Quotes And Leadership Lessons From Blade Of The 47 Ronin

A Reel Leadership Article

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Blade Of The 47 Ronin is a sequel to the 2013 Keanu Reeves film 47 Ronin. The new movie takes place 300 years after 47 Ronin.

Blade Of The 47 Ronin is hyper-stylized visually. The colors pop, the action sings, and there is quite a bit of violence.

Action scene from Blade of the 47 Samurai

All of this adds up to an exciting story of mistaken identity that turns out okay in the end.

If you love samurai movies, you’ll like this movie. If you like ninja movies, there’s something for you here. And if you like action movies, this is a great movie to watch.

Today, we will dig into Blade Of The 47 Ronin to examine the leadership lessons within. Put on your comfy clothes, hit the recliner, and prepare for Reel Leadership.

If you haven’t watched Blade Of The 47 Samurai yet, you can purchase it on Amazon.

Quotes And Leadership Lessons From Blade Of The 47 Ronin

1. Lord Arai (Chris Pang):

To trust.

Lord Arai was a samurai warrior. He was meeting with a ninja witch, Hirano. Each one had part of the Tengu Sword.

The Tengu Sword was powerful. It would give the evil ninja Yurei (Dan Southworth) the power to kill anyone he willed.

The duo met to figure out what to do, to forge a truth.

During their meeting, Lord Arai offered Hirano a drink of sake. Hirano didn’t trust him, so Arai switched the shot glasses and raised his.

You cannot lead well if you lack the trust of those you interact with. This trust isn’t just from the people you lead. You need trust in all of your dealings.

The need for trust goes to the vendors you supply, customers you deal with, and more.

Make sure you’re a trustworthy individual, and you’re building trust with those you interact with.

2. There is a heavy weight that comes with leadership:

Lord Arai was thought to be the last descendant of the 47 ronin. Arai’s lineage is why Yurei crashed their meeting. He was there to end the ronin once and for all.

After Arai was murdered, Yurei realized Arai wasn’t the last descendant. There was another.

However, before he murdered Arai, it was mentioned Arai carried a heavy weight. The weight of being the one.

Leaders, we all carry the same weight. There’s a heaviness that comes with leadership.

You’re looked to as the one as you lead your team. You’re the one that has the answers, pushes the organization forward, and makes plans.

Know you’re going to feel the weight of leadership as you lead.

3. Lord Shinshiro (Mark Dacascos):

Let us take this evening to think about it.

There was a meeting between the different samurai clans. There was a lot of conversation over what to do.

Nikko (Dustin Nguyen) wanted to try to destroy the Warrior Blade (one half of the Tengu Sword). He also wanted to use modern weapons.

Shinshiro wasn’t sold on the idea. He was willing to think it over. And he asked for the time to do so.

When we’re brought new ideas, it can be tempting to jump at the opportunity to move forward with the prospect. I know I can be that way. I’m sure you are too.

We want the new, shiny, and best options available. This means taking quick action, right?

Yes and no.

Be willing to think over the options available to you. You don’t have to partner with everyone. Not every customer is a good one. There are bad deals.

Take the time to consider your options.

4. Shinsharo:

Protect here at all costs.

Lord Shinsharo was able to find the last descendant of the 47 Ronin. He believed it was Luna (Anna Akana). Shinsharo brought Luna to the samurai safehouse.

After the ninja had breached the samurai safehouse, Shinsharo commanded the samurai to protect Luna at all costs.

Leaders, you have a responsibility to protect those you lead. You don’t have to put others in danger as Shinsharo did, but you do need to care for those under you.

Make sure you’re protecting those you lead.

5. Leaders are influencers:

Luna had a foul mouth. She would regularly curse. That was until she met Shinsharo.

Every time Luna would curse, Shinsharo would say something about her language. Luna began to catch on.

When she felt the urge to curse, the words of Shinsharo would return to her. She eventually stopped cursing due to Shinsharo’s influence.

When you lead, you have influence. You will be able to shape the character, thoughts, and actions of those you lead.

Influence in a positive way.

6. Include the help of others:

There was a prophecy that Yurei would wield the Tengu Sword by a specific date and time. The day was only 5 days away.

Uh oh.

Luna wasn’t trained in the ways of a samurai. She had lived a rough life. She would need to be trained.

Shinsharo knew this and had the help of others in training Luna. He had the help of the following samurai and onna bugeisha (female samurai). These helpers included:

  • Onami (Teresa Ting)
  • Reo (Mike Moh)
  • Aya (Chikako Fukuyama)
  • Mai (Luna Fujimoto)

They worked hard. They trained harder. By the end, Luna was well-trained.

You may be the leader. This doesn’t mean you have to go at it alone.

No, you can include the help of others. Find people who you trust and who have the skills to come alongside you.

7. Shinsharo:

Lead… them.

Yurei had injured Shinsharo. He stumbled to Onami.

In his injured state, he told Onami to lead the group and, I believe, he inferred she needed to lead the samurai.

Leaders have to pass control at some point. When leaders pass the leadership baton, it’s a wise thing to make it known. To verbally pass the baton. It’s even better if you can do it in front of everyone.

Leaders won’t lead forever. They must be ready to pass it on to the next generation of leaders.

8. Reo:

Anger’s not going to get you anywhere.

Reo walked in on Onami hitting a brick wall. Not metaphorically but physically. She was pounding the wall!

Why? Because Onami was angry over what was happening. She was scared and angry…

Reo reminded her that anger isn’t going to solve anything. If anything, anger will make things worse.

Be careful of letting anger seep into your leadership. Anger will not lead you down the right path.

Temper your anger. Find a way to control it. Don’t let anger control you.

9. The truth can be different than you believe:

Dash (Nino Furuhata) was able to see into the future. He was also an electronics whiz.

He tried to help Luna discover the truth of her past. Luna believed her dad was a deadbeat who had left her mother and her.

The truth was revealed in a message Dash sent as he was dying. Luna’s father was a great man. He didn’t want to leave Luna and her mother but did to protect them. He wasn’t a deadbeat, after all.

What do you believe that’s not the truth? What story has become warped?

Don’t believe the surface-level lies. Dig deep. Find the truth.

10. You are meant to be a leader:

Luna stabbed Yurei with the Tengu Sword. Nothing happened. Yurei was okay.

It turns out Luna was not the last descendant. There was someone else.

Onami eventually picks up the Tengu Sword. The sword glowed. She was the last descendant. She was meant to kill Yurei.

You may not know your background, like Onami. However, there’s something special within you.

You have the potential to lead. You can take people to the next level; you can influence others, you can be a leader.

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