Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island
1956 1h 45m movie Film Japan

Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island

宮本武蔵完結編 決闘巌流島

Synopsis

宮本武蔵完結編 決闘巌流島

A humble and simple Takezo abandons his life as a knight errant. He's sought as a teacher and vassal by Shogun, Japan's most powerful clan leader. He's also challenged to fight by the supremely confident and skillful Sasaki Kojiro. Takezo agrees to fight Kojiro in a year's time but rejects Shogun's patronage, choosing instead to live on the edge of a village, raising vegetables. He's followed there by Otsu and later by Akemi, both in love with him. The year ends as Takezo assists the villagers against a band of brigands. He seeks Otsu's forgiveness and accepts her love, then sets off across the water to Ganryu Island for his final contest.

Titles With Overlapping Themes

Films and series that share thematic tags with Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island. Number on each card indicates how many keywords overlap.

Other Titles From TOHO

Action + Adventure in Japan

1030 Japan titles in our catalog blend the Action and Adventure genres. Below: the top-rated of them (excluding Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island itself).

The 1955–1957 Japan Window

Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island holds position #7 of 28 Japan films in the 1955–1957 window, below highlighted by audience rating.

  1. Throne of Blood
    #1

    Throne of Blood

    ★ 7.9 · 1957
  2. The Burmese Harp
    #2

    The Burmese Harp

    ★ 7.9 · 1956
  3. Floating Clouds
    #3

    Floating Clouds

    ★ 7.8 · 1955
  4. Bloody Spear at Mount Fuji
    #4

    Bloody Spear at Mount Fuji

    ★ 7.4 · 1955
  5. A Sun-Tribe Myth from the Bakumatsu Era
    #5

    A Sun-Tribe Myth from the Bakumatsu Era

    ★ 7.4 · 1957
  6. I Live in Fear
    #6

    I Live in Fear

    ★ 7.3 · 1955
  7. Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island
    #7

    Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island

    ★ 7.3 · 1956
  8. Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple
    #8

    Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple

    ★ 7.2 · 1955

The 1950s Japan Landscape

Catalog density by release year across the 1950s in Japan, 76 titles in total. Highlighted year (yellow) is when Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island premiered alongside 8 others.

'503'514'526'537'546'559'569'5710'5812'5910

Position in Catalog

Released alongside 8 other Japan films in 1956.

The 85th Japan title from Japan we index (earliest catalogued entry: 1899).

Our Japan catalog contains 4,579 titles in total (2,908 films).

Audience Engagement

87
Reviews
74th
Review-volume percentile
59th
Popularity percentile

87 audience reviews — more than 74% of Japan films in our index.

Review volume (74th percentile) outruns trending popularity (59th) — a durable title with sustained audience attention.

Thematic Fingerprint

Tags on Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island, grouped by how common each theme is across the full Asian catalog. Rare tags are more distinctive signals.

Distinctive themes · rare across catalog
  • katana sword · 5
  • miyamoto musashi · 2
  • challenge · 1
  • farm life · 1
  • sword duel · 1
Recurring themes · common across catalog
  • ronin · 18
  • samurai sword · 16
  • bandit · 12
Mainstream tags · widely used across catalog
  • samurai · 128
  • biography · 75
  • jidaigeki · 61
  • sword fight · 56
  • love triangle · 55
  • village · 46

Reception Benchmarks

7.3
TMDB Rating
87
Audience Reviews
Highly Rated
Critical Tier

Ranked #1,580 of 4,579 Japan films indexed here (65th percentile by TMDB audience score).

Rating is +0.4 points above the Japan average of 6.9/10.

Among Japan Action productions specifically: #677 of 1,714 (top 39%).

Production Details

Primary CountryJapan
Original LanguageJapanese
Production CompaniesTOHO
Runtime1h 45m
Release DateJanuary 3, 1956
IMDbtt0049710