Seven Samurai

In 1586, a bandit gang discusses raiding a mountain village, but their chief decides to wait until after the harvest for a better haul. Overhearing this, the villagers turn to Gisaku, the village elder. Gisaku advises them to hire samurai willing to only fight for food to protect the village. Traveling to a nearby town, the villagers find Kambei, an aging but experienced rōnin, whom they see rescue a young boy from a thief. A young samurai named Katsushirō asks to become Kambei's disciple. The villagers ask for Kambei's help, and he agrees after recognizing their suffering. He then recruits Gorobei as his second-in-command, along with Kambei's old comrade-in-arms Shichirōji, Heihachi—a samurai without much skill but an amiable temperament—and Kyūzō, a master swordsman. Kikuchiyo, a wild, self-proclaimed samurai, is accepted too after attempts to drive him away fail.

Following an initially cold response from the villagers, the samurai and farmers start to trust each other; the samurai survey the village's surroundings and begin training the farmers. In a nearby mountain meadow, Katsushirō meets Shino who was disguised as a boy by her father Manzō. Katsushirō chastises her for not joining the men for training before realizing she is a woman. Later, the samurai are angered when Kikuchiyo brings them armor and weapons, which the villagers acquired by killing other samurai injured or fleeing from battle. Kikuchiyo retorts that samurai are responsible for much of the suffering farmers endure, revealing that he was born a farmer himself. The samurai's anger turns to shame. Later, Heihachi makes a flag that represents both the seven samurai and the village. Katsushirō shares his rice with Shino and the two form a relationship, though they recognize that they can not be together due to their difference in social class.

When the barley in the village ripens, Kambei organizes the farmers into squads. He tells the villagers that those who live in outlying houses must evacuate. When they dissent, he chastises them for thinking only of themselves and not the village as a whole. Three bandit scouts are spotted around the village; two are killed, while the last reveals their camp's location before the villagers execute him. The samurai burn down the camp in a pre-emptive strike. Rikichi, a troubled villager aiding the samurai, breaks down when he sees his wife, who was taken by the bandits during a previous raid. Upon seeing Rikichi, she runs back into the burning barracks to her death. Heihachi is killed by a gunshot while trying to stop Rikichi from pursuing her. At Heihachi's funeral, Kikuchiyo raises the banner Heihachi had made over the village to inspire everyone.

While the village is in mourning, the bandits arrive and burn the village's outlying houses, including Gisaku's mill. Gisaku's family tries to save him when he refuses to abandon it, but all perish except a baby rescued by Kikuchiyo. The village is besieged with many killed, while the defenders thwart every attack. The bandits possess three matchlock muskets. Kyūzō captures one; an envious Kikuchiyo abandons his squad to bring back another. However, Kikuchiyo's absence allows a handful of bandits to infiltrate his post and kill several farmers, and Gorobei is slain defending his position. That night, Kambei predicts that the bandits will make one final assault.

Meanwhile, Katsushirō and Shino's relationship is discovered by Manzō, who beats her when he finds out that his daughter's virginity has been taken. Kambei and the villagers intervene and attempt to persuade him that the couple should be forgiven. The next morning, the defenders allow the remaining bandits to enter the village and ambush them. As the battle nears its end, the bandit chief kills Kyūzō with his musket. An enraged Kikuchiyo charges in and is shot as well, but kills the chief before dying. The remaining bandits are slain. Afterward, Kambei, Katsushirō and Shichirōji stand in front of the funeral mounds of their comrades, watching the villagers sing while planting their crops. Katsushirō and Shino meet, but Shino walks past him to join the others while Katsushirō watches her. Kambei declares to Shichirōji that it is a Pyrrhic victory for the samurai and that the real victors are the farmers.