This movie just keeps on getting better as it plays. The pacing is absolutely perfect, the beginning and most of the movie itself are slow, reflecting the oppressing heat. At the end it keeps getting quicker as Murukami becomes more and more frantic.<br /><br />The best scene of the film is its climax when Murukami corners Yusa in the woods, the images are wonderful. And the end of the scene they fall to the ground, side by side, like twins. The symmetry of the shot creates a parallel between the two characters which is further explored in the rest of the movie, revealing that the two men are of the same kind.<br /><br />The acting is wonderful, Takashi Shimura does a great job in portraying his veteran/mentor character and a young Mifune does a great job in showing Murukami's shame and lack of self confidence.<br /><br />It's a shame the quality of the picture isn't as good as other black and white films but the movie's from 1949 so you can't really blame Kurosawa. I give this one a 9/10. If you like Kurosawa or film-noir this is a "must see".