Trilogy is perhaps not the right word for this set of three films (1954-56) by Hiroshi Inagaki, because it is, like the Peter Jackson version of Lord of The Rings, an episodic sequential telling of one winding story. Adapted from the novel Musashi by Eiji Yoshikawa, the Samurai trilogy is a loose take on the life of Japanese swordsman and folk-hero Musashi Miyamoto. Going by the afore-mentioned Wiki link, the screenplay appears to have taken a fair number of liberties with incidents from Musashi's life but from the perspective of an interesting heroic story, and as a showcase for the dashing and infinitely manly personality of Toshiro Mifune, it works well in most part. We sally forth now into details of the individual episodes:

Samurai I – Musashi Miyamoto (1954)

We start with Musashi, then called Takezo, as a wayward rebellious youth (at least as youthful as 35-year old Mifune could make himself appear), nursing dreams of becoming a Samurai. He runs off from home and querulous relatives along with friend Matahachi (who is betrothed to Otsu, a simple simpering village girl with the undemanding patience of the village idiot) to become soldiers in the battle of Sekigahara. Fated to be on the losing side in the war, the two become wandering Ronin. While roaming the countryside they meet up with pretty Akemi and her widowed mother, only later learning that the women gather their sustenance from looting Samurai corpses (shades of Onibaba by Kaneto Shindo). After seeing Takezo's valor and ferocity in a brawl with bandits, Akemi and her mother make individual attempts to seduce him, but are both rebuffed. Akemi's mother then coaxes Matahachi (who has earlier made a clumsy attempt at bedding Akemi) into going along with them.

Meanwhile, Takezo returns to his village to dispel notions of himself and Matahachi having been killed in the war, only to be disowned by the villagers who hold him responsible for Matahachi's death. No one believes him apart from Otsu, who now shifts her affections to Takezo. With Otsu's help, the runaway Takezo is captured by a priest, who first punishes, then directs Takezo towards the long hard path that will make him a true Samurai, christening him Musashi Miyamoto. Thus ends the first installment of Samurai.

Packed with pacy narrative and good action, Musashi Miyamoto is, despite its occasional hiccups, an entertaining film in itself and an excellent starting episode to the saga of the swordsman-hero.