The Cinema Arts Centre To Host A Festival Dedicated To Legendary Samurai Films

This May the Cinema Arts Centre in Huntington will present a selection of critically acclaimed and highly influential samurai films as part of a new Samurai Film Festival. Screenings will include films from the golden age of samurai cinema as well as late-night cult favorites. Beginning on Friday May 12th, the main portion of the festival will feature a week of classic samurai films.

The samurai film, known as ‘Chanbara’ - a sub-category if the jidaigeki genre, lends itself to tales of loyalty, revenge, romance, fighting prowess, and the decline of a traditional way of life. Starting in the 1960s, following the international festival successes of such directors as Akira Kurosawa and Masaki Kobayashi, samurai films began to captive moviegoers throughout the world, influencing filmmakers, musicians, and the public consciousness.

The festival will feature some of the greatest Samurai films of all time, including Akira Kurosawa’s Yojimbo & Masaki Kobayashi’s Cannes Film Festival Winner, Harakiri, both projected from 35mm film prints. Additionally, the festival will feature such films as the iconic tale of the blind swordsman in The Tale of Zatoichi, the epic revenge tale that inspired Kill Bill, Lady Snowblood, as well as cult favorites like Lone Wolf & Cub Part 1 & Part 2, and

Upcoming Screenings:

Shogun Assassin (1980)

Friday, May 12th at 7:15 PM

Harakiri (1962)

35mm Screening!

Saturday, May 13th at 7:00 PM

Lady Snowblood (1973)

Sunday, May 14th at 7:00 PM

The Tale Of Zatoichi (1962)

Monday, May 15th at 7:30 PM

Akira Kurosawa’s Yojimbo (1961)

35mm Screening!

Wednesday, May 17th at 7:30 PM

Lone Wolf And Cub: Sword Of Vengeance (1972)

Friday, May 19th at 9:30 PM

Lone Wolf And Cub: Baby Cart At The River Styx (1972) its English dubbed re-edit, Shogun Assassin

The impact of these films on popular culture has been immense. Akira Kurosawa’s Yojimbo was remade twice by Sergio Leone and Walter Hill, into the films A Fistful of Dollars and Last Man Standing. It also inspired scenes in Star Wars, Samurai Jack, and was parodied on Saturday Night Live. Shogun Assassin served as an inspiration to the Wu-Tang Clan, with excerpts from the film featured on the iconic 1990s hip-hop album Liquid Swords Lady Snowblood was a major inspiration for director Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill saga.

You can purchase tickets or find more information about these and other events on the Cinema Arts Centre website: www.

Friday, June 16th at 9:30 PM

Location:

Cinema Arts Centre, 423 Park Ave, Huntington, NY 11743

Fees per screening: $15 Public | $10 Cinema Arts Centre Members cinemaartscentre.org.

The Cinema Arts Centre (CAC) is Long Island’s premiere, year-round, independent and international film showcase and its leading 501(c)3 not-for-profit community cinema. Located on Long Island’s North Shore, just an hour from Manhattan, the CAC is unique in scope and programming, with three state-of-the-art theaters, including a main theater holding nearly 300 seats. Founded by Vic Skolnick, Charlotte Sky and Dylan Skolnick in 1973, the CAC has over 10,000 members and serves approximately 150,000 individuals each year. For more information, please visit https://cinemaartscentre.org

—Submitted by the Cinema Arts Centre