Thursday, July 15, 2010

Powerful Images & Story Telling




 Watched Kurosawa's "Ran" last night, which is a retelling of King Lear in feudal Japan.

One thing that I like about his directing style is his striking use of images, especially the countryside and sky. They become almost a character in the story, much as John Ford did with the American West.











One thing I don't like with "Ran" is that the director seems too removed from his characters, both visually and internally., He's using one of Shakespeare's greatest tragedies, but most of the characters seem one-dimensional. 

2 comments:

  1. Danek,
    I hear you about RAN.
    The detail I remember most about the film is that all the sound effects went away at one point -- making space for one sound: the gunshot when one brother shot the other! Effective and intense.
    a great day,
    Tom

    Motion Picture Director and Producer
    Tom's blog: www.BeHeardandBeTrusted.com
    For filmmakers/creatives:
    My article "How to 'Never Give Up'" at
    http://beheardandbetrusted.com/2010/04/19/how-can-you-never-give-up/

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  2. Interesting insight.

    I didn't notice that. I'll have to watch for that if I ever watch it again.

    ReplyDelete