Fiction
The Samurai Trilogy & others
This is a series of three movies starring the late Toshiro Mifune as Musashi
Miyamoto. There are also a number of films that he starred in that were directed
by the brilliant Akira Kurosawa that are also excellent, such as Yojimbo, The
Hidden Fortress, and The Seven Samurai.
The Princess Bride
A wonderful tongue-in-cheek tale of adventure and romance starring Cary
Elwes,
this film has something for the entire family and great fencing to boot.
Highlander
Although the premise of the movie is absurd (an immortal Scottish Highlander
played by Frenchman Christopher Lambert), it’s still great fun. True Scotsman
Sean Connery appears as an Egyptian posing as a Spaniard.
By the Sword
A tale of revenge and redemption set in contemporary times. The story revolves
around a troubled fencing master, played by Eric Roberts, who must face his
father's nemesis (F. Murray Abraham).
The Fencing Master
A suspense film set in pre-revolution Spain in which a fencing master is
hired to teach fencing to a young woman -- something he has never done before.
He is fascinated by her and agrees to teach her. She wishes to learn one
particular secret attack for which he is famous. And from there, the intrigue
grows. In Spanish, with English subtitles. Based on the Spanish novel of the
same name by Pérez-Reverte.
Sunshine
This film follows a family of Hungarian Jews across three generations
from the late 1800s through the present. It focuses on the eldest son in
each generation, and each of the three scions is played by Ralph Fiennes.
The middle generation is of particular interest to fencers, as the main
character is part of the Hungarian saber team at the 1936 Olympics in
Berlin. I don't know if Fiennes did his own fencing for the film or if it
was a double, but it is a wonderful look at saber fencing in the golden
age of fencing. The film is beautifully made, although quite long (3
hours). Many parts of the story are quite bleak -- but then, so is the
history of Hungary. Not appropriate for younger viewers (fairly graphic
sex, disturbing family dynamics).
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