Harakiri

whenever i’m trying to pick a film to watch, i see the ~2 hour average of the films in my watchlist and feel overwhelmed. there are so many to watch, so many classics, and we’re in a world where we’ve been conditioned to believe that the only things worth our time are short and practical. people scorn storied narratives for quick advice that can be directly applied to our lives with little to no thought and immediately put into practice. i had that same problem the evening I chose to watch Harakiri, trying to fight my feelings of “what if I’m wasting my time?” as if the 4.7 average rating on Letterboxd is for some reason other than how incredible it is. but as i sat and watched, this deeply profound film from over 80 years ago stirred something in me that i would never know existed if i just read a self-help book. this powerful work scrutinises the concept of “samurai honour” and tears it down, jabbing its finger at it to call it out for what it is — “a facade”. we begin believing that Motome is a coward and a liar, and we end realising that he is in fact a hero, for he was even willing to give up his swords — his very soul, as so it was described in the film — to try and protect his family. the bamboo ronin will remain with me, just as so many story heroes have, and he will do so with you, too, imploring you to put aside your pride and live with true honour, even if it comes at the price of being looked down on by others due to not fitting the status quo. stories can teach us much better than simple advice can, and that’s why I love them and always will. i could tell you so much more, but what you really need to do is watch this film and feel it for yourself.