Reeling from Mr. Lucas’ latest creation, I comforted myself with a film that would probably be even less well known, were it not for its status as a source of inspiration to the aforementioned gentleman when he was developing the film that firmly established his place in American history. Kurosawa is in no danger of being outshone by his American admirer, as is evidenced yet again in Hidden Fortress. Such great chemistry can be felt between his characters, even in spite of the cultural gap that might otherwise render his films less accessible to a western audience. It is heartening to see a film that aims at being epic and achieves it; thanks in no small part to the humanity and humility of its director.