, it does develop Sugata's arc further - now that he has achieved success he's faced with the problems that this brings,…

While Sanshiro Sugata, Kurosawa’s directorial debut, can be successfully defended against most accusations of being a propaganda film, the same cannot be said for its sequel. It is undoubtedly a piece of anti-American wartime propaganda that disposes with any thematic subtlety.

I suppose it is right to ask why that was and the only answer I can conjure relates to the timing of the film’s production and release in 1945 when the war was clearly coming to an end and Japan was soon going to find itself on the losing side. I can only assume that in the wake of brutal Allied bombing campaigns aimed at destroying the Japanese infrastructure, one wouldn’t have to talk to anyone for very long…

It's the original "Rocky II", but it's toned like the original "Rocky IV"! I guess the government didn't see the lead in 'The Most Beautiful" working her way to insanity as a negative message about Japanese work ethic, but I don't know how much complexity Akira Kurosawa can sneak into this propaganda. Sanshiro Sugata has returned from his spiritual journey to continue that journey to judo mastery that will inspire a nation, or at least military personnel. It's not like our man had to worry much about high-powered rifles, focused explosives or atomic weapons in 1887, but the toughest boxer in America must mean serious business to randomly take on karate and judo masters. Between continuing his training at his…

“It’s not at all about Judo defeating Jujutsu, it’s all about the survival of the Japanese martial arts.”

I’ve been told that, over the course of his 50 year career, Akira Kurosawa directed precisely one and a half propoganda films under direct instruction from Japan’s wartime government. The full propoganda film was 1944’s The Most Beautiful, a drama chronicling the lives of women working in a factory producing military equipment for the war effort (which I plan to watch at some point or other) and the other, half propoganda film is Sanshiro Sugata Part II. I went in to this fully expecting to hate it, I wasn’t in love with its predecessor, Kurosawa’s directorial debut, plus I wasn’t really excited…

Try to imagine a world in which the government has a vested stake in ensuring that a popular film gets a sequel treatment. You shouldn't have to try too hard, because almost 75 years ago, that's exactly what happened. In this follow-up to Kurosawa's first film, almost all of the characters return. This time, Sanshiro Sugata defends the honor of Japanese martial arts against a barbarous American boxer. He's also being stalked by two deranged, hate-driven siblings of the man he defeated and spared in the first film.

Though the quality of the print isn't as bad as its predecessor, there still appear to be some missing shots, and the audio crackles and pops. Rather than detract, it gives the…