Director
Akira Kurosawa
Leading Actors/Actresses
Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu, Mieko Harada, Daisuke Ryû
Supporting Actors/Actresses
Masayuki Yui, Mansai Nomura
Genre
Drama, Action, Tragedy
Language
Japanese
Awards
Won Academy Award for Best Costume Design. Nominated for three other Oscars including Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration
Date of Release
1985
Producer
Masato Hara, Serge Silberman
Setting and Context
16th Century Japan during the Sengoku Jidai period
Narrator and Point of View
None
Tone and Mood
Serious, Dramatic, Violent, Tragic
Protagonist and Antagonist
Protagonist is Ichimonji and antagonists are Taro, Jiro, and Kaede
Major Conflict
Taro and Jiro strip their father of authority after he has given rule to Taro, and he finds himself without a home and separated from his only loyal son, Saburo.
Climax
Ichimonji dies immediately after his son, Saburo, is killed.
Foreshadowing
Saburo snaps the bundle of three arrows his father gives him as a symbol of unity. It foreshadows the break between the brothers and their ultimate demise. Kaede's discussion of her family's ruin foreshadows her revenge.
Understatement
Kurosawa understates Ichimonji's past violence in attaining his land and authority. It's only when we meet Tsurumaru that we understand the extent of his past brutality.
Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques
At the time, the film was the most expensive Japanese film ever made.
Allusions
The film is an allegory for technological advancement and its plot takes inspiration from King Lear and the real-life daimyō, Mōri Motonari.
Paradox
Ichimonji banishes Saburo for questioning him about Taro's ability to lead. Paradoxically, Saburo is the only son who truly cares for his father and what's best for him.
Parallelism
Kurosawa parallels the opening and closing shots of the film. At the opening four men face opposite directions, and at the ending one man is enveloped in shadow. Thus we see four men heading in four separate directions that will eventually tear their bond apart, and the film closes with a man who appears to have no direction at all.
