Though not impressed with the original Sanshiro Sugata I did consider it a noteworthy film in Japanese movie history and certainly had its charm.The sequel see's our judo fighter hero presented with further foes he must vanquish and more moral dilemmas. Ontop of this he finds himself pressured into participating in an east vs west/boxing vs judo bout.This sequel was heavily criticized and considered a propaganda film (Of which there were many around this time coming out of Japan). Truth be told I don't understand why or how this could be considered such, there was no military/political motivation to be found.Inferior to the original? Yes, but not by much. The Sanshiro Sugata movies have their merits but don't deserve (In my opinion) the critical acclaim they recieved. I'm curious what happened with the sequels and quite look forward to finding out.The Good:Follows on from the original wellThe Bad:Looks dated even for its timeThings I Learnt From This Movie:Susumu Fujita was reincarnated as Mark DacascosFighting barefoot in the snow for real, there should be an oscar category for such feats!

'Sanshiro Sugata Part II', unlike the first film from 1943, is essentially a propaganda film, but don't let that dissuade you from seeing it as there are sequences in the film that display Kurosawa's growing strengths as a filmmaker.The story line is rather muddled but basically Sugata feels as if the traditional Japanese forms of martial arts are facing extinction with the emerging popularity of American boxing. Sugata aims to preserve that by defeating a notorious American boxer while extinguishing threats from two karate masters obsessed with destroying him. In the end, Sugata easily crushes his American opponent and brings the two karate masters into his fold.Clearly the film is about uniting the Japanese people and culture against the American menace and its potential to destroy the Japanese people and their way of life. When the film was shot in early 1945 the war was going horribly for Japan and bombs were raining down upon their cities. The Japanese government ordered Kurosawa to make this film to help shore up domestic support for the Japanese cause and to also suggest that the coming Americans may spell doom for their people and way of life.Now Kurosawa created two very interesting sequences in this picture. One is where Sugata is watching the first fight between the American and Japanese and how disgusted he was with how things unfolded. Kurosawa does a series of close-ups of Sugata and then cuts to his point-of-view as he observes people cheering at the violence, laughing, etc...and with each reverse to Sugata you can feel his disgust. It's a very well done montage without any dialogue except for the noise of the fight and the cheers.The other is the final battle between Sugata and the karate master atop a mountain with wind and snow blasting all around them. This is one of the earliest examples of Kurosawa using extreme weather elements in the midst of a battle or confrontation, and it is very well done. This notion of extreme weather during a battle or struggle occurs in a number of his pictures including 'The Seven Samurai', 'Dreams', and 'Yojimbo'. As in those later pictures, the extreme weather heightens the tension, creates dynamic images, and visuals expresses the rage and confusion and frustration of the characters, much like earlier German Expressionism. So while 'Sanshiro Sugata Part II' is not a classic Kurosawa picture with its choppy story line and overt propaganda, it still is an interesting film that shows his growing prowess as a filmmaker. Give a look Kurosawa fans.

Sugata and Yano have established the dominance of Judo over jujitsu by defeating all comers, but Sugata is not satisfied. Yes, he is the best Judo practitioner in the land, but he is plagued by his victories and is not sleeping.Judo is also facing competition from boxing and karate. Yes, boxing has come to Japan with the occupation. The anti-American sentiment is strong in this film as the top boxer is a drunken sailor who pick on poor rickshaw drivers until Sugata manages to cool him off - laterally. They will meet again.Sugata finally comes to terms with who he is and dispatches the boxer in the first round. Now, the karate thugs have been injuring many to get Sugata to fight.The actual fight is a letdown. It is staged to look almost like those shadow puppets. The calm and cool Sugata is facing a grimacing overly loud competitor.It should not be a surprise who wins, but there are more demons on the horizon. Five years after this film, I will have arrived. What will happen then? The only distraction was the poor quality of the film. One would hope that a better copy would have survived. Of course, we have to wait until the arrival of Toshiro Mifune before Akira Kurosawa perfects his Samurai films and becomes the great master that he was.

I saw the Kurosawa's first film, Sugata Sanshiro (1943), many years ago and was much impressed by the story and the spirit of martial arts, thus portrayed. It wasn't my introduction to Kurosawa, however, having already seen Seven Samurai (1954) and Yojimbo (1961).Now, having seen the sequel to Sugata Sanshiro, one thing is certain: full appreciation for the story within the first film and this sequel is only possible, in my opinion, if you are, in fact, a practitioner of martial arts also – which I am, and have been for thirty years. Note that I'm not excluding appreciation of Kurosawa's skill as a director; that's something that everyone can recognize and applaud. Even with these early films, Kurosawa's trademarks are clear: long silences, tightly framed sets where action moves across and around it, long close-ups of faces, objects and such like, much face-to-face dialog, and music that is generally muted.This sequel is ostensibly about Japanese-American relationships in 1887, when Sugata is finally seduced into a match-up between himself and an American boxing champion. The film was made in 1945, soon after the Japanese surrender. Hence, the reason for that part of the story line is clear: even in the defeat of war, the Japanese martial spirit remains supreme. It is an understandable need on the part of Japan, and Kurosawa, at that time.However, Kurosawa, and others involved no doubt, must have realized that there was a problem: the essence of martial arts is defense, not offense. So, it's entirely uncharacteristic for a true martial arts student to actively search out a contest that he knows has usually one outcome only: death for one of the competitors. Hence, Sugata must be shown as weak and indecisive at first so that he falls from grace, in his own eyes, when he defeats the American, who, fortunately, is not killed.Sugata's salvation, however, as a true follower of the martial way, only comes when he meets the challenge of a karate champion in a fight to the death, during a winter storm on the side of a mountain. That fight scene is so realistic it's almost sublime: Kurosawa has captured exactly how two indomitable spirits stand and wait for the other to make the first move – because the first mistake means death for one of them. Instead, the elements defeat both of them, with the karate master falling down a steep incline when Sugata tosses him over his shoulder. Honor for both, however, is assuaged: they spend the night in a hut together, where both recover from their efforts while the karate master's brother keeps watch.There's a crucial sub-plot with that brother that I'll leave you to discover because it's a turning point in Sugata's life that actually saves him from death. See this and you'll know why. And savor that final scene when Sugata wakes from his sleep to face a new day and, for him, a new beginning as a judo ka (judo student) and as human being. It's pure Kurosawa as only he could do...My only puzzlement with this story is the presence of karate students and practitioners in Japan in the 19th century. From the history I've read, karate was introduced into Japan only in 1922 when Funakoshi Gichin of Okinawa was invited to provide a demonstration in Tokyo. However, I'll bow to Kurosawa's better knowledge about his own country and society.If you practice martial arts, you should enjoy this film. If you're curious, I'd recommend you try to see both.