Harakiri · reception & legacy

1962 · Masaki Kobayashi

How Harakiri has been received, argued over, and remembered.

The arc

Acclaimed on arrival — it took the Special Jury Prize at Cannes in 1963 — but long overshadowed abroad by Kurosawa; the streaming/Letterboxd era turned it into a phenomenon, climbing to the very top of the Letterboxd Top 250.

What's debated

The perennial cinephile fight it starts: is this — not Seven Samurai — actually the greatest samurai film ever made?

Its footprint

Tatsuya Nakadai's smouldering staredown and the film's icy takedown of bushido honour codes are endlessly screencapped and cited, and it was remade in 3D by Takashi Miike (Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai, 2011), which also went to Cannes.

Where it stands

A certified Letterboxd darling — one of the highest user-rated narrative films on the platform, and the classic 'you haven't seen HARAKIRI?' recommendation.

★ Did you know? Tatsuya Nakadai was only about 29 when he played the weathered, middle-aged ronin Tsugumo — and the spare, nerve-shredding score is by Toru Takemitsu, built around the twang of a biwa.