Ikiru (1953)

Posted on December 28, 2012 by 4 Star Films

Directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring Takashi Shimura, this drama is loaded full of irony. As the film opens, right away we learn the protagonist has stomach cancer, except he has yet to find out. He has spent 30 years of his life working at a monotonous job as a bureaucrat. Only after he discovers that he barely has 6 months left does Watanabe-san actually begin to live his life again. He tries the night life of Japan and it does not satisfy. Then he starts spending time with a lively, young worker that he used to know. All the while he thinks about telling his son about his condition but he cannot bring himself to do it. However, Watanabe-san finally finds a way to leave his mark on this life. And yet 5 months later he is dead and his fellow bureaucrats seemingly dismiss his accomplishment Through a series of flashbacks they ultimately realize what he really did. I found this film to be powerful because this idea is so powerful. It makes me question if I am really living my life to the fullest extent.

5/5 Stars

Rashomon (1950)

Posted on December 27, 2012 by 4 Star Films

Directed by the famed Akira Kurosawa, the film starts off with two men eventually joined by a third. Both seem very melancholy and they explain this is because of something that happened three days earlier. Apparently a bandit met a husband and wife on the road and raped the wife with the husband being killed. However, this event is shown in four different accounts all varying greatly and we never learn what is fact and what is actually fiction. Because of this horrible event, one of the men who is a priest loses faith in mankind. The film ends just as it began with the two men alone under a pagoda watching the driving rain. However, an act of kindness quickly renews the priest’s belief. Kurasawa’s film certainly has an interesting plot device and camera work. Historically, it is also important because it introduced the world to Japanese cinema

5/5 Stars

Stray Dog (1949)

Posted on December 26, 2012 by 4 Star Films

Directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura, the plot revolves around a rookie cop who has his gun swiped on a trolley in Tokyo. The young man is obsessive about getting his weapon back and after reporting the missing gun, he walks the streets looking for answers. His searching leads to a gun racket and after a crime is committed the rookie partners with an old vet on the case. They eventually wind up at a baseball game and begin searching for a man named Yusa. Another crime is committed and now the pair question a reluctant show girl. The older Sato follows the trail of Yusa and meets with trouble. Finally, the girl talks and the desperate rookie searches for the mysterious Yusa. In their final showdown he rights everything and retrieves his gun. I found this film-noir very atmospheric with post-war Tokyo and heat and humidity that you can almost feel. The two main characters have a solid chemistry because only together can they catch the Stray Dog.

4/5 Stars

Throne of Blood (1957)

Posted on December 20, 2012 by 4 Star Films

Directed by Akira Kurosawa, this film is an adaption of Macbeth placed in a Japanese setting. Two great warriors come before their lord to be honored but before they arrive a spirit gives them a prophecy. One of the men who was initially loyal, decides to take the throne for his own after hearing the prophecy and being goaded by his wife. Soon he has become an overconfident madman bent on defeating everyone. Again the spirit in the forest gives him a prophecy that all but ensures his victory. However, all too soon his good fortune ends and that’s not all. This film has some slow parts but many of the images are very striking and atmospheric while the ending is also enjoyable. This is arguably the best adaption of Macbeth to film.