Subtitle Saturday: Akira Kurosawa's Ran

It's been awhile since I pulled out a Subtitle Saturday entry, but this is a great film that should be considered, even though you have to read throughout if you don't speak Japanese!  One of the things that I have admired every time I have watched a film by Akira Kurosawa is how drenched in passion they are.  The characters all live in a culture that seems to prize dignity and honor in a way in which my culture does not.  At the same time, since his films deal with characters in crisis, the dignified air of the characters is peeled away, and the viewer is left with raw emotion.

This is on display in "Ran".  I have never read "King Lear" by Shakespeare, and that is the play from which Kurosawa took the story for this film.  The story follows an aging samurai who decides to retire from his life as a war lord and he passes along his realm and all his authority to one of his sons.  Everyone around the aging patriarch questions his decision, but he sticks with it.  Almost immediately, everything falls apart.  For several different reasons, it becomes clear that the father's decision was not the correct one, and nearly everyone in the story has to live with the dreadful consequences of his decision.  There are many stories that have a lot in common with this one.  I was reminded of the "Godfather" trilogy, which follows the transfer of power from Vito to Michael, and how Michael's tenure as Godfather ends up working out.  In the end, both patriarchs pay terrible prices for  how they have chosen to live.  While they ruled their clans, there was peace by force.  Once they lose that power, all of the hurt and the discord that has always been present bubbles to the surface, and the again patriarch is forced to deal with the consequences of the life that he had chosen.

This film is a sprawling epic that is blood soaked.  As such, it reminds me of many ancient epics that are overblown in their violence, but they are that way for a reason.  The bloodshed is there to show in an extreme way the results of the actions of the characters.  Since this film is in line with a classic tragedy, all the characters are extreme in their emotions and their actions.  These extremes end up leading to overblown, violent action.  The ability of Kurosawa to evoke humanity in this film is commendable.  We know that the patriarch is paying for his past sins, but he is still sympathetic because we see his world crumbling around him.  We view with contempt the scheming wife of one of the sons, but we come to understand her rage in the end due to all of her own pain.

The film's battle sequences seem to have inspired many films like "Braveheart."  They are amazingly choreographed and realized.  The violence in the film is striking and pulls few punches--be warned.  But in the end, the film is not about violence.  It is about an inability for one generation to pass its vision on to another.  As such, it is universal in its themes.  The film's true strength is to create sympathy for these characters who live very different lives from the viewer, but are still human.  This is a riveting and tragic film which strikes a universal tone.

MOVIE QUOTE QUIZ: 80'S EDITION

It's time for my monthly Movie Quote Trivia Quiz.   I am a child of the 80's, so this month, it's an 80's edition.  All of these quotes are from movies released between 1980 and 1989.  For those of you who participated last month, the rules are the same.  Each quote is worth 2 points (except number 10-that one is worth 3 points).  You get one point for telling me the name of the movie from which the quote comes, and one point for giving me the name of the performer(s) who spoke the line (s).  I really only have one rule:  No google searches allowed (or any other browsing).  This contest is meant for people's off the cuff knowledge :).  I will take entries for one week.  This will more people a chance to particpate.   I will close the competition on June 11 at 9PM Central time.  PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE ANSWERS IN THE COMMENTS-OTHERS WILL SEE THEM.  Instead, e-mail your responses at losbascoms@mac.com, or you can send me a private facebook message if you are so inclined.  I will reward a $10 gift card to the winner...if there is a tie (like last month), I will think of a tie breaker.  Good luck, and have fun!!!

1.  "So that's how it is in that family."

2.  "I'll have what she's having."

3.  "Who said life is fair...where is that written?  Life isn't always fair."

4.  "I think the problem was that we had a Stonehenge monument in danger of being crushed by a dwarf."

5.  "I just want to tell you both...good luck, we're all counting on you."

6.  "Make like a tree, and get out of here."

7.  "Welcome to Indiana basketball..."

8.  "Could you...describe the ruckus sir?"

9.  "THOSE AREN'T PILLOWS!!!"

10. "'The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.'  'Or the one'."

11.  "I do not see plays, because I can nap at home for free."

12.  "Laugh it up, fuzzball."

13.  "Why am I doing this?  Because I'm a villain...pure and simple."