Before he became world renowned as the
leading figure in Japanese art cinema and stunned audiences with such
influential cinematic masterpieces as Ikiru
(1952), Seven Samurai (1954), The Throne of Blood (1957), The Hidden Fortress (1958), Yojimbo (1961), Sanjuro (1962), Kagemusha:
The Shadow Warrior (1980), and Ran
(1985), Akira Kurosawa first burst to international attention with the highly
unique and unconventional art film Rashomon
(1950).
The film is based on a short story by
Ryunosuke Akutagawa which is set in 11th century Kyoto, the ancient
capital of Japan, at a time marked by devastating earthquakes, fires, famine
and plagues. During a pelting downpour, three figures shelter under the ruined
remains of the largest entrance gate to the city.
While huddled together under the protection
of the crumbling two-story Rashomon gate, a priest and a woodcutter describe
the disturbing details of a recent crime to a concerned commoner. An
aristocratic woman and her samurai husband traveling by horse had been attacked
by a thief/bandit (Toshiro Mifune). The woman was raped in the forest and her
husband murdered. While recalling the testimony of the people involved in the crime
at the local tribunal courthouse, the film shows the events in flashback from
the perspective of the three participants; the bandit, the woman, and the
murdered husband (through a medium), and one witness, the woodcutter.
But in each retelling of the same events,
the story changes significantly according to the person telling it. Eventually
we realize that the truth is unknowable because people are self-serving and
motivated by fear, greed and vanity. They all have reason to tell their own
version of the events so everyone’s story is suspect.
It was important for Kurosawa to give audiences
a moral perspective on life in Japan after the horrors of the second world war choosing
stories like Rashomon and Stray Dog (1949). Japan at this time was
lawless, undergoing extremely difficult times. The country was devastated by
the war and in a state of complete destruction. People had no food or means of
survival and returning soldiers were looked down upon by the starving
civilians. Stealing and crime rates were extremely high and Kurosawa wanted to
remind people that to rebuild society for our children Japan must hold itself
to a new moral standard that would not be easy in these dark times but would eventually
improve life for everyone.
When Kurosawa’s regular film studio Toho was
reluctant to produce his new project, he turned to another film studio Daiei
Tokyo Studios, where he was able to work with renowned cinematographer Kazuo
Miyagawa for the first time on Rashomon.
His use of lighting and sophisticated visual style was so hypnotic and powerful
that it captivated audiences with its sense of stunning realism reminiscent of the
silent cinema aesthetic mixed with mythic storytelling.
This was only the fourth time that Kurosawa
choose to work with a young talented actor who he loved for the energy he
brought to a scene. The amazingly versatile and riveting Toshiro Mifune as the bandit
would go on to star in many of Akira Kurosawa’s greatest films eventually
becoming one of the all-time most prolific and successful director/actor partnerships
in cinema history.
Rashomon went on to be a commercial hit for the studio in Japan and overseas
winning many international awards including the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival and the
Academy Award for Best Foreign film. The success of Rashomon redefined Japanese film for western audiences and opened up opportunities for other Japanese directors of the time like Yasujiro Ozu, Kenji Mizoguchi and Hiroshi Teshigahara.
JP
