6 Best Samurai Warrior Movies

By Vlad Zakh · May 24, 2026

Samurai warriors bring disciplined honor and lethal skill. 13 Assassins is a team-up against a sadistic lord, The Last Samurai has an American officer captured by samurai, and Sanjuro has a cynical ronin helping naive young samurai expose corruption. Harakiri, Yojimbo and Seven Samurai round out the six.

13 Assassins (2010)

IMDb ★ 7.5 RT 95% Metacritic 84

A group of samurai plots to kill a sadistic lord before he seizes even more power.

Directed by Takashi Miike · 2h 21m · Rated R

15 wins & 28 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Philo, Brew, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Magnolia Selects Amazon Channel · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Brew, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Brew, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Last Samurai (2003)

TMDB ★ 7.7

An American military officer hired to train Japanese soldiers is captured by samurai warriors and slowly joins their cause.

Directed by Edward Zwick · 2h 34m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: fuboTV, HBO Max Amazon Channel, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Philo, MGM Plus, HBO Max · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Sanjuro (1962)

TMDB ★ 8.0

A cynical ronin reluctantly helps a group of naive young samurai expose corruption within their clan.

Directed by Akira Kurosawa · 1h 36m · Rated NR

Where to watch

Stream: Criterion Channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Harakiri (1962)

IMDb ★ 8.6 RT 100% Metacritic 85

A ronin's request to commit ritual suicide at a feudal estate unravels a tale of institutional cruelty.

Directed by Masaki Kobayashi · 2h 15m · Rated NR

9 wins & 3 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Criterion Channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Yojimbo (1961)

IMDb ★ 8.2 RT 96% Metacritic 93

A wandering samurai plays two rival gangs against each other to liberate a terrorised town.

Directed by Akira Kurosawa · 1h 50m · Rated NR

Nominated for 1 Oscar5 wins & 2 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: HBO Max Amazon Channel, HBO Max · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Seven Samurai (1954)

IMDb ★ 8.6 RT 100% Metacritic 98

A poor village hires seven masterless samurai to defend it from a band of marauding bandits.

Directed by Akira Kurosawa · 3h 27m · Rated NR

Nominated for 2 Oscars5 wins & 9 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: HBO Max Amazon Channel, HBO Max · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Streaming availability data from JustWatch, via TMDB. Availability changes often, so check the service before you plan a movie night.

Vlad Zakh

Founder, Movieix

Founder of Movieix. He started the site because most recommendation pages felt like noise. Here, lists are sorted by who's in the film, where it's from and what mood you're in tonight.

6 Best Samurai Warrior Movies

13 Assassins (2010)

The Last Samurai (2003)

Sanjuro (1962)

Harakiri (1962)

Yojimbo (1961)

Seven Samurai (1954)

You might also like

6 Best Samurai and Feudal Japan Movies

50 Best Action Movies of All Time

250 Best Movies of All Time

Hiroyuki Sanada – 10 Best Movies

8 Best Toshiro Mifune Movies

7 Best Akira Kurosawa Movies