Just saw Throne of blood last night, Kurosawa’s brilliance as a filmmaker continues to impress me. That Mifune performance tho!!! Let’s not forget the arrow sequence, one of the most metal sequences I’ve ever seen!!
One aspect of the "spirit of the text" approach to adaptation I really like is how cleverly it gets around the barriers to translating Shakespeare for a Japanese audience. Translating Shakespearean dialogue into Japanese in a way that kept the poetry and meaning intact would be a pretty daunting task, so instead of translating the dialogue, he translates the theatrical conventions. It's an approach I'd love to see more often.
Is there a Japanese equivalent to iambic pentameter? That would be necessary. Or do what Kurosawa did, and find the spirit of the original. You don't need to even know _MacBeth_ exists to appreciate and admire this movie.
There are many levels of horror that the average filmgoer may not pick up on. The best Hammer films, for example, used atmosphere and imagery . Their horror was psychological, where everything was suggested but nothing was actually shown. Much more effective than jumpscares and layers of CGI.
@@billmurray7473 Or to use a more recent example, the Iranian horror film Under The Shadow, whose real monster is the repressive government and culture of 1980s Iran with a djinn highlighting such.
Hands down, my favorite Kurosawa film AND my favorite Shakespeare adaptation (apologies to Franco Zeffirelli's Hamlet, which taught me how to comprehend Shakespeare himself). I'd even go so far as to say that Kurosawa improves on the original with his stunning and more satisfying ending (even if the whistling is a bit much). Never thought of the gothic horror angle but it certainly fits with the Noh drama trappings. Nice shoutout to Ikiru, one of the best meditations on living a meaningful life ever made!
One of my favourite Kurosawa films. I see Throne of Blood at least once a year. To answer your question. I always loved Ian Mckellen's "Richard III", set in Britain of the 1930's.
You know, I think your take on Kurosawa Shakespearean films would be very interesting. Put me up for a vote for that! Sure, it's not exactly horror as we know it, but Kurosawa does great terror pictures. I'd love to see that.
When people ask me about horror, aside from the familiar Universal, Hammer, and Bava films, this one of the best. I like the historical background too. History and horror go together since both deal with human tragedy.
RUclips is awash with reviewers doing comical riffs on crappy movies, but Robin is a true analyst. He cuts to the heart of what's wrong with a bad movie or what's worthy about a good movie with equal skill. Never stop, Robin!
I think that anyone could do intensity quite like Toshiro Mifune. The guy's got eyes like Gowron. The cinematography on display is breathtaking. 3:19 Look at the shot! Just look at it! 😲
So would I. This is an excellent review, let's have more! As for favourite adaptations, I'll put in a vote that may surprise: I think Ralph Fiennes' CORIOLANUS is the best recent adaptation. It even makes Gerard Butler look good.
@@Oldguitar57 The two of them were one of those legendary actor/director pairs. Think John Wayne and John Ford, Chow Yun-Fat and John Woo, Arnie and James Cameron.
Oh hell yes, please cover _Ran. Throne of Blood_ and _Ran_ are my two of my favorite Kurosawa classics (neck-and-severed-neck with _Yojimbo_ and _Sanjuro)._
Another big fan of Ian McKellen's "Richard III" here. When I first watched it on VHS and it came to the end, I immediately rewound the tape and watched the whole thing again.
Side note: macbeth IS basically a horror story, witches, ghosts, prophecy, and guilt destroying the evil, so without doubt any faithful adaptation is going to also be horror. IMHO.
I love how some of Throne of Blood's memorable moments were also used in Ran. The massive , creaking iron gates, the sound of Isuzu Yamada's silk slippers on the wood floor, those great contrasts of stillness-violent rapid motion-back to complete stillness, and the Lear-Ran film being given the great memorable Lady Macbeth character played by Mieko Harada.
Kurosawa's "Ran" is one of my favorite movies, but it is a rather loose adaptation of "King Lear". Orson Welles's "Chimes at Midnight" (aka "Falstaff") combines scenes from different plays to tell the story of a supporting character, and it is absolutely a great Shakespeare film. Branagh's 4 hour long Hamlet is the definitive film version but I personally prefer Kozintsev's moodier Russian movie. And while the 90s "Richard III" is no masterpiece it is a blast to watch Ian McKellen play Richard as a facist dictator.
RAN is one of my favorite Shakespeare films. I saw it in the cinema twice when it came out here in the US. I also love Welles' versions of the Bard: MacBeth, Othello and Falstaff. They may be far from perfect, but I always find something new in each one.
Kurosawa is my second-favourite director of all time, so I'm up for anything he wants to do. He does magnificent reworkings of Shakespearean material, but let's not forget to give the nod to Bill's universality. You can set his stories in another culture, in another language, in another time period, in a presentation which doesn't even use ANY of his priceless dialogue. . .& you still get a story for the ages which anyone from anywhere can feel deep in their bones. Well done, Bard of Avon! ✍
I'd like to hear more classic film reviews from you, Robin. Contemporary film reviews too, but I'm much more into classics now days. Siskel and Ebert were my favorite film reviewers who used the visual medium. I haven't enjoyed anyone as much since Ebert passed away several years ago. You, like them, teach and appreciate along with your opinions. I really appreciate your take on TOB. It's been decades since I last saw it and I'm fired up to watch it again.
Someone has probably mentioned this already, but the 1956 SF classic, FORBIDDEN PLANET was loosely based on Shakespeare's THE TEMPEST. That, along with Ian MacKellen's RICHARD III are a couple of my favorite Shakespeare adaptations.
God, I cannot stop saying good things about Ran, which is probably my favorite of his films. Obviously, his black and white films are masterpieces, but what he does with color in Ran puts it over the top.
This was an excellent overview of a great classic. For my favourite Shakespeare adaptations there are two in particular, both of 'The Tempest', Derek Jarman's 'Jubilee' and 'Forbidden Planet'.
Favorite Fakespeare Film: "Forbidden Tempest." Bad 1950's Science Fiction at its absolute best. Most outstanding sci fi has been a result of someone asking what could make a sci fi flick into sci fi cinema, and MGM nailed it but good. Starring Robbie the Robot, and featuring Leslie Nielsen, Walter Pidgeon, Anne Francis, and the on-loan Disney VFX department proving that when you hire Disney, you damn well get Disney. P.S. No matter what you've heard about "Throne of Blood," it's better than that. Treating it as a horror film, I think the monster is revealed early, and her name is Lady Macbeth, or the analog. She kneels in her husband's presence, she never raises her voice, and she will make your blood run cold.
The best film Shakespeare adaptation next to Welles' "Chimes at Midnight*," an amalgamation of parts of Henry IV pts. 1 & 2 and Richard II and Henry V and . . . looking it up . . . The Merry Wives of Windsor. *and maybe his Othello as well
Always loved Helena Bonham Carter's unhinged Ophelia in Zeffirelli's "Hamlet". And the moment in "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" when they began gossiping about Gertrude. I've only seen Rashomon and RAN and am still reeling from the experience, so haven't seen this Kurosawa film yet.
Not really a "take" on Shakesphere, but THEATRE OF BLOOD Starring Vincent Price where he slaughters his victims based on works by Shakesphere is a good one.
Kurosawa is an amazing director. When I saw RAN everyone in large cast of warriors showed emotion. In a Kurosawa film there are no extras, everyone on screen is an actor and we can see that. Best reworking of Shakespeare? FORBIDEN PLANET based on The Tempest.
what a great film and it is a great horror film. While not a film per-say, James Earl Jones as King Lear, it's a PBS filmed summer theater but more a film there was a freshness to Coralinus by talph fiennes that evades Branagh's Henry.
Great concise review. Saw Kagemusha at theatre when I was 14, was hooked, then Ran (back when such films got a showing on release even where I'm from). Saw much of the Kurasawa catalogue when home videos started, beginning with this movie, the first such film my bogan friends had ever watched, though growing up with 'Shinto' on afternoon b&w tv gave them an in. Rashomon has always been on youtube but the rest are protected. There's another dozen Kurasawa films less well-known that are terrific. As for Macbeth, always loved it but on rereading found it a clipped mess - the history of the text proves that - and was surprised it's been performed a million times as is, so I did a re-write to fix it, haha.
Too ignorant to comment on film adaptations, but Verdi's Shakespeare operas pretty much do justice to the Bard. What a pity he died before his Lear project!
Favourite cinematic version of a Shakespeare story? Have you seen the trailer for Hamlet in Last Action Hero? It's on youtube if you haven't There's a movie I want to see...
My favorite Shakespeare adaptation is a horror film: Theatre of Blood. Vincent Price and Diana Rigg both deliver amazing renditions of the Bard's best lines.
My favorite Shakespeare films are Orson Welles's "Chimes at Midnight" (his condensation of the Falstaff plays), Franco Zeffirell's "Romeo and Juliet" (could that be considered science fiction because Juliet's potion doesn't really exist?), and Roman Polanski's "Macbeth" (talk about gothic horror!). My favorite Shakespeare re-imagining is - drum roll please - "Throne of Blood," to no-one's surprise, I hope. But "ShakespeaRe-Told" did a credible updating of "Much Ado About Nothing," where Hero doesn't go back to Claudio.
Put me down as part of the chorus singing the praises of _Forbidden Planet_ as favorite Shakespeare adaptation. Also, going from the recently-reviewed _Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla_ with its jazzy, bombastic score, to the much much much more restrained music here shows how versatile Masaru Sato was as a composer, doesn't it?
I was partial to the 1995 adaptation of Richard III starring Ian Mckellen directed by Richard Loncraine. Also Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, though it's not a direct retelling of Hamlet allmost all the characters are there and you also get the whole story the game of questions is almost worth the price of admission alone
Best Shakespeare version for me is Forbidden Planet. Based on the Tempest. I think it's only one I've ever seen. But it's a great film, so it counts. Mind you, when Kevin Conroy auditioned for the Batman animated series role, he said he asked the producers 'tell me about this character.. They said 'he's rich and powerful but spends his nights underneath his parents ancestral home plotting to avenge their death' And he said 'you're doing Hamlet!'. They said 'umm....yeah!'. So you could argue all the Batman films I've ever watched are Shakespearian as well.
I was about to recommend this movie for a review, as it does have a strong supernatural component. It’s also one of my favourites from Kurosawa, I probably only like _Ran_ more. Speaking of Japanese Films, I’m very interested in hearing your views on _Kwaidan_ by Masaki Kobayashi.
I once read somewhere that the best way to make a horror movie, is to not make one. It seem to me, the intent was that a truly great horror movie was about life not death.
This looks wonderful. Definitely gonna check it out. And Robin have you ever seen "Ugetsu" from 1953? It's one of my favorite Japanese movies. You don't have to review it, I just think you'd like it.
I performed in a Shakespeare troupe for years, and I gradually grew weary of the excessive verbiage. Throne of Blood is my favorite Shakespeare adaptation for more reasons than I can count, but the fact that it skips almost all of the Bard's blah-blah-blah and tells the story visually and viscerally is the chief reason.
I still like Ran more. There's just something about MacBeth that irritates me. ... what IS my favorite Shakespeare adaptation... Hmm... Why did my mind get stuck when it reached "Forbidden Planet?" Fine... Forbidden Planet.
I'm not particularly interested in Shakespeare, but I thought the McKellen "Richard III", set in an alternative version of 1930s Britain, was very good.
What a great film....miss isuzu steals the show for me, using minimal body movement and slight facial gestures to convey a scheming menace and slowly becomes a shaking guilt ridden woman as lady macbeth...and DARK CORNERS, do the kurasawa films review!! Convention be damned to hell, he's too good of a director NOT to!
I still think it would be good, if weird, Dark Corners counter programming to make October the month for "off brand" non-horror stuff, while every other site does the opposite.
@@DarkCornersReviews Or review the kind of movies Count Floyd always got stuck with and had to make them sound scary: Ooh, "Four for Texas!" That's gonna be a shocker, kids! With a whole... pack... of RATS!
OTHER Best Shakespeare films? Franco Zeffirelli had the hat trick, with his 1969 Romeo & Juliet, his 1990 Mel Gibson Hamlet, and his 1967 Dick& Liz “Taming of the Shrew”. Uh, Lion King isn’t Shakespeare, though, except in a desperate studio exec’s shaky alibi. (Although I doubt it ties with “Dragonball: Evolution” as Worst Adaptation of Japanese Anime…. 🙄)
Just saw Throne of blood last night, Kurosawa’s brilliance as a filmmaker continues to impress me. That Mifune performance tho!!! Let’s not forget the arrow sequence, one of the most metal sequences I’ve ever seen!!
One aspect of the "spirit of the text" approach to adaptation I really like is how cleverly it gets around the barriers to translating Shakespeare for a Japanese audience. Translating Shakespearean dialogue into Japanese in a way that kept the poetry and meaning intact would be a pretty daunting task, so instead of translating the dialogue, he translates the theatrical conventions. It's an approach I'd love to see more often.
There's a great video, sadly removed now, from Brows Held High about how this movie translated the "Scottish Play" for a Japanese audience.
Is there a Japanese equivalent to iambic pentameter? That would be necessary.
Or do what Kurosawa did, and find the spirit of the original. You don't need to even know _MacBeth_ exists to appreciate and admire this movie.
@@julietfischer5056 apparently most of the script fits the haiku format.
@@christopherwall2121- Which is hard to discern when reading subtitles.
I was wondering why this film was highlighted on a Horror Channel but the review puts it into proper context. It IS a horror film at its core.
And Macbeth is kind of a horror play.
McBeth, till this day, is called "That Scotish Play" in the UK because Of the mystics surrounding It and the myth the name casts evil spirits.
There are many levels of horror that
the average filmgoer may not pick up on.
The best Hammer films, for example, used atmosphere and
imagery . Their horror was psychological, where everything was
suggested but nothing was actually
shown.
Much more effective than
jumpscares and layers of CGI.
@@billmurray7473 Or to use a more recent example, the Iranian horror film Under The Shadow, whose real monster is the repressive government and culture of 1980s Iran with a djinn highlighting such.
Macbeth is a horror story.
Hands down, my favorite Kurosawa film AND my favorite Shakespeare adaptation (apologies to Franco Zeffirelli's Hamlet, which taught me how to comprehend Shakespeare himself). I'd even go so far as to say that Kurosawa improves on the original with his stunning and more satisfying ending (even if the whistling is a bit much). Never thought of the gothic horror angle but it certainly fits with the Noh drama trappings.
Nice shoutout to Ikiru, one of the best meditations on living a meaningful life ever made!
One of my favourite Kurosawa films. I see Throne of Blood at least once a year. To answer your question. I always loved Ian Mckellen's "Richard III", set in Britain of the 1930's.
I saw Richard III when it came out. Had some quirky moments for a Shakespearean movie. 😄
"Throne of Blood" has some of the greatest photography in the history of film.
You know, I think your take on Kurosawa Shakespearean films would be very interesting. Put me up for a vote for that! Sure, it's not exactly horror as we know it, but Kurosawa does great terror pictures. I'd love to see that.
When people ask me about horror, aside from the familiar Universal, Hammer, and Bava films, this one of the best. I like the historical background too. History and horror go together since both deal with human tragedy.
A legend director...
Toshiro Mifune was just incredible
RUclips is awash with reviewers doing comical riffs on crappy movies, but Robin is a true analyst. He cuts to the heart of what's wrong with a bad movie or what's worthy about a good movie with equal skill. Never stop, Robin!
I like how, even when he reviews shoddy films, Robin puts in the research and brings out whatever gold there might be among the dross.
I hope you aren’t saying Throne of Blood is bad lol
One of my favourite Kurosawa movies. Thank you, sir.
Another one we studied in 1980 in film class. So interesting. Shakespeare AND a "western" set in feudal Japan. Kurosawa was amazing.
I think that anyone could do intensity quite like Toshiro Mifune. The guy's got eyes like Gowron.
The cinematography on display is breathtaking. 3:19 Look at the shot! Just look at it! 😲
This film is truly one of the greats!
I'd be down for a video on Kurosawa's Shakespeare trilogy.
So would I. This is an excellent review, let's have more! As for favourite adaptations, I'll put in a vote that may surprise: I think Ralph Fiennes' CORIOLANUS is the best recent adaptation. It even makes Gerard Butler look good.
Two greats, Director Kirwasowah and actor Mifune, thanks for a great review 👍😊
This is both of them at the height of their powers
@@Oldguitar57 The two of them were one of those legendary actor/director pairs. Think John Wayne and John Ford, Chow Yun-Fat and John Woo, Arnie and James Cameron.
Throne of Blood is absolutely amazing and so worth seeing. Anyone who liked Ran or Seven Samurai owes it to themselves to watch it.
Oh hell yes, please cover _Ran. Throne of Blood_ and _Ran_ are my two of my favorite Kurosawa classics (neck-and-severed-neck with _Yojimbo_ and _Sanjuro)._
One of my favorites. I could finally appreciate Shakespeare.
Another big fan of Ian McKellen's "Richard III" here. When I first watched it on VHS and it came to the end, I immediately rewound the tape and watched the whole thing again.
Side note: macbeth IS basically a horror story, witches, ghosts, prophecy, and guilt destroying the evil, so without doubt any faithful adaptation is going to also be horror. IMHO.
I love how some of Throne of Blood's memorable moments were also used in Ran. The massive , creaking iron gates, the sound of Isuzu Yamada's silk slippers on the wood floor, those great contrasts of stillness-violent rapid motion-back to complete stillness, and the Lear-Ran film being given the great memorable Lady Macbeth character played by Mieko Harada.
Well done sir; you absolutely nailed the quality of the film.
Kurosawa's "Ran" is one of my favorite movies, but it is a rather loose adaptation of "King Lear". Orson Welles's "Chimes at Midnight" (aka "Falstaff") combines scenes from different plays to tell the story of a supporting character, and it is absolutely a great Shakespeare film. Branagh's 4 hour long Hamlet is the definitive film version but I personally prefer Kozintsev's moodier Russian movie. And while the 90s "Richard III" is no masterpiece it is a blast to watch Ian McKellen play Richard as a facist dictator.
a bit of 'trivia': Lady Washizu's first name is Asaji--and that was George Lucas' inspiration for the force sensitive villainess Asaj Ventress.
RAN is one of my favorite Shakespeare films. I saw it in the cinema twice when it came out here in the US. I also love Welles' versions of the Bard: MacBeth, Othello and Falstaff. They may be far from perfect, but I always find something new in each one.
Such an amazing film.
Kurosawa is my second-favourite director of all time, so I'm up for anything he wants to do. He does magnificent reworkings of Shakespearean material, but let's not forget to give the nod to Bill's universality. You can set his stories in another culture, in another language, in another time period, in a presentation which doesn't even use ANY of his priceless dialogue. . .& you still get a story for the ages which anyone from anywhere can feel deep in their bones. Well done, Bard of Avon! ✍
I'd like to hear more classic film reviews from you, Robin. Contemporary film reviews too, but I'm much more into classics now days. Siskel and Ebert were my favorite film reviewers who used the visual medium. I haven't enjoyed anyone as much since Ebert passed away several years ago. You, like them, teach and appreciate along with your opinions.
I really appreciate your take on TOB. It's been decades since I last saw it and I'm fired up to watch it again.
Someone has probably mentioned this already, but the 1956 SF classic, FORBIDDEN PLANET was loosely based on Shakespeare's THE TEMPEST. That, along with Ian MacKellen's RICHARD III are a couple of my favorite Shakespeare adaptations.
To me the silliest is actually "west side story", romeo and juliet....liked the ian mckellan one.
Great video, and valid point about the horror aspects of the film. As far as other Shakespeare films go, my favourite is Welles' CHIMES AT MIDNIGHT.
God, I cannot stop saying good things about Ran, which is probably my favorite of his films. Obviously, his black and white films are masterpieces, but what he does with color in Ran puts it over the top.
Definitely do a video about his Shakespeare trilogy.....
I second that.👍🏻
RAN, it’s a glorious movie saturated with colour, haunting music, relatable actors all wrapped up in Shakespeare.
Such a great movie! My favorite Kurosawa!
I love this film! Its so eerie and beautiful and exciting.
This was an excellent overview of a great classic.
For my favourite Shakespeare adaptations there are two in particular, both of 'The Tempest', Derek Jarman's 'Jubilee' and 'Forbidden Planet'.
Love this film.....I agree one of the greatest adaptations on film about Shakespeare
Favorite Fakespeare Film: "Forbidden Tempest." Bad 1950's Science Fiction at its absolute best. Most outstanding sci fi has been a result of someone asking what could make a sci fi flick into sci fi cinema, and MGM nailed it but good. Starring Robbie the Robot, and featuring Leslie Nielsen, Walter Pidgeon, Anne Francis, and the on-loan Disney VFX department proving that when you hire Disney, you damn well get Disney.
P.S.
No matter what you've heard about "Throne of Blood," it's better than that. Treating it as a horror film, I think the monster is revealed early, and her name is Lady Macbeth, or the analog. She kneels in her husband's presence, she never raises her voice, and she will make your blood run cold.
Forbidden Planet.
What a movie!
The bit with the trees...man!!!
The best film Shakespeare adaptation next to Welles' "Chimes at Midnight*," an amalgamation of parts of Henry IV pts. 1 & 2 and Richard II and Henry V and . . . looking it up . . . The Merry Wives of Windsor.
*and maybe his Othello as well
“Rosencranz and Gildernstern are dead” by far my absolute favorite Shakespeare adaptation
Always loved Helena Bonham Carter's unhinged Ophelia in Zeffirelli's "Hamlet". And the moment in "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" when they began gossiping about Gertrude.
I've only seen Rashomon and RAN and am still reeling from the experience, so haven't seen this Kurosawa film yet.
Also check out Ikiru, a devastating and moving parable on making your life count.
Saw part of Throne of Blood on the TCM channel, and later realized it was Akira?Kurosawa's adaptation of Macbeth, with horror thrown in. 🙀🙀🙀
This film is a masterpiece.
And yes, it is very eerie and unnerving at times.
This Lady Macbeth slowly emerging from the shadows is one of the creepiest scenes ever.
Not really a "take" on Shakesphere, but THEATRE OF BLOOD Starring Vincent Price where he slaughters his victims based on works by Shakesphere is a good one.
Comic horror, with Price having a blast chewing the scenery. Heavyweight cast all the way. The beauty salon scene is worth the ticket price.
I love Branagh's version of Henry V. Beautiful colors and a great song after the battle.
Kurosawa is an amazing director. When I saw RAN everyone in large cast of warriors showed emotion. In a Kurosawa film there are no extras, everyone on screen is an actor and we can see that. Best reworking of Shakespeare? FORBIDEN PLANET based on The Tempest.
what a great film and it is a great horror film. While not a film per-say, James Earl Jones as King Lear, it's a PBS filmed summer theater but more a film there was a freshness to Coralinus by talph fiennes that evades Branagh's Henry.
Miss Leslie's Dolls and Throne Of Blood, together again!
Great concise review. Saw Kagemusha at theatre when I was 14, was hooked, then Ran (back when such films got a showing on release even where I'm from). Saw much of the Kurasawa catalogue when home videos started, beginning with this movie, the first such film my bogan friends had ever watched, though growing up with 'Shinto' on afternoon b&w tv gave them an in. Rashomon has always been on youtube but the rest are protected. There's another dozen Kurasawa films less well-known that are terrific. As for Macbeth, always loved it but on rereading found it a clipped mess - the history of the text proves that - and was surprised it's been performed a million times as is, so I did a re-write to fix it, haha.
Too ignorant to comment on film adaptations, but Verdi's Shakespeare operas pretty much do justice to the Bard. What a pity he died before his Lear project!
Favourite cinematic version of a Shakespeare story? Have you seen the trailer for Hamlet in Last Action Hero? It's on youtube if you haven't There's a movie I want to see...
The kid imagining Arnold as Hamlet. That would have been one for Charles Dance and F. Murray Abraham. They would have had fun with that.
No one will ever have a stare comparable to that of Toshiro Muifune.
My favorite Shakespeare adaptation is a horror film: Theatre of Blood. Vincent Price and Diana Rigg both deliver amazing renditions of the Bard's best lines.
My favorite Shakespeare films are Orson Welles's "Chimes at Midnight" (his condensation of the Falstaff plays), Franco Zeffirell's "Romeo and Juliet" (could that be considered science fiction because Juliet's potion doesn't really exist?), and Roman Polanski's "Macbeth" (talk about gothic horror!). My favorite Shakespeare re-imagining is - drum roll please - "Throne of Blood," to no-one's surprise, I hope. But "ShakespeaRe-Told" did a credible updating of "Much Ado About Nothing," where Hero doesn't go back to Claudio.
Put me down as part of the chorus singing the praises of _Forbidden Planet_ as favorite Shakespeare adaptation.
Also, going from the recently-reviewed _Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla_ with its jazzy, bombastic score, to the much much much more restrained music here shows how versatile Masaru Sato was as a composer, doesn't it?
Amazing film! & it's funny just how adaptable 'Macbeth' is! When I was in college, our theater department did a Post-Apocalyptic version!
I really like Olivier’s Richard III and I absolutely loved Peter Greenaway’s Prospero’s Books.
How many arrows do you want?
Kurosawa: Hai
He got the point.
Toshiro Mifune: FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCK!
@@christopherwall2121 I've scrolled past this comment several times on my youtube notifications, and, each time, it makes me giggle. 👍
@@euansmith3699 Glad I could entertain so.
I love all of Kurasawa’s samurai films but Throne of Blood is my favourite
I was partial to the 1995 adaptation of Richard III starring Ian Mckellen directed by Richard Loncraine. Also Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, though it's not a direct retelling of Hamlet allmost all the characters are there and you also get the whole story the game of questions is almost worth the price of admission alone
Best Shakespeare version for me is Forbidden Planet. Based on the Tempest. I think it's only one I've ever seen. But it's a great film, so it counts. Mind you, when Kevin Conroy auditioned for the Batman animated series role, he said he asked the producers 'tell me about this character.. They said 'he's rich and powerful but spends his nights underneath his parents ancestral home plotting to avenge their death' And he said 'you're doing Hamlet!'. They said 'umm....yeah!'. So you could argue all the Batman films I've ever watched are Shakespearian as well.
I was about to recommend this movie for a review, as it does have a strong supernatural component. It’s also one of my favourites from Kurosawa, I probably only like _Ran_ more.
Speaking of Japanese Films, I’m very interested in hearing your views on _Kwaidan_ by Masaki Kobayashi.
I'm a big fan of Kwaidan but never sure how best to approach it. Seems to big for one of these quick reviews.
@@robinbailes5236 I think the proper way to tackle it would be in the form of an Essay, like the one made for Onibaba & Kuroneko.
Best William Shakespeare adaptation only matched by Kurosawa's King Lear adaption Rān. Nothing else compares.
I once read somewhere that the best way to make a horror movie, is to not make one. It seem to me, the intent was that a truly great horror movie was about life not death.
No offense intended, but it's Akira KUROsawa - not Akira KIRAsawa.
Like I should talk; I spent most of my life mispronouncing "Kubrick." 😬
And "sa-MU-rai" as in cow's "moo," not like the name "Samuel."
I love this movie.
Wow reviewing a classic for a change, you should do more of these...
WAIT ... THERE'S MORE KUROSAWA ADAPTATION OF SHAKESPEARE?
I KNEW OF THRONE OF BLOOD AND RAN! GOD I NEED TO SEE THIS OTHER ONE 🥺🥺🥺💙💙💙❤️❤️❤️❤️
Ran is based on King Lear, The Bad Sleep Well based on Hamlet
The Day of the Beast is my favorite Alex de la Iglesias film of 1995.
Forbidden Planet is a good one.
My favourite take on Shakespeare is the tongue in cheek Theatre of Blood.
This was an interesting one.
This looks wonderful. Definitely gonna check it out. And Robin have you ever seen "Ugetsu" from 1953? It's one of my favorite Japanese movies. You don't have to review it, I just think you'd like it.
I have seen Ugetsu and I like it very much.
You won't be disappointed. The performances are amazing and the cinematography is perfect.
@@julietfischer5056 Thanks! From the review it looked fantastic.
Great film
I performed in a Shakespeare troupe for years, and I gradually grew weary of the excessive verbiage. Throne of Blood is my favorite Shakespeare adaptation for more reasons than I can count, but the fact that it skips almost all of the Bard's blah-blah-blah and tells the story visually and viscerally is the chief reason.
I still like Ran more. There's just something about MacBeth that irritates me.
... what IS my favorite Shakespeare adaptation... Hmm... Why did my mind get stuck when it reached "Forbidden Planet?"
Fine... Forbidden Planet.
"A Fistful of Dollars", of course.
Shakespearean AND Gothic (and Mifune)? Count me in, thanks!
William Kurosawa
I'm not particularly interested in Shakespeare, but I thought the McKellen "Richard III", set in an alternative version of 1930s Britain, was very good.
What a great film....miss isuzu steals the show for me, using minimal body movement and slight facial gestures to convey a scheming menace and slowly becomes a shaking guilt ridden woman as lady macbeth...and DARK CORNERS, do the kurasawa films review!! Convention be damned to hell, he's too good of a director NOT to!
I particularly like Polanski’s Macbeth, still the best of the traditional takes of this play.
All I can say about the climax is that, given inappropriate music, it can easily be taken out of context. Much like the climax of Frankenstein.
Does he fall off the balcony and onto the spears?
Is there a version out there with English language subtitles?
Yes.
Most physical releases have subs.
The Hidden Fortress is a fairy tale. You can see how George Lucas uses it as a template for Star Wars.
I still think it would be good, if weird, Dark Corners counter programming to make October the month for "off brand" non-horror stuff, while every other site does the opposite.
A month of rom coms coming up
@@DarkCornersReviews Or review the kind of movies Count Floyd always got stuck with and had to make them sound scary:
Ooh, "Four for Texas!" That's gonna be a shocker, kids! With a whole... pack... of RATS!
OTHER Best Shakespeare films? Franco Zeffirelli had the hat trick, with his 1969 Romeo & Juliet, his 1990 Mel Gibson Hamlet, and his 1967 Dick& Liz “Taming of the Shrew”.
Uh, Lion King isn’t Shakespeare, though, except in a desperate studio exec’s shaky alibi. (Although I doubt it ties with “Dragonball: Evolution” as Worst Adaptation of Japanese Anime…. 🙄)
I liked the 1995 version of Richard III that had Richard as a fascist in 1930s Britain.
Eyy
I have to admit to a soft spot for the Hamlet with Mel Gibson.
Think this is better than Ran?
The Japanese know how to make a movie.
Washizu is one of the worst cinematic characters and he gets what coming to him in spades... rather in arrows, 10 fold.
I think what Kurosawa did here, he absolutely mastered with Ran. Ran is even better than Shakespeare.