Review of Ran (1985) by Keiko A — 18 Jan 2011

Project 1 (Epic Films).

Directed by Akira Kurosawa and staring Tatsuya Nakadai, Mieko Harada, Jinpachi Nezu and Daisuke Ryû.

The centre forge of such Isolation and Power is the main part of this epic. Do I love Akira films??? Yes I do and I have watched them over and over, this movie about the struggle of power and of course Kurosawa is very crone to Shakespeare that's how he made this movie all on his work but a more of our Japanese style to it. I remember when I first watched this and that was like years ago I didn't really like the film back then but today, this is one of my favourite epics ever.

I read somewhere that Akira Kurosawa painted everything before he under took the movie and he get the idea from Lucio Fulci from his masterpiece The Beyond. The way Fucli painted the powerful images of hell and then took them to the screen with the films ending climax with the two Americans in an atheist vision of hell. As well as the croned haunted hell house. I just admire Kurosawa's visions of this epic with the burning of the 3rd castle that was just amazing.

A story of greed, a lust for power, and ultimate revenge. The Great Lord Hidetora Ichimonji has decided to step aside to make room for the younger blood of his three sons, Taro, Jiro, and Saburo, the Lord's only wish now being to live out his years as an honored guest in the castle of each of his sons in turn. While the older two sons flatter their father, the youngest son attempts to warn him of the folly of expecting the three sons to remain united; enraged at the younger son's attempt to point out the danger, the father banishes him. True to the younger son's warning, however, the oldest Son soon conspires with the second son to strip The Great Lord of everything, even his title.

I admire the films themes of.

Warfare: Saburo's assassination by a sniper also shows how individual heroes can be easily disposed of on a modern battlefield. Kurosawa also illustrates this new warfare with his camera. Instead of focusing on the warring armies, he frequently sets the focal plane beyond the action, so that in the film they appear as abstract entities.

Chaos: The ultimate example of chaos is the absence of gods. When Hidetora sees Lady Sue, a devout Buddhist and the most religious character in the film, he tells her, Buddha is gone from this miserable world. Sue, despite her belief in love and forgiveness, eventually has her head cut off. When Kyoami claims that the gods either do not exist or are the cause of human suffering, Tango responds, the gods can't save us from ourselves.

And of course there are powerful themes of Power, Greed and Nihilism.

Even though it may not appear so it is based on the struggle of King Lear, well not entirely directed towards or near it I see the similarities or the two stories and how it was based on it. I read the book once upon a time and it was just beautiful to know were he got inspiration besides overusing Shakespeare. (Not in a bad way at all).

The acting style is very strange and controversial. It's rather more body language and the way people reflect on there situation. It's mainly influenced by Noh theatre, it also more body language as I have sated and the distraction of silences that goes into that scene. Not just focusing on the scenery and what is happening to this struggle. Noh aspects of these two characters emphasize their ruthless, passionate, and single minded natures.

I really liked the way with the camera instead of the simple one camera stands there and...Take done. No he uses more of the old technique and advances more on Long shots to catch the beauty of that scene and what is in view of it, such as the people and the building as well as catching there responses to that action. As well as the arrow hitting the man and the peoples reaction to the perpetrator doing so.

I really liked the costume designs they took more then two years to make all of them by hand and for every lead and every extra and done so with such creative talent it's not just the leads that get the best it's all of them. I really liked the aspect of course with all the detail put into it, It's not today you see these sort of things anymore. So overall it was worthy of its Oscar for best costume design and I can think of a million other categories it should have won.

The sets are just breathing again Akira spent years painting everything to his likening and everything had to be right down to every detail. The burning of the 3rd castle was just incredible no miniatures no computer generated imagery...No. Everything was burned to the ground in the order that it should and every actor or extra needed to know what they were doing. And its not just sets its scenery I remember the scene with the filed of gold they just went for miles and she was walking throw it like nothing because she was no greedy man.

I think by the end every man, women, child needs to view this epic masterpiece.

Keiko's score 100%.