Recently watched Rashomon again after 15 years, and it still stands as a fantastic classic for movie lovers. I remember the first time I watched it, I thought it was amazing. The actors the directing, the story, everything. Plus it was the first movie that introduced me to Toshiro Mifune.
Rashomon was released in 1950, directed by Akira Kurosawa, and inspired by the short story by Ryƫnosuke Akutagawa, In a Grove.
The story surrounds a bandit involved in a scenario where a samurai is murdered, and a woman raped. The story shows the various perspectives of all involved. Everyone, including the dead man's ghost, has a different story to tell.
Mr. Kurosawa's unique directing style was amazing to me. A lot of the story took place in court where testimony was given about the incident in the grove. He planted the camera straight on the actors and let them do their thing. There were no fancy camera tricks, and the actors were allowed to break the fourth wall. It made you feel like you were the one they were giving testimony to.
The grove was shot from different perspectives making the actors adapt to fit whatever perception a speaker had of them. Depending on the perspective being given, any one of them could be cold, loving, or heartbroken at any given time. Who is telling the truth?
It leaves you questioning your faith in humanity, and then tries to restore it.
I saw this film in a film class in college. I thought it was unique and I loved the performances of the actors and Mr. Kurosawa's directing style. 15 years later, after thinking about it off and on throughout that time, I finally had the opportunity to watch it again. Yeah, it's still awesome.
