#15, Rashomon

Alright, I'm back with my self-indulgent reviews. Aren't you excited?

Next up we have Rashomon, the second film by Akira Kurosawa I've watched during this project. Personally, I liked Seven Samurai more. That's not to say, however, that Rashomon isn't one of the best films I've ever seen. Kurosawa and Mifune once again deliver in a fashion that makes this film truly worthy, this time as an examination of justice and the tragedy of human nature.

The premise of Rashomon alone is fantastic. Two men trapped under the decaying Rashomon gate during a downpour relate the story of a bizarre murder trial to a third man. They relate how each of the four testimonies, including that of the woodsman, one of the witnesses, tells an entirely different story about what happened in the forest. As the movie progress, we see that each individual has entirely selfish motives behind his or her story, and that even in death or innocence there is no redemption. The film essentially chronicles the decay of human honesty, until the very end, when the actions of the woodsman restore the faith of his clerical companion.

Mifune, as the bandit murderer, is of course fantastic, lending his hysterical, lunatic, and often disturbing energy to the role perfectly. His portrayal of the crazy, bold, and absolutely desperate bandit is flawless. You really can't take your eyes off of him, as he dominates the screen with the intensity of a mountain lion. That isn't to say the rest of the cast isn't superb, either, as each actor or actress fits their role perfectly, as we slowly see the decay of the facades they try and create for themselves into pathetic desperation that hits disturbingly close to home. By the end of the film, you realize you understand these people very well, and yet you know nothing about them, completely opposite of the initial impression.

And to support the perfect acting, of course, the film is perfectly made, and then some. Kurosawa and his cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa created an absolutely beautiful film. It is full of haunting visuals of both the characters and the nature around, seeming almost to suffocate the hapless individuals, or, as in the case of the trial scene, leave them vulnerable and exposed, the other characters sitting in the background like specks. The pacing and editing of the film are gripping, as well, slowly unfolding the story and the tone in a wrenching and unsettling manner. Everything is timed almost perfectly, and each moment holds both a new revelation and a new question. The aesthetic Kurosawa managed to create touches the very soul of the viewer, and raises far more questions than it ever attempts to answer. Superb film.

Highlights: Beautiful visuals and sounds, fantastic acting, disturbing, haunting, and captivating all at the same time. A quality examination of the human condition that leaves just enough hope at the end.

Downers: Perhaps a bit choppy in getting to the meat of the story: the testimony of the priest and the first testimony of the woodsman seemed a bit awkward. I struggled with the idea of having a dead man testify, but it ended up working.

9.5/10