Eric San Juan was the editor-in-chief for a family of weekly newspapers in New Jersey for more than a decade and was cohost of the Year of Hitchcock podcast. He is the author of Stuff Every Husband Should Know (2011) and the coauthor of A Year of Hitchcock: 52 Weeks with the Master of Suspense (Scarecrow, 2011) and Hitchcock’s Villains: Murderers, Mothers, and Maniac Issues (Scarecrow, 2013).

• AcknowledgementsIntroductionSanshiro Sugata (1943)The Most Beautiful (1944)Sanshiro Sugata Part 2 (1945)The Men Who Tread on the Tiger’s Tail (1945)No Regrets for Our Youth (1946)One Wonderful Sunday (1947)Drunken Angel (1948)The Quiet Duel (1949)Stray Dog (1949)Scandal (1950)Rashomon (1950)The Idiot (1951)Ikiru (1952)Seven Samurai (1954)I Live in Fear (1955)Throne of Blood (1957)The Lower Depths (1957)The Hidden Fortress (1958)The Bad Sleep Well (1960)Yojimbo (1961)Sanjuro (1962)High and Low (1963)Red Beard (1965)Dodes’ka-Den (1970)Song of the Horse (1971)Dersu Uzala (1975)Kagemusha (1980)Ran (1985)Dreams (1990)Rhapsody in August (1991)Madadayo (1993)BibliographyIndex About the Author

Akira Kurosawa’s films are examined in detail in this enjoyable overview of the renowned director’s career from San Juan (Hitchcock’s Villains). Focusing on Kurosawa’s themes rather than his techniques, San Juan readily succeeds in his goal of creating an accessible appreciation of Kurosawa’s work. . . . Many of the tales from Kurosawa’s life, particularly regarding his relationships with his actors—including his master-pupil relationship with star Toshiro Mifune and long marriage to actress Yoko Yaguchi—are so intriguing that readers will wish this were a full biography. . . . This guide to a master filmmaker’s work has appeal for cinephiles and casual movie viewers alike.