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Rashomon

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

A man is dead, a woman was raped, and that's all that can be definitely said. Somebody has committed murder, but nobody knows whodunnit.

And that's the basic plot of Akira Kurosawa's "Rashomon," a hauntingly pessimistic look at how the "truth" can be warped and changed by different people's perspectives. It's a magnificently eerie piece of work, filled with suspense and some really astounding acting -- particularly from Toshiro Mifune as a laughing bandit.

At the Rashomon Gate in eleventh-century Japan, a man (Kichijiro Ueda) takes shelter with a priest (Minoru Chiaki) and a woodcutter (Takashi Shimura) during a rainstorm.

The woodcutter is depressed and the priest is horrified, over a recent crime: the vicious bandit Tajômaru (Toshirô Mifune) was arrested for murdering a man named Takehiro (Masayuki Mori) and raping his wife Masako (Machiko Kyô). But when taken before the police, Tajômaru claims that he had his fun with the woman and killed her husband honorably in a fight.

But Masako begs to differ; she claims to be the victim first of the sadistic bandit, then of her cold-hearted husband, whom she says she stabbed. And when a medium calls up the spirit of Takehiro, he claims that Masako was unfaithful, asking the bandit to murder him, then spurned by Tajômaru. Her actions drove Takehiro to suicide. But the woodcutter himself claims to have seen the altercation -- and his version is wildly different from them all.

During the filming of "Rashomon," director Akira Kurosawa stated that the film is a reflection of life, which doesn't always have clear meanings. The same could be said of truth. Questions are raised by the events of "Rashomon," but given no easy answers -- sometimes no answers at all (my biggest question was how Masako's gown stays so white if she's always weeping on the ground).

Are Kurosawa's insights dark and depressing? In a fascinating, hypnotic way... yes. But while calmly pointing out the ability of human beings to lie even to themselves, he acknowledges that there's good in there too. The illusions and innocence of the young priest are stripped away, yet the knowledge of how despicable people can be is tempered with the knowledge that "real" truth isn't necessary to have goodness.

And Kurosawa's directorial skill is no less striking -- light and shadow whirl and dance in a frankly beautiful woodland setting, serving as a pretty backdrop for some very ugly acts. Kurosawa was even brave enough to touch on the unique idea of having the deceased testify. The spinechilling seance scene, starring a downright spooky, stark-faced Fumiko Honma, is a haunting classic scene.

And the masterful fight scenes deserve an extra shout-out -- they reflect the person telling the story. Tajomaru's are more stylized and choreographed, while the woodcutter just sees two freaked-out guys rolling and staggering with swords.

Toshirô Mifune chews the scenery with gusto as the barbarian bandit, especially with that crazy hyena laugh. Machiko Kyô initially seems to be overacting, until you see how unhinged her character has become, and Masayuki Mori does a pretty solid job for a guy tied to a tree. Minoru Chiaki and Takashi Shimura add an extra dimension as the innocent young priest and the tormented woodcutter.

Gloomy, thought-provoking and ultimately quite freaky, "Rashomon" still defies conventional filmmaking, brilliantly crafted and exceptionally directed. And that's the truth.

Rashomon was the first movie where Akira Kurosawa really found his filmmaking voice.

Visually, Rashomon is stunning. The techniques used by Kurosawa were years ahead of their time. The outdoor filming, especially in the forest, gives the film an authenticity that you just can't get on a soundstage.

As far as the story goes, there is enough ambiguity to keep people discussing this movie for decades. Is it about lying? Distorted memories? People lying to themselves? Selfishness? Or is it about all of the above?

Kurosawa's story of a murder told from four different points of view that come across with distinctly different details is captivating. In the end we still aren't 100% sure exactly what happened, although we have a fairly good idea. Toshiro Mifune is, as he often is, over the top as the bandit. But being Toshiro Mifune over the top works extremely well. It comes across as genuine, and not just hammy acting. Mifune would take this performance and refine it further in Seven Samurai just four years later.

As for the Essential Art House DVD, it is the Criterion version without the extras. The picture quality is quite good, as the contrast is just about perfect, and the picture has a sharpness and clarity that is very pleasing. The sound doesn't fare quite so well, as there is a lot of hiss and crackling to be heard, but not so much as to be a deal breaker. The voices come through clearly, as does the rain and other forest sounds.

Why buy this version? Price. It is roughly half the cost of the fully loaded Criterion release, so that makes it a lot easier to make the purchase. Yes, the extras on the full Criterion version are quite good, but if you're on the fence about buying the movie this would be the one to get (especially if price is a major consideration).

Rashomon is one of the relatively few movies that truly deserves the name "classic." There are so many reasons why Rashomon is worth watching and so much has already been said about the movie, but here's my take. I watched it recently with my wife and my 16 and 15 year old kids, and I could tell that although it wasn't one my kids would have chosen, they understood that they were in the presence of something greater than the typical movie they've seen.

So why should you watch Rashomon?

1. It's a groundbreaking film. Many of Kurosawa's techniques were cutting edge at the time Rashomon was filmed. While this is one of the main reasons film critics give for rating movies highly, in my opinion it's not enough of a reason to call a movie great.

2. Great acting. Many moviegoers wouldn't recognize this as great acting because the culture and moviemaking are so different from what they're used to. The greatness of the acting is best seen in how each actor or actress has to adapt to fit the 4 versions of the same story. But even great acting isn't enough to make a great film for me.

3. Multiple perspectives and richness of meaning. We live in an age when we've come to expect that every story has multiple angles and no one right answer. I'd like to officially blame Rashomon for that. While the use of multiple perspectives has now become a common part of the grammar of cinema, with Rashomon it was revolutionary. The 4 different versions of the story not only create a deep layering effect on the question of what really happened but also create a sort of 3-D effect in terms of gaining some understanding of human nature. While Kurosawa's actors wanted to know which was the "real" story, the big K told them that no single one was correct. Even though, personally, this irks me just a little, the truth is that the movie reveals a lot about human nature.

4. The movie reveals a lot about human nature. Now here's perhaps the best reason for calling a movie great. This is also why great movies like Rashomon transcend time and culture. I'm a 21st century Christian in America watching a Japanese movie from 1950 set in an unspecified time. And while the multiple perspectives preclude knowing exactly what happened, Kurosawa still manages to communicate truth. I can't reduce the message of the movie to a moral, but suffice it to say that Rashomon leaves you with a strong sense of the evil of humanity but also with the possibility of redemption.

5. Great storytelling. What I noticed first about watching Rashomon with my kids was that the story sucked them in, and it did it without the following: rapid scene changes, a blaring soundtrack, lots of sound effects, rapid action, color film, noise that fills every crevice of the film's aural canvass, and a director who tells you exactly what to think and what he tells you to think is the same shallow, safe moralism - or anti-moralism and anti-heroism - that most movies offer. No, at the center of this story was a question: "What happened?" But the way the story was told and developed engrossed all of us.

I wish some grand experiment could be conducted on teenagers (and adults!) today and have millions of them all sit down and watch Rashomon. I'd like to see if perhaps, in spite of the usual pablum they serve themselves, they wouldn't catch a glimpse of a deeper world that is worth thinking about and worth thinking about long after the trance induced by the movie had worn off.

Roshomon is beautiful in ever way; the story line is excellent, the acting is genuine, the script is realistic and not filled with fluff, the camera angles are perfection, and it's as much a story of an incident as an exploration of human nature.

It's the story of the murder of a man told from several different angles; the robber; the wife; the murdered man; and the woodcutter. Each view varies differently and every story is changed a little (or a lot). It makes the viewer constantly question which story is true or which parts of each story are true, even after watching the movie dozens of times. It also makes the viewer consider "point of view" in everyday life, how the same incident is seen in several different lights and how can it be that 3 people can witness the same thing and come to different conclusions.

In Rashomon, we are given a very complicated look at the human condition, pride in particular. The legendary Toshiro Mifune gives an engrossing performance as the almost animalistic Bandit who may or may not have committed the crime of which he stands accused. His is one of four stories offered all of which depict different aspects of what may or may not have happened. This movie is not about action, so be warned. Rather it more closely emanates from Film Noir of 40's hollywood. It is also a great example of the unreliable narrator in it that of all four stories told, not one of them may be completely true. That is left to you. Kurosawa's breakout film (to the west) and his inspired use of light and dark in the background make this a must see for film lovers. Combined with the aforementioned Toshiro Mifune. As a final note, there are no extras with this version, it is the movie alone, so if you wish for behind the scenes and interviews, this is not the version for you.

This is a brilliantly told and acted film. And it leaves you thinking about what really happened, long after the film has ended. Kurosawa was a master and this film is a good reason why. I highly recommend it.

Take one part murder mystery, add a hint of super stardom name Toshiro Mifune and mix up the batter with legendary director Akira Kurosawa and what do you get? A masterpiece of human emotion with great depth which questions morality in man. This film's ending is one of the great arcs I have seen in that it delivers such a punch of emotion and hope into you. I center my attention on the priest at the end of the film as the thief questions the morality of man and rocks the priest's belief in the good of man, but I exclude the real whammy, as all hope is not lost. I wanted this review to be miniature and to tell people plain and simple "watch this movie if you enjoy great films made by epic directors.

If you are interested in film history, you might find this movie interesting since it is directed by Legendary director Kurosawa. If, however, you want to watch a good movie, then you should skip this, because this is absolutely one of the worst movies I've ever seen.

The movie starts out with 3 bums seeking shelter from a downpour in a ruined temple. One of the bums tells the story of a murder victim he found and the resulting inquest. In his story, he tells of the 3 people involved in the crime: the bandit who is suspected of the murder; the woman the bandit rapes; and her husband, the murder victim. Each person tells their own version of events, including the murder victim who tells the story through a medium. Each version differs greatly.

The problem with this movie is that it is boring, the plot is completely not interesting in the least, the acting is absolutely over-the-top atrocious, and none of the characters is even remotely likeable.

And the fight scenes! Oh my. It's like watching mentally disabled people trying to whack each other with sticks after drinking a fifth of whiskey. Falling, tripping, clumsily grappling and missing, and flailing around in the dirt like spastic monkeys.

And while Kurosawa may indeed be a legend, I have to wonder why in the world he chose to do some of the things he did in this film. For example, when the bum begins to tell his tale, he says he was walking through the forest to cut some wood. The scene then cuts to a backflash of the bum walking through the woods. This walking-through-the-woods scene goes on FOREVER. It's just the bum ... walking through the woods ... from 1000 different angles ... while incredibly annoying drum music is playing in the background. And that's all there is: bum, woods, walking, and drums, and it lasts a ridiculously long time. If that is an example of what good directing is, I'd hate to see what qualifies as bad directing.

To sum up: I've seen Star Trek movies that are more artistic and more skillfully executed than this abysmal waste of 2 hours. You've been warned.