Ran (B+ or 3/4 stars)
For his 27th(!) directorial venture, 75 yr. old Japanese film legend Akira Kurosawa moves Shakespeare's King Lear from merry 'ole England to feudal Japan in 'Ran' - which translates to the word "chaos". 'Ran' tells the tragic tale of Lord Hidetora (Tatsuya Nakadai), a 16th century warlord/tyrant who decides to abdicate & divide his vast empire among his 3 sons, Taro (Akira Terao), Jiro (Jinpachi Nezu), & Saburo (Daisuke Ryou) on the eve of his 70th birthday. He would retain the title Great Lord, & spend his days living at each son's smaller kingdom castle(s) as he pleases. However, Hidetora's youngest & most compassionate son, Saburo, rebelliously objects to this hasty, ill thought-out decision and is banished by the vain, stubborn ruler.
Once the 2 treacherous, older sons take control of the empire, they speedily turn on their father {as Saburo correctly predicted} & start vying for total (and bloody) control over the land. Meanwhile, Taro's ruthless wife, Lady Kaede (a terrifying Mieko Harada) instigates & schemes her way through the plot with her own vengeful agenda; at one point, she seduces Jiro {QUITE the scene!} & then demands the head of her sister-in-law. After Hidetora is expelled from his own kingdom in an enormous, fiery battle ... he wanders the open countryside with a few of his minions (including a female 'jester', played by a transgendered actor, Shinnosuke "Peter" Ikehata), descends into madness & must confront the consequences of his foolish, ruthless past.
What a cinematic achievement. Notice: I did not say what a great movie. I do find merit in many facets of this film. But I don't give this 'masterpiece' a full-throttled endorsement for several reasons -- more on that later. What's for sure about 'Ran' is this: it contains incredible cinematic artistry, has a great story {Shakespeare re-jiggered}, & gives us several memorable performances. The drama of the story packs a powerful, timeless punch. In a way, we feel bad for Hidetora as his children turn on him. But really, he's shown to be a war criminal, himself. He didn't inherit his kingdom by being nice. What he amassed, he did by committing over 50+ yrs. of neighboring bloodshed during epic warfare. Blood is on his hands, as much as it is his children's.
The cinematic splendor Kurosawa gives us is unreal (especially given that he filmed 'Ran' while suffering from poor eyesight & the death of his beloved wife). The visuals on display are amazing; with bold, primary colors that accentuate every scene. Yellows, reds & blues are significant in the narrative. The setting/locales are breathtaking. Kurosawa spent a lot of $$ on the construction of some amazing castles; one of which is burnt to the ground in one incredible long take. The period costumes are excellent {and Academy Award-winning}. Each frame is carefully constructed by both Kurosawa & his cinematographer. The various battle sequences are amazingly photographed -- hundred of extras & horses are used, no CGI, real arrows & gun shots whizzing by people. And when it’s not silent, the music soundtrack punctuates & enhances, rather than detracts what's going on onscreen.
Tatsuya Nakadai is hypnotic as the rapidly deteriorating has-been ruler. Once strong & domineering, to see him sink into weakness, despair & madness is something to behold; aided by thick, blue-tinged age/illness make-up. Transgendered actor 'Peter' Ikehata brings verve & pathos to the role of the female 'jester'. Best of all is Mieko Harada as the Lady Macbeth-like Lady Kaede, the power-hungry seductress who'll lie, cheat & kill to get vengeance against Hidetora. Her sudden bursts of anger/violence are breathtaking. Why I didn't love this film is due to the exorbitant running time (160 minutes), too many shots of characters far from the camera (dwarfing emotional pay-off) & a copious amount of static scenes (making segments of the film feel like a chore). That said, my niggling issues with it aside, 'Ran' is a grand scale epic that has it all: vanity, ambition, madness, violence, beauty, betrayal, & revenge.
Once the 2 treacherous, older sons take control of the empire, they speedily turn on their father {as Saburo correctly predicted} & start vying for total (and bloody) control over the land. Meanwhile, Taro's ruthless wife, Lady Kaede (a terrifying Mieko Harada) instigates & schemes her way through the plot with her own vengeful agenda; at one point, she seduces Jiro {QUITE the scene!} & then demands the head of her sister-in-law. After Hidetora is expelled from his own kingdom in an enormous, fiery battle ... he wanders the open countryside with a few of his minions (including a female 'jester', played by a transgendered actor, Shinnosuke "Peter" Ikehata), descends into madness & must confront the consequences of his foolish, ruthless past.
What a cinematic achievement. Notice: I did not say what a great movie. I do find merit in many facets of this film. But I don't give this 'masterpiece' a full-throttled endorsement for several reasons -- more on that later. What's for sure about 'Ran' is this: it contains incredible cinematic artistry, has a great story {Shakespeare re-jiggered}, & gives us several memorable performances. The drama of the story packs a powerful, timeless punch. In a way, we feel bad for Hidetora as his children turn on him. But really, he's shown to be a war criminal, himself. He didn't inherit his kingdom by being nice. What he amassed, he did by committing over 50+ yrs. of neighboring bloodshed during epic warfare. Blood is on his hands, as much as it is his children's.
The cinematic splendor Kurosawa gives us is unreal (especially given that he filmed 'Ran' while suffering from poor eyesight & the death of his beloved wife). The visuals on display are amazing; with bold, primary colors that accentuate every scene. Yellows, reds & blues are significant in the narrative. The setting/locales are breathtaking. Kurosawa spent a lot of $$ on the construction of some amazing castles; one of which is burnt to the ground in one incredible long take. The period costumes are excellent {and Academy Award-winning}. Each frame is carefully constructed by both Kurosawa & his cinematographer. The various battle sequences are amazingly photographed -- hundred of extras & horses are used, no CGI, real arrows & gun shots whizzing by people. And when it’s not silent, the music soundtrack punctuates & enhances, rather than detracts what's going on onscreen.
Tatsuya Nakadai is hypnotic as the rapidly deteriorating has-been ruler. Once strong & domineering, to see him sink into weakness, despair & madness is something to behold; aided by thick, blue-tinged age/illness make-up. Transgendered actor 'Peter' Ikehata brings verve & pathos to the role of the female 'jester'. Best of all is Mieko Harada as the Lady Macbeth-like Lady Kaede, the power-hungry seductress who'll lie, cheat & kill to get vengeance against Hidetora. Her sudden bursts of anger/violence are breathtaking. Why I didn't love this film is due to the exorbitant running time (160 minutes), too many shots of characters far from the camera (dwarfing emotional pay-off) & a copious amount of static scenes (making segments of the film feel like a chore). That said, my niggling issues with it aside, 'Ran' is a grand scale epic that has it all: vanity, ambition, madness, violence, beauty, betrayal, & revenge.