{"id":11564,"date":"2010-07-08T17:33:59","date_gmt":"2010-07-09T00:33:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=11564"},"modified":"2024-05-28T23:08:36","modified_gmt":"2024-05-29T06:08:36","slug":"rashomon-1950","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=11564","title":{"rendered":"Rashomon (1950)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;It&#8217;s human to lie. Most of the time we can&#8217;t even be honest with ourselves.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Rashmon-Poster.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Rashmon-Poster-195x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"195\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-64438\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Rashmon-Poster-195x300.png 195w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Rashmon-Poster-665x1024.png 665w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Rashmon-Poster-83x128.png 83w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Rashmon-Poster-175x270.png 175w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Rashmon-Poster.png 726w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 195px) 100vw, 195px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA trio of drifters (Takashi Shimura, Minoru Chiaki, and Kichijiro Ueda) discuss the murder of a samurai (Masayuki Mori) and the rape of his wife (Machiko Kyo) committed by a savage bandit (Toshiro Mifune).\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Akira Kurosawa Films<\/li>\n<li>Flashback Films<\/li>\n<li>Historical Drama<\/li>\n<li>Japanese Films<\/li>\n<li>Rape<\/li>\n<li>Toshiro Mifune Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary&#8217;s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary seems less than enamored by this seminal Kurosawa movie, which was &#8220;the first Japanese film to receive widespread international distribution and success&#8221; (indeed, it won an honorary Oscar in 1952, and was presumably the impetus for creating a Best Foreign Film category). He argues that the &#8220;film doesn&#8217;t hold up as well as other Kurosawa works because its &#8216;there is no such thing as Absolute Truth&#8217; theme isn&#8217;t particularly novel.&#8221; He further complains that the performances (with the exception of Mifune, who he believes &#8220;makes a strong impression&#8221;) are &#8220;either irritating or forgettable&#8221;; that the &#8220;playing of &#8216;Bolero&#8217; at one point seems inappropriate&#8221;; and that the opening and concluding sequences (which &#8220;were inserted into [the] script so the picture would be long enough to interest a distributor&#8221;) are &#8220;disconcerting&#8221;. <\/p>\n<p>I disagree with Peary on nearly all the above points. The film&#8217;s central premise &#8212; that truth is subjective enough that we all approach the telling of a tale with our unique biases and subconscious desires firmly in play &#8212; is universal, and so masterfully portrayed by Kurosawa that it serves as an enduring primer for how to relate such a story in cinematic terms. To that end, Peary does concede that &#8220;it shouldn&#8217;t be forgotten that Kurosawa broke the rules of cinema storytelling&#8221;; along with many other critics (see links below), he notes that &#8220;it is less important that any four people will tell four different versions of a story than that any <em>filmmaker<\/em> is capable of taking a story and visualizing it in an infinite number of equally persuasive, audience-manipulative ways&#8221;. <\/p>\n<p>With regards to the film&#8217;s &#8220;bookends&#8221;, they come across as simply a convenient and effective narrative device; and the inclusion of &#8220;Bolero&#8221; (actually, a variation thereof) in the soundtrack doesn&#8217;t strike me as particularly jarring. Finally, in terms of the film&#8217;s central performances, I&#8217;m actually less a fan of Mifune&#8217;s primal bandit (as noted in <a href=\"http:\/\/www.timeout.com\/film\/reviews\/76426\/rashomon.html\">Time Out London&#8217;s review<\/a>, he &#8220;veers on the hammy side of earthy&#8221;) than I am of both Kyo as the samurai&#8217;s wife (watch how her expressions and overall demeanor shift from vignette to vignette), and Mori as the samurai himself (though he&#8217;s not given much to do, he effectively projects an unnerving, steely reserve). Even more memorable than the actors, however, are Kurosawa&#8217;s stunning, haunting visuals &#8212; as usual, every frame of his story is composed with craft and care. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Fine performances by the principal actors<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/rashomon-wife.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/rashomon-wife.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"400\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-11571\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/rashomon-performances.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/rashomon-performances.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"400\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-11570\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Memorable imagery and cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/rashomon-framing.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/rashomon-framing.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"400\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-11568\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/rashomon-imagery.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/rashomon-imagery.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"400\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-11569\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, as an historically important foreign classic by a master director.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Foreign Gem<\/li>\n<li>Historically Relevant<\/li>\n<li>Important Director<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> (<span style=\"color:red;font-weight:bold;\">Listed in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-static\/1001Movies.htm\"><em>1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die<\/em><\/a><\/span>) <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0042876\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1951\/12\/27\/archives\/the-screen-in-review-intriguing-japanese-picture-rashomon-first.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.moriareviews.com\/fantasy\/rashomon-1950.htm\">Moria Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s450rash.html\">DVD Talk Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/wp-dyn\/content\/article\/2009\/11\/12\/AR2009111207944.html\">Washington Post Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/303984\/rashomon#articles-reviews?articleId=136021\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.timeout.com\/film\/reviews\/76426\/rashomon.html\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s human to lie. Most of the time we can&#8217;t even be honest with ourselves.&#8221; Synopsis: A trio of drifters (Takashi Shimura, Minoru Chiaki, and Kichijiro Ueda) discuss the murder of a samurai (Masayuki Mori) and the rape of his wife (Machiko Kyo) committed by a savage bandit (Toshiro Mifune). Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Akira Kurosawa Films Flashback Films Historical Drama Japanese Films Rape Toshiro Mifune Films Response to Peary&#8217;s Review: Peary seems less than enamored by this seminal&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=11564\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11564","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11564","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11564"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11564\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":97183,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11564\/revisions\/97183"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11564"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11564"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11564"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}