On the 26th of April 1954 the film Seven Samurai was released.

This masterpiece of a film was co-written, edited, and directed by Akira Kurosawa. It is set in the Japan of 1586 where a group of villagers hire seven rōnin to combat bandits who will return after the harvest to steal their crops.

The film was re-configured for Western audiences which many readers will be most familiar with as The Magnificent Seven – itself a wonderful film. The story has also been used over and over again for film and TV.

If you haven’t seen the Seven Samurai give it a watch – it is one of the finest movies in cinematic history.