Musashi Miyamoto and Sasaki Kojiro are the two most famed swordsmen in Japan, and both are being courted for the role of the Shogun's combat trainer. In those circumstances, it is perhaps inevitable that they will duel.
For Miyamoto, however, finding spiritual peace is a vital part of his journey as a samurai, and he postpones the duel for a year (and also for most of the run time of this 105 minute film) in order to work as a farmer and try to sought out the love triangle that's dogged him for the previous two films of the trilogy. Only then (and naturally, also after the odd encounter with bandits and other riff raff to show off his martial skills) does Miyamoto head to the island of Ganryu for what, win or lose, will be his last ever duel.
All three Samurai films have been stately affairs from a pacing perspective, with this being perhaps the most glacial of them all. Having established its end game, it honestly rather does take its time to get there. I'd be okay with that if I felt like the events leading up to it were strongly connected and created a growing momentum, but I didn't. The romance sub-plot and the bandits feel like a separate story from the duel, and in many ways a more immediate and engaging one.
Ultimately, this was not for me.
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