I’ve now arrived at an important transition in Akira Kurosawa’s career. In my project of watching all (or all available) Kurosawa films in chronological order, I’ve completed his pre-widescreen work. Every film I’ve watched so far, from his first, Sanshiro Sugata, to his 17th, The Lower Depths, was shot in the old Academy Ratio of … Continue reading Kurosawa Diary, Part 14: Going Widescreen
Category: Kurosawa Diary
Kurosawa Diary, Part 13: The Lower Depths
Akira Kurosawa turned two classic European stage plays into Japanese films in 1957. But while the first of these adaptations, Throne of Blood, is exciting, action-packed, and expressionistic, the second, The Lower Depths, is dialog-heavy and relentlessly realistic. I was also going to call it low-key, but I realized that wasn’t quite accurate. There’s a … Continue reading Kurosawa Diary, Part 13: The Lower Depths
Kurosawa Diary, Part 12: Throne of Blood
Between 1952 and 1965, Akira Kurosawa make eleven films, and even the worst of these were near-masterpieces. His 1957 Macbeth adaptation, released in the United States as Throne of Blood, is among the most popular of those films. But for me, it’s among the least great of these films. Although Throne of Blood (or Spider-web … Continue reading Kurosawa Diary, Part 12: Throne of Blood
Coming Attractions
Just a quick note to share some upcoming events. The Stanford will start a Kurosawa festival this Saturday. The schedule has yet to be announced, but it will tentatively start with Seven Samurai. Check here for more information. And The San Francisco Silent Film Festival made an exciting announcement about their summer festival (July 15-18). … Continue reading Coming Attractions
Kurosawa Diary, Part 11: Record of a Living Being (I Live in Fear)
Akira Kurosawa’s 15th film doesn’t enjoy the continued popularity of the works that bookcase it, Seven Samurai and Throne of Blood. Nor is it as widely available. I saw it for the first time only a few years ago at the Castro. My second viewing happened on DVD Sunday night, as part of my current … Continue reading Kurosawa Diary, Part 11: Record of a Living Being (I Live in Fear)
Kurosawa Diary, Part 10: Seven Samurai
Seven months ago, personal responsibilities forced me to lay aside my goal of watching every available Kurosawa film in the order they were made. I’ve just restarted it. The long break came in-between my two favorite Kurosawa films, Ikiru and Seven Samurai. I own both films on DVD, so I can’t even blame Netflix for … Continue reading Kurosawa Diary, Part 10: Seven Samurai
Kurosawa Diary, Part 9: Ikiru
After the overlong, stultifying mess of The Idiot, we come to one of the great masterpieces of world cinema. The title, Ikiru, means “to live” (or so I’ve been told), and I’d be hard pressed to think of a better film about the mortality that shapes and shadows our lives. In fact, I’d be hard-pressed … Continue reading Kurosawa Diary, Part 9: Ikiru
Kurosawa Diary, Part 8: The Idiot
By the beginning of the 1950’s, Akira Kurosawa was capable of making a masterpiece on the order of Rashomon, but he still couldn’t make two decent movies in a row. His follow-up to Rashomon, The Idiot, stinks to high heaven. And at 166 minutes, it’s a very long stink. (Kurosawa’s original cut ran 265 minutes, … Continue reading Kurosawa Diary, Part 8: The Idiot
Kurosawa Diary, Part 7: Rashomon
And now, finally, we get into classic Kurosawa. Both from my own personal experience and its place in film history, Rashomon is in a different league than the other films I've yet seen since undertaking to watch all of Kurosawa's films (or at least all that are available) in chronological order. I've seen Rashomon more … Continue reading Kurosawa Diary, Part 7: Rashomon
Kurosawa Diary, Part 6: Scandal
Less than three hours ago, Scandal was the only post-war Akira Kurosawa film I had never seen. I've just seen it, as part of my project of seeing all available Kurosawa films in chronological order, and the only thing it satisfied was my curiosity. Those who've been following this diary know that, in my opinion, … Continue reading Kurosawa Diary, Part 6: Scandal
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