Sanshiro Sugata (1943)
A hotheaded youth in 1880s Meiji Japan apprentices to judo master Shōgorō Yano, trading brute jujutsu bravado for discipline and humility. As Sanshirō matures, he proves judo’s spirit against old-guard challengers—including a deadly duel—while falling for his vanquished opponent’s daughter. Based on the novel by Tsuneo Tomita, son of Tomita Tsunejirō, the earliest disciple of judo.
Key facts
- Released:
- 1943-03-25
- Runtime:
- 79 min
- Genres:
- Drama
- Director:
- Akira Kurosawa
- Top cast:
- Denjirō Ōkōchi, Susumu Fujita, Yukiko Todoroki, Ryūnosuke Tsukigata, Takashi Shimura, Ranko Hanai
- Original language:
- JA
- TMDB rating:
- 6.5/10 from 145 votes
- Bynge Score:
- 6.2/10