Description
Book Synopsis The samurai films of legendary Japanese director Akira Kurosawa are set in the past, but they tell us much about the present, as do his crime stories, romances, military films, medical dramas and art films. His movies are beloved for their timeless protagonists and haunting vistas of old Japan, but we haven''t yet fully grasped everything they can teach us about modern Japan. Kurosawa''s films evolved as Japan redefined and reinvented itself, from movies made for the wartime regime to those made amid the trials of American occupation. From the lavish epics of the economic miracle years to searching masterpieces made with international assistance in a globalizing world, Kurosawa''s movies responded to changing times.
This detailed study of all 30 of Kurosawa''s films analyzes the links between the thrilling narratives onscreen and the equally remarkable events that occurred in Japan over his long, productive career. This book explores how Kurosawa''s classics depict the p
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
On Names, Transliteration, Titles, and How to Read This Book
Introduction: Kurosawa and the Japanese Century
Part One. The War Years
Chapter 1. Sanshirō Sugata
Chapter 2. The Most Beautiful
Chapter 3. Sanshirō Sugata Part II
Part Two. The Occupation Years
Chapter 4. The Men Who Tread on the Tiger's Tail
Chapter 5. No Regrets for Our Youth
Chapter 6. One Wonderful Sunday
Chapter 7. Drunken Angel
Chapter 8. The Quiet Duel
Chapter 9. Stray Dog
Chapter 10. Scandal
Chapter 11. Rashōmon
Chapter 12. The Idiot
Chapter 13. Ikiru
Part Three. The Miracle Years
Chapter 14. Seven Samurai
Chapter 15. Record of Living Things
Chapter 16. Spiderweb Castle
Chapter 17. The Lower Depths
Chapter 18. The Hidden Fortress
Chapter 19. The Bad Sleep Well
Chapter 20. Yōjimbō
Chapter 21. Tsubaki Sanjūrō
Chapter 22. Heaven and Hell
Chapter 23. Redbeard
Part Four. The Global Years
Chapter 24. Dodesukaden
Chapter 25. Dersu Uzala
Chapter 26. Kagemusha
Chapter 27. Ran
Chapter 28. Dreams
Chapter 29. Rhapsody in August
Chapter 30. Mādadayo
Epilogue
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index
