The Stop Button Posted by Andrew Wickliffe on July 27, 2018

Seven Samurai is about a farming village, under imminent threat of bandits raiding and stealing their crop–and possibly doing much worse–who decides to hire samurai to defend them. They send four men–Fujiwara Kamatari, Kosugi Yoshio, Tsuchiya Yoshio, and Hidari Bokuzen–to town to hire the samurai.   read more

The Stop Button Posted by Andrew Wickliffe on September 4, 2016

Where to start with Rashomon? Starting at the beginning means talking about the bookends–three strangers stranded in the rain, two telling the third different versions of the same story, each ostensibly true. The rain pours down around them, drowning out their voices. Rashomon is a film witho   read more

Le Mot du Cinephiliaque Posted by Michael on January 23, 2016

Note : this review is a contribution to Symbiotic Collaborations blogathon hosted by CineMaven’s Essays From the Couch. Takashi Shimura and Akira Kurosawa While Japanese film director Akira Kurosawa doesn’t need an introduction amongst cinephiles, actor Takashi Shimura is a mor   read more

The Stop Button Posted by Andrew Wickliffe on May 25, 2015

Drunken Angel never hides its sentimentality. The film’s protagonist, an alcoholic doctor working in a slum (Shimura Takashi in a glorious performance), is well aware of his sentimentality. He resents it–Shimura has these great yelling and throwing scenes–but it’s what keeps   read more

Durnmoose Movie Musings Posted by Michael on August 18, 2014

Okay, let me go ahead and admit up front that the headline up above is – in the best internet tradition – at least slightly misleading. No, the acclaimed Japanese director Akira Kurosawa never made a top 100 films list. As his daughter, Kazuko Kurosawa states, “My father always sai   read more

Mildred's Fatburgers Posted by Beth Daniels on March 25, 2014

Akira Kurosawa, Tokyo, Japan March 23, 1910 - Sept. 6, 1998 Autobiography Something Like an Auto-biography, By Akira Kurosawa, Vintage, 1983 The Only Reason I Appreciate Westerns at All The eighth and youngest child of an army physical education instructor, A   read more

Pretty Clever Films Posted by Pretty Clever Film Gal on November 15, 2012

Here’s a piece I wrote for The Toronto Film Scene wherein I wonder if Akira Kurosawa is Japan’s greatest filmmaker. My takeaway is – impossible to say. Impossible for me, at least, because I don’t know much about Japanese cinema beyond, well, Akira Kurosawa. But I know great   read more

Critica Retro Posted by Lê on August 8, 2012

Dupla Dinâmica: Akira Kurosawa e Toshiro Mifune Algumas colaborações entre ator / atriz e diretor são memoráveis. No cinema clássico japonês o mais conhecido ator talvez seja Toshiro Mifune, chinês de nascimento e fotógrafo na Segunda Guerra Mundial, que teve uma parceria rica e fascinante co   read more

Le Mot du Cinephiliaque Posted by Michael on February 20, 2012

1. Ran (1985) 2. Seven Samurai (1954) 3. Red Beard (1965) 4. Rashomon (1950) 5. Ikiru (1952) 6. The Bad Sleep Well (1960) 7. High and Low (1963) 8. Drunken Angel (1948) 9. Sanjuro (1962) 10. Yojimbo (1961) 11. Dersu Uzala (1975) 12. Kagemusha (1980) 13. Stray Dog (1949) 14....   read more

Critica Retro Posted by Lê on November 30, -0001

Dupla Dinâmica: Akira Kurosawa e Toshiro Mifune Algumas colaborações entre ator / atriz e diretor são memoráveis. No cinema clássico japonês o mais conhecido ator talvez seja Toshiro Mifune, chinês de nascimento e fotógrafo na Segunda Guerra Mundial, que teve uma parceria rica e fascinante co   read more