Time travel is a well-worn cinematic trope, but there is a reason that the low-budget “A Samurai in Time” (侍タイムスリッパー) managed to elevate itself from a single-screen release all the way to Best Film honors at the Japan Academy Film Prize (the Japanese equivalent of the Oscars). In lieu of flashy CG and gimmicky plot lines is a touching, yet often humorous, layered story about a samurai conflicted about his identity.
That inner conflict begins when a rainstorm-ridden fight against an opponent lands him in another era with one lightning strike. It is here where the once proud Kosaka Shinzaemon of the Aizu clan (veteran Makiya Yamaguchi in his first starring role) finds himself in jarringly familiar territory, albeit in modern times: the set of a jidaigeki TV show. With past memories fully intact, Kosaka realizes that he is now stuck in a post-samurai and post-shogunate world. It’s one that has pretty much forgotten pre-Meiji Restoration samurai times and fallen out of favor on celluloid, with the jidaigeki genre being phased out or parodied on screen.
As Kosaka navigates his new life with his old fighting skills in hand, there is a major twist midway through the film that turns the proceedings into a story within a story, only deepening his existential crisis. Eventually the internal battle between his past and present self subtly takes on greater philosophical meaning about what it takes to live an honorable life. Much credit must be given to Jun’ichi Yasuda, a filmmaker doubling as a rice farmer who shot “A Samurai in Time” on a mere 26 million yen (US$177,000) budget drawn from his personal savings. The Best Director winner at the Nikkan Sports Film Awards, Yasuda also was responsible for the screenplay, cinematography and editing, among numerous other tasks.
“A Samurai in Time” screened at the 2025 Japan Cuts Festival in New York. For more information on Japan Cuts, which runs through July 20, please visit https://japansociety.org/film/japancuts/.
