Day 2 - Throne of Blood

Throne of Blood (1957) directed by Akira Kurosawa

Is there a such thing as fate or do we control or own destinies? Is what happens in life inevitable or simply the outcome of the choices that we make? Those are the underlying questions of Akira Kurosawa's interpretation of Shakespeare's Macbeth, Throne of Blood. In the beginning we encounter two men, Washizu and Miki, being summoned to the Great Lord's castle after leading their troops successfully in battle. Along the way they get lost in the mysterious Spider Web Forest where they encounter a spirit that sees their future with both getting promotions and Washizu eventually becoming the Great Lord of the Forest Castle. But that's not all, Miki's son will also eventually become lord of the Forest Castle as well.  The two commanders dismiss the prophecies and find their way to the Spider Web Castle, where both men are shocked to receive the promotions foretold to them. That sets up the rest of the story, which is driven by what Washizu makes of the prophecies. It is one thing to be told what will happen, it is another to ensure that they do happen. Washizu, played by the wonderful Toshiro Mifune, initially doubts the prophecies only to later do everything in his power to ensure they happen, thanks primarily to his manipulative wife Asaji. He is content on allowing things to run their course, if fate will have it then so be it. Asaji, on the other hand, counters that the prophecies only told him what he already desired in his heart and it is up to him to ensure they come to fruition. What follows is a masterful piece of storytelling by Shakespeare and Kurosawa. 

The film opens with some amazing cinematography of the Japanese landscape blanketed in a thick sweeping fog. Eventually the fog subsides revealing the Spider Web Castle where the majority of the film takes place. This is a really gorgeous film filled with detailed horse chases through the forests, haunting fog effects, amazing shots of hordes of soldiers charging across the screen. Within the first five minutes of the film I knew I'd love how the movie sounded when the daunting drums and piercing flutes played which occur frequently throughout setting up scenes with tension and suspense.

The real highlight of the film is Toshiro Mifune, who for those unfamiliar with Japanese cinema, could best be described as the Japanese Clint Eastwood. In fact, Eastwood played Mifune's character in Sergio Leone's remake of Yojimbo, Fistful of Dollars. He is gruff as ever in Throne of Blood, perfect as the role of a ruthless power hungry schemer. His diatribe in the forest in the end of the movie is pure bad-ass as he swears to paint the forest crimson with his enemies' blood. Also he gets one of the best final scenes ever of its kind. Simply amazing.

So what about fate and all that? I don't believe in fate and fortune tellers, but I do believe in the power of suggestion and the power of your own will. I see it all the time when I play poker, where people constantly bemoan their bad luck and low and behold they end up losing with no chance of coming back. It's like a self-fulfilling prophecy, they almost want to lose as if to confirm what they already knew, that they are the unluckiest players in the planet. Meanwhile those who manage to maintain a sunny disposition play better and increase their chances of winning and typically do end up on top at the end. When you tell your kids that they're worthless and they won't amount to anything what else can they expect from themselves, but when you tell them that they can be anything they want in the world, naturally they will have the inclination and desire to follow that. So in many ways, Asaji is right, whatever fortune or prophecy we receive only tells us what we already know about ourselves, it is up to us to decide what to do after that.

Grade: A

So I'm still not entirely sure of the direction I want to take this blog. For now it is simply watching movies and talking about them, but certainly I plan on adding in other little things, not really sure what though. As far as what movies I will be watching, for now I plan on sort of randomly picking movies I haven't seen though I am certainly open for suggestions. I also think something like a theme week would be kind of cool, like maybe one week I'll watch seven sports movies, the next week I'll watch seven pornos, err i mean snuff films, damnit I did it again, seven chick flicks, there! Yes, "chick flicks". I really love using "quotations".  It's going to be a long year so I'm not in any hurry to do anything too crazy yet.