7 movies by Akira Kurosawa
"Dodes'ka-den" / どですかでん
Drama | 1970
Akira Kurosawa's first color film. The plot centers on a group of people with different fates: a boy who imagines himself as an imaginary streetcar driver, a homeless father and son dreaming of a home, women suffering from the cruelty of men.
The movie flopped at the box office. It hit Kurosawa so hard that he became depressed and even attempted suicide. Nevertheless, today the movie is considered one of his most daring and visually expressive works.
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"Rashomon" / 羅生門
Crime, drama, detective | 1950
One day during a downpour, a monk, a woodcutter and a passerby meet under the gates of Rashomon, discussing the mysterious murder of a samurai. Each witness gives a different version of the events: the samurai's wife, the brigand Tajōmaru, and even the spirit of the murdered man give completely different accounts. The truth proves elusive, and the subjectivity of perception changes everything.
"Rashomon" was the first Japanese film to receive international recognition. It won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival and opened up Japanese cinema to the West, making Kurosawa an international star.
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"Seven Samurai" / 七人の侍
Action, drama | 1954
Poor peasants suffering from attacks by brigands decide to hire samurai to defend the village. They find seven warriors willing to fight not for money, but for honor and justice. Together, the samurai and peasants prepare for the final battle, in which everyone will have to show strength, wisdom, and self-sacrifice.
"Seven Samurai" became one of the most influential films in the history of cinema. The picture inspired Hollywood's "The Magnificent Seven" and laid the groundwork for the "men-on-a-mission" genre, which was later used in "The Dirty Dozen", "Guardians of the Galaxy", and "The Avengers".
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"Idiot" / 白痴
Drama, romance | 1951
Kinji Kameda, suffering from epilepsy and excessive naiveté, returns to Japan after a long treatment and finds himself caught in a cycle of intrigue, love and betrayal. He meets the femme fatale Taeko Nasu and the ambitious Denkichi Akama, who draw him into a tragic story where kindness and sincerity prove powerless before the cruelty of the world.
"Idiot" is an adaptation of Dostoevsky's novel of the same name, with Kurosawa himself considering the film the most unsuccessful of his career. The studio severely cut it from four-and-a-half hours to two-and-a-half, causing the director to be extremely unhappy with the final result.
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"The Hidden Fortress" / 隠し砦の三悪人
Drama, action, adventure | 1958
Two poor peasants fleeing war meet a mysterious warrior who offers to help them transport gold across enemy lands. They don't suspect that their companion is a noble general and the girl traveling with them is the princess of a fugitive clan. During the dangerous journey they encounter betrayal, greed and trials where true honor turns out to be more important than gold.
The movie "The Hidden Fortress" was George Lucas' main inspiration for creating "Star Wars". He borrowed the narrative structure, character dynamics, and even the visual style of Kurosawa's film, turning two peasants into R2-D2 and C-3PO, and a general into Obi-Wan Kenobi.
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"Dersu Uzala"
Action, adventure, drama | 4.04 out of 5 on MyShows | 1975
Russian topographer Arsenyev goes on an expedition through the Far Eastern taiga and meets Dersu Uzala, a Nanai hunter. This wise man, who lives in harmony with nature, becomes his friend and guide. Together they overcome severe trials, but the collision of Dersu's traditional way of life with the changing world leads to a tragic denouement.
"Dersu Uzala" was the only movie Kurosawa, filmed not in Japan, but in the USSR. It was a co-production with Mosfilm, and it was this film that won him the Oscar for Best Foreign Film, becoming his triumphant return to cinema after a difficult period in his life.
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"Kagemusha" / 影武者
Action, drama, historical, military | 1980
The powerful ruler of the Takeda clan is killed and his place is taken by a simple thief who looks uncannily like him. He is trained in manners and strategy, turning him into a kagemusha — a "shadow" of the great warlord. While he plays the role, the clan continues the war, but the longer the deceiver lives someone else's life, the more he realizes that he is just a ghost in someone else's destiny.
"Kagemusha" could not have come about without the help of Hollywood: George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola convinced 20th Century Fox Studios to finance the movie because they thought Kurosawa was the greatest director ever. It was because of them that he got the chance to direct one of the most epic stories of his career.
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