Akira Kurosawa

Seven Samuari, Dreams and Kagemusha are three movies directed by Akira Kurosawa. All three movies are concerned with their own matters. However all three movies communicate the same emotional state. Regardless of what movie it was. There were reoccurring themes that seemed to relate back to the director/ auteur.

All three movies related to a more traditional Japanese state. Seven Samuari dealt with the poor villages of Japan and their constant fight with the bandits. Kagemusha was about clashing kingdoms and Dreams dealt a lot with Japanese traditions and history.

Kurosawa deals with traditions a lot in this stories. He also deals with the clashing of old and new ideas, usually giving sympathy to the older and more traditional ideas over the newer concepts.

            A good example of this is in Dreams. In some of the stories, traditional ideals are being threatened by some force. Like the child insulting the Kitsune by observing their wedding procession, or the peach trees being cut, and the community that moved away from modern society in order to live a more healthier and traditional life. In Dreams he constantly makes reference to nature, and how modern industry is peeling away what’s left of old Japan. One of the stories involves the destruction of Japan. The characters blatantly attack the government and irresponsibility on their part for this disaster. The conclusion in Dreams shows a lot of Kurosawa’s ideas of going back to a more traditional lifestyle, without poisoning the earth.

            In Seven Samurai, the setting itself takes place in rural Japan. It takes place during the 16^th century, and during a time of conflict. A lot of the movie is about the pressures that this little town has to face. The village is already weak, low on food and completely unguarded. After the samurai decide to help, you see an entire community building itself up for the incoming wave of bandits.             Essentially the story involves the violation of a traditional lifestyle by a disruptive force. In this case the bandits.

            In Kagemusha, the disruptive force was the king’s double, who takes over. Not only as the king, but as a family member too. Through the movie he grows affection for the people around him, eventually making him part of every day court life. When his guise is revealed, the court pushes him away, causing everything to go down hill. When he was King for a while, things went well, the great force that caused him to be banished was doubt and uncertainty of the people after his true guise was revealed.

            All three movies have no true ending, or closure. They leave the audience alone in the end, and forces them to ponder about the consequences of the choices made in each story. Kurosawa did this in all three movies. There is no good or bad, no heroes or villains. He has characters that perform certain actions, and it up to the viewers to determine justification of each choice.