Ran

Starring: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu, Daisuke Ryu, Mieko, Harada, Yoshiko Miyazaki, Hisashi Igawa, Pita, Masayuki Yui
Directed by: Akira Kurosawa
Rating: R
Genre: Action, Drama, War
1985

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: When a warlord (Tatsuya Nakadai) decides to retire, he turns his holdings over to his three sons, who quickly plunge the realm into war.

Review:

Tim: Akira Kurosawa has delivered so many terrific movies and fantastic experiences that after a while, you almost become numb to his greatness. While watching Ran, I spent most of the movie thinking it was really good (but not great). When you consider the epic quality of Seven Samurai, the brilliant puzzle box of Rashomon, or the action-packed Yojimbo, Ran doesn't have that straightforward brilliance. However, as the film progressed, especially towards the end, it becomes impossible not to marvel at what Kurosawa delivered here. This might not be his most obviously great movie, but I finally succumbed to the realization that what he crafted here was truly spectacular.

The movie adapts William Shakespeare's King Lear and it carries some of that epic drama to the film. The beginning of the film felt fine to me, if a bit overwhelming. There's a lot of characters and most of them don't act all that praiseworthy in the early stages of the film. It felt confusing, who was I supposed to be rooting for? What I interpreted as lack of clarity eventually makes complete sense. This story isn't the one we think it is at the beginning. The movie does tend to fall into the melodramatic at times- especially in the middle. However, it's still telling a powerful story that sticks with you long after the film itself concludes. The epic nature of this story grows in significance as the film progresses. It's a stunning 2 hours, 42 minutes. It might be a bit too long, but that length does contribute to the enormous scope of what Kurosawa achieves here. I'm not a fan of long movies for the sake of being long, but Kurosawa does use all that time to deliver a film that just feels enormous. I didn't quite recognize this until the big battle scenes at the end- I finally understood how much time was spent on the human element, so that the major battles at the end feel personal and impactful. Kurosawa has long embraced extended films (Seven Samurai at nearly 3.5 hours is the most visible example), but this one feels appropriate given the story he's telling.

I do need to spend a considerable amount of time discussing the visuals. This is easily overlooked in films, but here, the visuals of this movie are a major contributor for why the film is so outstanding. Every frame of the film feels beautifully crafted. I read that Kurosawa spent a decade storyboarding all the scenes in this film- that's exactly what it felt like- a genius deeply thought through every shot and they were staged so beautifully. The film won 1 Academy Award, for Best Costume Design. The movie absolutely deserved this win. The costumes were diverse, stunning, memorable. It's easy for me to overlook costumes in a film, but it was impossible here. The characters' dress is so stunning, so beautiful, so colorful that you can't help but marvel at the intricacy of the design. It's a well-deserved win. The film was also nominated for Best Art Direction-Set Direction and I'd have been happy if it won. The sets are enormous, incredible. It gives the film the sense of scope that was necessary to tell this story. Whether this is in the full armed castles, in ruins, the sets were all so impressive. This is also true of the film's cinematography- the plains against the backdrop of the mountains, the way the climactic battles are framed- the movie is truly beautiful to look at. The cinematography is stunning and I loved how the characters were shot with the landscape around them. Not surprisingly, the film was also nominated for Best Cinematography.

Best Makeup & Hairstyling was a fairly new category when this film was released, but it feels like a horrible oversight that this film wasn't nominated. This is as important as the costume design to the overall story. It's never more apparent than in the work on Lord Hidetora. It feels odd to claim that the depiction of one character could contribute so much to a film's greatness, but that is exactly the case here. The evolution of his looks- from a warlord in control of his destiny- to one who loses everything and descends into madness- is all depicted in his face and hair. The devolution of this character is almost beyond words. I found myself spellbound whenever he was on screen- his vacant stare, the sunken eyeballs, the disheveled hair. It's absolutely compelling. I truly loved how the man's inner turmoil was depicted externally. This movie can't get enough credit for that.

The cast is excellent- I don't want you to think Tatsuya Nakadai was anything short of spectacular in the role. Yes, he's channeling Toshiro Mifune (who was sadly missed here), but his performance is larger-than-life. He demands our attention. He was truly one of the most memorable, powerful aspects of the film. The hairstyling and makeup effects help, but Nakadai delivered a top notch performance, too. Mieko Harada was quite memorable as the manipulating Lady Kaede. I didn't always love that aspect of the film (it felt too much like Throne of Blood to me), but she gives a strong performance. Hisashi Igawa and Masayuki Yui give strong performances in supporting roles. Daisuke Ryu was strong, but I wish we had more time with his character. Pita annoyed me, but probably played the role the right way (just a bit too over-the-top). As usual, Kurosawa gets a great deal out of his cast.

The last Academy Award nomination that I haven't mentioned is Best Director. I love that Akira Kurosawa was nominated here, the only Academy Award nomination he'd ever receive. He absolutely deserved it and you could easily argue he should have one. This became more apparent to me when the big battles at the end occur. We'd been through so much to that point- so much human drama. To see Kurosawa scale back and show these incredibly choreographed battles, it really stops your breath when you realize what Kurosawa was able to deliver here. It further cements him as one of the all-time great directors. Ran might not be my favorite Kurosawa film and I admit it takes a bit more work to truly appreciate it. However, there's no doubt in my mind that he crafts something truly special here, which is significantly better than most directors are capable of delivering. This is a long movie and not always easy to watch, but it's great.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 8



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Seven Samurai, Rashomon, Yojimbo, Throne of Blood