WHAT BEFALLS OTHERS TODAY, MAY BE YOUR OWN FATE TOMORROW.

Down on his luck following the collapse of his clan, veteran samurai Tsugumo Hanshirō arrives at the prosperous House of Iyi, requesting permission to commit ritual suicide on the property. The clan's senior counselor questions his resolve, suspecting the unemployed ronin is merely seeking charity rather than an honorable end. What follows is a meticulously constructed examination of honor, hypocrisy and the rigid traditions of the samurai code.

At the time of its launch on Letterboxd Video Store, Masaki Kobayashi’s “Harakiri” has held the #1 spot on Letterboxd’s Official Top 500 Narrative Feature Films for the past three years, a distinction shared by just six films in the platform’s history. A subversive take on the samurai genre, Kobayashi's 1962 masterpiece follows a masterless warrior in 17th-century Japan, using the rigid traditions of the samurai code to expose the cruelty of authoritarian rule and the hypocrisy of those in power. With Tatsuya Nakadai's commanding central performance, stark black-and-white cinematography and a narrative that gradually reveals the true cost of blind obedience, "Harakiri" remains remarkably relevant more than sixty years after its release. A fitting inaugural addition to By Popular Demand, bringing the Letterboxd community's highest-rated narrative feature to Video Store.

Languages: Japanese. English subtitles available.