Guide Mentor

Character Role Analysis

Gisaku

This role might also be filled by Kambei, who's experienced and wise, and lays down his wisdom for all to partake. But since he's also the protagonist, we're going to go with Gisaku, the old man in the village who first tells them all to go hire samurai. He's a typically crusty sort, with a fair amount of contempt for his fellow villagers and the wherewithal to know why they're such whiny little cowards sometimes.

But some of his wisdom applies to the samurai as well, and it's not always of the happy variety. He's not keen to abandon the mill where he lives, despite it being outside the village's zone of protection, and he eventually chooses to return there and die rather than continue fighting. Guys like him don't have a lot of choices in their life. They've seen a lot and can impart their wisdom to others, but they can't really exercise any power of their own. Gisaku dies on his terms, not anybody else's; it's the one time he can actually master his own destiny.

It's a tough deal, but he embraces it with gusto and he does die on his terms rather than anyone else's. Like a lot of the movie, his victory here is compromised and tinged with tragedy, leaving us feeling depressed and contemplative rather than high-fiving each other. His fate is sad, but that's life: something this little old man wants everyone to understand before he shuffles off to his final reward.