People have told me that this is one of the greatest movies ever. I havent seen it and was wondering if I should. What are some thoughts?

Definitely watch it on DVD restored to over three hours, but try to set aside some special time to watch it straight through. I realize that it's a large investment of time, but it will pay off handsomely, and even more so if you can watch it in one sitting. If you don't believe me, listen to Smenkharon. Then, in your next free two hours, watch "The Magnificent Seven" with Yul Brynner and Steve McQueen. If you like "Seven Samurai", the next one I'd graduate to is "Yojimbo", which was remade as "A Fistful of Dollars." I hope you like all of them.

Seven Samurai is definately a must see film. Sometimes it seems to me that every western movie I have ever seen just uses it as the blueprint. Sometimes it seems like every other director since is just sucking at the teat of Kurosawa. It's the truly human elements in his films, the bleak humour and realistic dialogue that amaze me every time. Watching Kurasawa's samurai movies, you get a sense of what the time and people were really like, something you never get out of a North American made movie about Japan, where the characters are all stereotypes(see The Last Samurai or Lost in Translation for recent examples). Another thing I love in the Seven Samurai are the realistic costumes. The sense of the squalor and poverty that the peasants live in is shown to the viewer through the dirtyness of the actors. I feel like I am watching a documentary with many Kurasawa films, he has an extraordinary ability to communicate realism in his movies.
Absolutely do Yojimbo next!

Cool, thanks you guys.
Ill definately look into seeing it sometime soon.

If you like those, you really need to check out 'Red Beard'.