Seven Samurai (1954)

Director: Akira Kurosawa

Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Keiko Tsushima

Synopsis: A poor farming village comes under attack by bandits and recruits seven ronin to help them defend themselves.

Undoubtedly one of the all-time great movies and a massive influence ever since its arrival, Seven Samurai is considered essential viewing for every enthusiast of Japanese cinema. It is a true epic, but be warned; it's on the long side at 3 1/2 hours and rather slow paced, more focused on the human condition than epic samurai battles (although there's plenty of those too).

The Sword of Doom (1966)

Director: Kihachi Okamoto

Stars: Tatsuya Nakadai

Synopsis: Through his unconscionable actions against others, a sociopath samurai builds a trail of vendettas that follow him closely.

Nakadai is a one-man tour-de-force in his portayal of a psychotic and nihilistic ronin who leaves a path of misery and destruction in his wake. Doom is one of the best non-Kurosawa chanbara films, with compelling characters and an exceptionally brilliant ending.

Kwaidan (1964)

Director: Masaki Kobayashi

Stars: Rentarô Mikuni, Michiyo Aratama

Synopsis: A collection of four Japanese folk tales with supernatural themes.

Looking for a touch of the supernatural in your samurai viewing experience? Wondering why long black hair has become such a staple of J-horror? Then look no further than this 1964 Kobayashi classic, which features a quartet of mesmerizing Japanese ghost tales.

The Samurai Trilogy (1954-1956)

Director: Hiroshi Inagaki

Stars: Toshirô Mifune

Synopsis: Depicts the life of the legendary swordsman Musashi Miyamoto; his early years as an aspiring warrior, an outlaw and finally a true samurai.

My personal favorite on this list is actually a movie trilogy. But unlike many modern movie triple-headers, Inagaki's series about the famed swordsman Miyamoto Musashi never runs out of steam, saving some of its finest moments for last. Filmed in breathtaking Eastmancolor in a variety of gorgeous locales, Samurai Trilogy is an absolutely unforgettable experience.

Throne Of Blood (1957)

Director: Akira Kurosawa

Stars: Toshirô Mifune

Synopsis: A bloodthirsty warlord, spurred on by his ambitious wife, works to fulfill a soothsayer's prophecy.

The second Kurosawa film on this list may be his most palatable for modern viewers, with a fast-moving storyline punctuated by yet another top-notch Mifune performance. Based on the tale of Shakespeare's Macbeth, Throne Of Blood features a rousing variety of action, drama, and even a touch of horror.

Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart at the River Styx (1972)

Director: Kenji Misumi

Stars: Tomisaburô Wakayama

Synopsis: Trailed by a clan of female ninja, a lone killer is paid to assassinate a clan traitor accompanied by three killers known as the Gods of Death.

A movie adaptation of the dark manga series, River Styx is widely considered to be the best of the six Lone Wolf and Cub movies. Featuring copious amounts of blood, nudity, and over-the-top violence, these films are not for the queasy or faint of heart. But it's easy to imagine a young Tarantino salivating over this psychotic ronin masterpiece... then borrowing from it liberally.

The 47 Ronin (1941)

Director: Kenji Mizoguchi

Stars: Chôjûrô Kawarasaki, Yoshizaburo Arashi

Synopsis: Forty-seven ronin plot to avenge their lord by killing the shogunate official responsible for their lord being forced to commit seppuku.

Not to be confused with the terrible Keanu Reeves movie, Mizoguchi's classic The 47 Ronin was commissioned as a two-part propaganda piece by the WWII-era Japanese government (Pearl Harbor was bombed a week after the first movie's release). Thankfully Mizoguchi had his own machinations. Long since merged into a single feature film, The 47 Ronin is a lengthy viewing experience that has lost none of its emotional weight.

Yojimbo + Sanjuro (1957, 1962)

Director: Akira Kurosawa

Stars: Toshirô Mifune

Synopsis: A crafty ronin combines mischief and heroism in his dramatic adventures.

These two movies are more light-hearted than your traditional chanbara fare and well worth their weight in cinematic gold. Sergio Leone copied Yojimbo to create his own A Fistful Of Dollars, the movie that singlehandedly popularized the Spaghetti Western genre.

These films are best watched as a double feature (they are combined on the Criterion Blu-ray set), with Sanjuro's coda providing one of the best cinematic conclusions... ever.

Lady Snowblood (1973)

Director: Toshiya Fujita

Stars: Meiko Kaji, Toshio Kurosawa, Masaaki Daimon

Synopsis: A beautiful woman is trained from birth to be a deadly instrument of revenge against those who destroyed her family.

Much like the Lone Wolf and Cub series, this grindhouse classic is big on swordplay and bloodletting. But the on-screen mayhem is often leveraged by scenic tranquility of feudal Japanese landscapes and architecture. And while the sequel doesn't quite reach the heights of the original, the two Lady Snowblood movies still make for a terrific drive-in doubleheader.

Kuroneko (1968)

Director: Kaneto Shindô

Stars: Kichiemon Nakamura, Nobuko Otowa, Kei Satô

Synopsis: Two women are raped and killed by soldiers. Soon they reappear as vengeful ghosts who seduce and murder the passing samurai.

Much like Kwaidan's quartet of supernatural spinners, Kuroneko is a Japanese tale of ghostly vengeance, with a focus on hauntingly surrealistic imagery. The high-contrast black-and-white visual style and unsettling special effects combine to make the film feel like manga horror come to life.

Ran (1985)

Director: Akira Kurosawa

Stars: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu

Synopsis: An elderly warlord retires, handing over his empire to his three sons. However, he underestimates how the new-found power will corrupt them and cause them to turn on each other... and him.

The "newest" movie on this list, Kurosawa's 1985 retelling of Shakespeare's King Lear proves that even in his latter years, he was still an unrivaled master of his art. A visual masterwork, just like the poster says.

Harakiri (1962)

Director:  Masaki Kobayashi

Stars: Tetsuya Nakadai

Synopsis: When a ronin requesting seppuku at a lord's palace is told of the suicide of another ronin who previously visited, he reveals how their pasts are intertwined - and in doing so challenges the clan's integrity.

Another Kobayashi classic with a tense storyline, a masterful performance by Nakadai, and one of the better plot developments on this list.

Rashomon (1950)

Director: Akira Kurosawa

Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Machiko Kyô, Masayuki Mori

Synopsis: The rape of a bride and the murder of her samurai husband are recalled from the perspectives of a bandit, the bride, the samurai's ghost and a woodcutter.

Rashomon is the Oscar-winning movie that announced Akira Kurosawa to the world outside of Japan. It's one of his finest films, underscored by yet another brilliant Mifune performance. Like Seven Samurai, Rashomon is more drama than action, but its message about the value of truth still resonates today.

Samurai Rebellion (1967)

Director: Masaki Kobayashi

Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Testuya Nakadai

Synopsis: The mother of a feudal lord's heir is kidnapped away from her husband by the lord. The husband and his samurai father must decide whether to accept the unjust decision, or risk death to get her back.

An emotionally-gripping stunner of a film, featuring three of the greatest names in Japanese cinema. With plenty of drama, atmosphere, and of course, a sword-slashing finale, Samurai Rebellion is an absolute favorite.

Gate of Hell (1953)

Director: Teinosuke Kinugasa

Stars: Machiko Kyô, Kazuo Hasegawa, Isao Yamagata

Synopsis: An obsessed samurai pursues a married lady-in-waiting.

Despite the sinister-sounding title, Gate of Hell has nothing to do with horror. And that's okay, because it is a phenomenal jidaigeki tale by any standard.

It's the vivid Eastmancolor that really seals the deal for me. I could watch this movie over and over again, mesmerized by the overly-saturated tones that give the film an almost surrealistic painted effect, not unlike the poster you see to your left.

Also recommended:

Incident At Blood Pass (1970)

Three Outlaw Samurai (1964)

The Hidden Fortress (1958)

Kagemusha (1980)

Chūshingura (1962)

Onibaba (1964)

Legend of the Eight Samurai (1983)

Zatoichi (series)