The films of Akira Kurosawa, one of cinema's greatest auteurs, have had a profound effect on audiences around the world, and his acclaimed samurai epics – featuring international star Toshiro Mifune – have inspired filmmakers as diverse as George Lucas and Sergio Leone.

This five-disc DVD box set from the BFI, which also contains film notes, is released alongside BFI Southbank's Akira Kurosawa and His Influence, a season running throughout June, which marks the centenary of Kurosawa's birth with a season of films made by both the seminal filmmaker himself and those he has influenced. It includes an Extended Run of Rashomon (1951).

Seven Samurai (1954)
When the residents of a small Japanese village seek protection, they hire seven unemployed ‘ronin' (masterless samurai). Paid only in handfuls of rice, the samurai remain distant from the villagers, knowing that their assignment may prove to be fatal. Unanimously hailed as one of cinema's greatest masterpieces, Seven Samurai has inspired countless films, including The Magnificent Seven.

Throne of Blood (1957)
In this brilliant re-imagining of Shakespeare's Macbeth, Toshiro Mifune plays a samurai fated to betray his friend and master in exchange for the prestige of nobility. Kurosawa's bloody tale is a triumph of economic style, and the climactic battle scene is full of remarkable, and brutal, imagery.

The Hidden Fortress (1958)
In this classic collaboration between Kurosawa and star Mifune, a warrior and a princess try against all odds to return to their homeland with their fortune. Acknowledged by George Lucas as the inspiration for Star Wars, The Hidden Fortress combines an epic tale of struggle and honour with modern comic sensibilities to masterful effect.

Yojimbo (1961)
A drifting samurai for hire plays both ends against the middle with two warring factions, surviving on his wits and his ability to outrun his own bad luck. Eventually the samurai seeks to eliminate both sides for his own gain and to define his own sense of honour. Yojimbo was remade by Sergio Leone as A Fistful of Dollars.

Sanjuro (1962)
This comedy of manners follows a man fighting corruption in local government offers a twist on the classic Samurai tale by gently, but perfectly parodying the conventions of the Japanese period action movie tradition and boasting a genuinely astonsihing final sword blow.

Kurosawa Samurai Collection will be released on UK DVD on 7th June 2010 by the BFI at the RRP of £39.99.