Review of Rashomon (1950) by Lauren W — 22 Nov 2008

The word rashomon has been used to describe quite a few films I have seen in the last couple of years . So I decided to watch the the film where the word originates from . Only two weeks ago I watched Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samarai for the first time and I was really impressed so did Rashomon have the same affect on me?

Set in the 11th century, the movie opens with a woodcutter, a priest, and a commoner sheltering from torrential rain in an immense dilapidated wooden structure. This structure, known as Rashomon gate, marks one of the approaches to Kyoto. As the three men wait for the weather to improve, they talk about a legal proceeding stemming from an incident involving a possible murder. A samurai was found dead, and the circumstances surrounding his death are shown from four conflicting points of view.

I'm pretty sure no matter how many times you watch this film, Akira Kurosawa never gives enough information in the movie to figure out the truth about what took place on the day of the samurai's death.

But without trying to look too deeply into what this film is about , I feel "Rashomon" is about searching for some kind of absolute truthâ??it's about how differently people perceive the same external event.

Do I feel this film deserves the status it quite clearly has in movie making history ? well , yes and no.

Quite clearly this is the first time the same story is told from the point of view of more than one person and that has spurned countless classic movies and for that it deserves it's place in history but as a film in it's own right it just didn't do it for me.

Some of the overacting annoyed me . The Constant laughing by the bandit and the commoner was both confusing and unnecessary and I found the lack of a conclusion frustrating but what I will say is that Just like " Seven Samurai " it is beautifully shot.

Incidentally when Rashomon was being made , the cast approached Kurosawa en masse with the script and asked him, "What does it mean?" The answer Kurosawa gave at that time and also in his biography is that "Rashomon" is a reflection of life, and life does not always have clear meanings.

Make of that what you will but at least I wasn't the only one confused!

6 out of 10.