Two bumbling idiots, indeed

Rico says he watched (over several days) the classic Akira Kurosawa movie Kakushi-toride no san-akunin, better known as Hidden Fortress. It's got a valiant warrior (Toshio Mifune), a disguised princess, and two "bumbling idiot" companions. Sound like Star Wars? It should. George Lucas himself admits to lifting the storyline for his science fiction classic.
As Captain Dallas posted on a comic blog: "The thematic and character similarities between Star Wars and Hidden Fortress are many. For instance, like Star Wars, Hidden Fortress opens with an immediate focus on two supporting characters who lead us to the protagonists. On the Criterion DVD, Lucas admits that C-3P0 and R2D2 are modeled after the two bumbling idiots of Hidden Fortress. Indeed, the segment at the beginning of Star Wars where C-3P0 and R2D2 get sick of each other's company, part ways, and then become exhilirated when they are accidentally reunited mirrors a similar segment in Hidden Fortress."