Review of Ran (1985) by Andy S — 10 Dec 2010

Wherever those hills/mountains are in Japan, I want to be there. This movie is gorgeous. All the shots of nature and the cinematography are perfectly on point.

Taro's wife seems like she bad news. Same with the wife in Kurosawa's brilliant movie, Throne of Blood. It's crazy to see how conniving and corrupt the Great Lord's son becomes. Wow, amazing sequence when the warriors trap Hidetora and his men and then proceed to kill them. Really dark bet yet so elegant especially with the music in the background.

I love how Hidetora looks like a goddamn ghost when he walk out. It's almost like is in fact a ghost. Amazing shot with the castle burning in the background and all the warriors.

That scene where Hidetora gets carried into a small house is amazing. When the man plays the flute, you can feel all the emotions and feelings he has towards the whole ordeal with Hidetora himself. It's played out brilliantly. The man in the house serves as a reminder to Hidetora of his not so friendly past.

Seeing all those warriors on horseback cross that body of water full throttle is quite a sight to see. That Lady Kaede is probably the most viscous out of all of them. She don't fucking play no games. It's incredible to see the amount of extras Kurosawa used in this movie, he paid no expenses. I'm glad Lady Kaede's life ended that way. But what was more intersting was her reason behind why she did everything she did. It kind of makes you understand why she did what she did, and makes sense. That ending, wow, so much symbolism and metaphor.

Overall, this movie is an amazing epic. It could easily be arranged into a play, and still be good. The acting and the story line are so gripping. The cinematography is beautiful. A lot of attention to detail was given. Especially with all the costumes, castle, set pieces, and locations. Seeing the good relationship they all had, the father and the sons, and then watching it all go to shit once the father relinquishes his power, is something I've never seen in a movie before. This movie is about revenge, avenging lost ones, family bonds, war, corruption, history, and even religion. And it all comes together elegantly and majestically.