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Ran (Masterworks Edition) Actors: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu, Daisuke Ryu Director: Akira Kurosawa Number of Items: 1 Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen Format: Color, Widescreen, Dolby Audience Rating: R (Restricted) Running Time: 160 minutes Studio: Wellspring Media, In Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Region Code: 1 Product Group: DVD Release Date: 2003-04-15 Buy from Amazon |
 "Utterly compelling."You know, if I hadn't seen this movie and someone told me that it was a Japanified version of King Lear, I would probably scoff at the idea. We all know that "creative remakes" of Shakespeare usually blow big time. But Kurosawa did it so amazingly _well_ here. Sure, it's undeniably King Lear, and most of the characters have clear parallels to the ones in Lear - but it's also undeniably Japanese, steeped in Japanese culture and tradition, and entirely within the bounds of reality of a feudal Japanese society. (Not just because of the amazing costumes, either.) That probably would be just artiness if the actors weren't so good - but they are. Nakadai is amazing as King Lear (or his Japanified counterpart Ichimonji Hidetora) - throughout the movie, we're told that he basically dug his own grave, having murdered thousands of innocent people in his day, but when we see his degraded, outcast state, it's impossible not to pity him. But he's not the only one. The Jester is great - we see his/her (the Jester is rather androgynous) inability to decide whether s/he hates Lear for the monster he was or pities him for the sad old man he's become, and it's really moving. Lady Kaede is chillingly evil, Lord Jiro is a very whipped and defeated man, and Lord Saburo is a rude guy with a heart of gold (and all three are memorable). Jiro's general Lord Kurogane is also amazing - he's on the bad guys' side because of his loyalty to Jiro, but he also is clearly an honorable man - and there will definitely be at least two times in the movie when you will want to loudly root for him. However, probably the most compelling character is Lady Sue. She's presented as your typical "sweet innocent girl" archetype, but she's also very believable. You believe her when she says she is unable to hate Lear (er, Hidetora) for his crimes because after all, everything is decided in our past lives. She has a very small part, but she manages to become the most striking character of all, and her fate is probably the most unbearably tragic point in the entire movie. King Lear is one of Shakespeare's most morose plays; Ran is even gloomier. Despite several light moments (the "fox-head" scene is absolutely hilarious), it's covered in hopelessness through and through. Like in the play, almost everyone dies needlessly, and even though the bad guys die too, they do it too late for you to feel good about it. But it's darker still. The main battle scene (in the first half) is horrifically brutal, but the most disturbing thing about it is that you don't hear the screams of the dying and the gunshots - all you hear is a funeral dirge, leaving the rest up to your imagination. It's really no surprise that Kurosawa had been taking his bitter pills when he was thinking Ran through - he had even made a suicide attempt at one point. One other thing - Ran is almost 3 hours long. Don't let that stop you, though - it's the rare long movie that captivates you from beginning to end with its brilliant acting and directing. It definitely is Kurosawa's finest hour. If you like Japan, Shakespeare, "Shogun," or King Lear, see it at once. If not, see it anyway. There's nothing anywhere that's quite like it. "god is watching...so becareful..."I am giving this movie a 5star, BUT I have to complain about the DVD. OK, the image are pretty sharp but what a waste of space!! The entire movie is 2/3 up on the screen! Why, why?? With that aside,and with so many reviews before me, I will go straight to the point & say that 3 major characters that sticks on my mind is Kyaomi and Tango, the loyal fool and retainer , the 2 lost souls that drift along loyally with the great lord Ichimonji and Kurogane, the loyal henceman to lord Jiro. Tango is wise and patient, while kyoami is childish, impatient and acid tongued, but their loyalty to the great lord till his last breath was extremely touching, and I cried during the funeral march. I don't see Kurogane as a "bad guy" but it is his loyalty that force him to kill. I cheered Kurogane twice, once when he give it good to lady Kaeda with the foxhead, and the second time when he removed her permanently. The one I pitied the most is infact, the oldest son, Taro. He is naive and harmless , but used and manipulated by kaeda, killed by his own brother. Saburo is one tough little dude and he do just fine on his own. I love Tatsuya Nakadai, and I noticed that his acting gets better and better the older he gets. Compare him in Yojimbo, Sanjuro...then watch him in "Kwaidan" then see him in Ran and differencr is amazing. Kurosawa to me is one of the gods of cinema, second being Zhang Yimou of course. And for anyone who loved Ran, I strongly suggest you try to catch all his other films particularly Yojimbo, Throne of Blood, Seven samurai,...etc etc. "Battles were never filmed better""Saving Private Ryan" shows the horrors of 20th century war, but Kurisawa's masterpiece "Ran" shows battles. When "Ran" was first released, I saw it on a big screen in London. Up to SPR, "Ran" and Sam Peckinpah's "The Wild Bunch" were the most moving films I had seen - it terms of being thrilled by what was up on the screen. Of course, it also helps for "Ran" that William Shakespeare's "Kurosawa's Masterpiece"A film only Kurosawa could make, and then only in his late career. The King Lear story told this time in feudal Japan, three sons instead of three daughters. The fool, the old man, the madness, the storm. Wonderful film, truly capturing the essence of the Shakespearean plot. 'Kagemusha' made a few years earlier was the grand master's 'practice' at filming large, intricate battles involving horse and soldier and color coded armies. Lakes of fake blood used in this one. While so many films are unduly termed a 'classic', RAN earns the title and more. A must for lovers of the Samurai epic. BANZAAAIII!! "Amazing Work -- What Kurosawa could do with color...."I watched the VHS version (in widescreen), and was impressed by the quality. I appreciate the comments about the DVD version, because it would have been one of my first purchases in building a DVD library. As for the film itself. Although the 'Lear' story presents no suprises, I was in constant amazement through the course of this film. Although it was definitely Lear, the infusion of feudal Japanese values was powerful. The sets, the use of costumes, the battle scenes, the cinematography are all absolutely amazing. The music is also a step up from that employed in 'Yojimbo' and 'The Seven Samurai.' The orchestral dirge in the background during the attack on Hidetora's tower amplifies that imagery. This is simply the finest staging of samurai battle I have ever seen in a movie. The castle's were superb. Mieko Harada as vampire-like Lady Kaede was an absolutely brilliant and chilling performance. Her cunning manipulations and stylistic, Kabuki movement is intense; especially in the scene where she overpowers Jiro. |
