Review of Ikiru (1952) by Kevin H — 06 Oct 2011

A Kurosawa film that felt more like a Bergman film - very interesting. I found the pacing to be a little stagnant and the editing somewhat indulgent compared to many of Kurosawa's other works (the last third, in particular, when Shimura's coworkers ruminate on his strange behaviour, drags painfully and feels largely redundant), and I found myself pining for the unique, incisive criticism of the first third's narration or a creative equivalent as the film quickly slipped into more familiar narrative territory.

Nonetheless, to dwell excessively on criticism would be a major disservice to such a profoundly resonant film. As such, despite being a more sombre Kurosawa effort, it remains a rich, devastating and yet (in a roundabout way) affirming meditation on mortality with an unforgettable central performance by the loveably raspy "mummy" Takashi Shimura.