[Cali Panthers Fan]

To be honest, Seven Samurai is his magnum opus, which means everything else pales slightly in comparison, but Rashomon, Ran, Yojimbo, Sanjuro, are all great films. He is really a master of shot composition, editing, lighting (later on, color) etc. and tells so much with just an image. He was ok at directing actors and writing, but he was a master with a camera.

My favorite however is Dreams. It's where he finally doesn't bother with a traditional narrative (although each scene has something important to say) and just puts together some of the most beautiful and moving pieces of short film together. I have a friend who works in the film industry as a writer and burgeoning director, and he said after watching Dreams, "I feel sick to my stomach…I'll never come close to making anything that brilliant in my lifetime. It's just so perfect." It also has a fun little cameo from Martin Scorsese playing Vincent Van Gogh.