The Kurosawa Century #7: Shakespeare in Feudal Japan: Throne of Blood (1957) & Ran (1985)

Throne of Blood (1957, 111 Minutes)

Kurosawa's intense and violent version of Shakespeare's Macbeth leans into the militaristic aspects of the play. Toshiro Mifune stars as Samurai commander Washizu who is told by an evil spirit in the forest, he will be king someday. When he confides in his wife Asaji (Isuzu Yamada) she persuades him to murder the Lord of the Castle. 

Throne of Blood is one of Kurosawa's moodiest and most atmospheric films, the fog, rain, and darkness hover over the entire film. It might be his most heavy metal in style, you can imagine the film synching with Black Sabbath. Mifune's is really dialed up in a physically demanding performance. He plays the character as so troubled, tormented, and prone to violence. His death by a thousand arrows is one of the most famous in cinema history, I can't imagine any other adaptation of Macbeth topping it. 

Kurosawa's Throne of Blood is more in common with war movies than most versions of the play. Washizu is not a sympathetic character nor a philosophical one, there's no "Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow" soliloquy. He's a fanatical warrior and I view the film as a commentary on the self-destructive nature of militarism as leading to madness. Whether Japan's history in the 1930s was on Kurosawa's mind is mere speculation. The battle scenes are the major set pieces, including the famous forest sequence. The cinematography is superior and the narrative is tight as a drum. 

Ran (1985, 162 Minutes)

Inspired by Shakespeare's King Lear, Ran reimagines the play as a bloody power struggle in feudal Japan. In this version the king has three sons, although the wife of one (Lady Kaede) plays a major role in the story. Ran is on the same wavelength of Throne of Blood, but the story goes much deeper into human psychology and power. 

The film opens with Lord Hidetora announcing his plans to hand over the throne to his oldest son Taro. The other sons immediately question the decision and all hell breaks loose. We know that Hidetora committed his share of violence in his past, he massacred and humilated his enemies. Lady Kaede (Taro 'wife) urges him to wage war on his two brothers for her own ulterior reasons. Bloody battles ensue, including the taking of Hidetora's castle that's unforgettable. People die senseless deaths. It's a cold business with no glory, a major contrast to Seven Samurai. 

Ran is Kurosawa's most apocalyptic film. It's like the history of humanity is a never-ending cycle of violence, the end of civilization. Technically, the film is a masterclass at every level. The sounds of the wind and rain. The distinct color pallets. Yet it maintains a reflective tone, inviting the audience to contemplate what they are witnessing. 

In contrast to the violence is the beauty and majesty of nature. As a force, nature seems indifferent to the story, and it's always in the background. As brutal events play out in these vast landscapes, the vibrant colors of the world coexist Characters are often dwarfed by the vastness of the sky and the mountains making their actions feel ephemeral and insignificant.