Rated PG. Very clean episode this week.
Our 357th episode finds us talking about that legend of legends, Akira Kurosawa, and his 70-year-old classic Rashomon. Simply put, this film is about honour and dishonour (ie. lying). Who’s telling the truth? Can we ever know the REAL truth? This is a difficult storyline with a rapist destroying what seems to be a bad marriage. And how did that samurai end up dead? Points of view are clung to. Kabuki ensues! Okay, so the acting is a bit much, but this movie is so influential with its story structure and its technical merits that it’s easy to look past how big Toshiro Mifune et al are in this flashback-fest. So load us up because Kurosawa is on the docket and if you love film, you pretty much have to love his work.
Well, Actually: Patrick Henry was known for saying “give me liberty or give me death”, not “death before dishonour”. Also, it’s the woodcutter (not the priest) who says he “can’t understand” at the beginning of the movie.
If you’re looking for a beverage to help you tell the whole truth, Sparkplug Coffee is a pretty great option. They’re eager to give you a 20% discount and you just have to type in our promo code (“top100project”) when you’re ready to pay up.
We welcome comments on Twitter: @moviefiend51 and @bevellisellis
LINKS:
1952 Academy Award winners & nominees
Links to: Seven Samurai and Yojimbo and Courage Under Fire and Midsommar
Previously on The Ellises’ Analysis: South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut
August 24th on The Ellises’ Analysis: Carol