|
Kagemusha was my first introduction to Akira Kurusawa.
My dear friend Andrew and I went to the Nuart Theatre in sunny Los Angeles a few years ago to catch a retrospective screening of this three-hour Kurusawa samurai epic simply because we had no real basis of comparison for it. Andrew had seen a couple Kurusawa works - the standards: Seven Samurai, Ran - but neither of us had really opened our hearts and minds to the acclaimed filmmaker, so we figured a sojourn to the Nuart would be an excellent way to start the ball rolling.
And as wishy-washy film snobish as it might sound, I didn't get it the first time. It was long, drawn-out, and brutally paced - as slow as it could possibly be. Sure, some of the fighting sequences were stunning, and the film's colors and compositions were vibrant and interesting, but to this Kurusawa novice, Kagemusha looked like a whole lot of expensive nothing (as mediocre as I thought it was at the time, it really did look like a million bucks).
But now that Criterion has dropped a mega-edition of Kagemusha on us, I have returned to the picture and discovered the errors of my ways. I've seen a good 50% of Kurusawa's total output in the last few years (my Kurusawa obsession continues to run fast and loose) and returning to Kagemusha with this DVD edition has made me both wish I'd never thought anything bad about the film and want to watch all Kurusawa works in one long marathon session.
Kagemusha on its own is a difficult beast to comprehend, but as a crowned jewel in Kurusawa's celluloid crown, it makes perfect sense. Perhaps this gives the film too much credit - I still avow that if you've never seen a Kurusawa work, this isn't the best place to start - but after experiencing the extraordinary thematic storytelling Kurusawa dropped during his astonishing career, to have Kagemusha appear toward the end of the rainbow is the cork on Akira's priceless bottle of wine, if you'll excuse the metaphor.
He made four more films after Kagemusha - Ran, Dreams, Rhapsody in August, and Madadayo - and even if Ran remains a more user-friendly and crossover American success (after all, it engages both action fans and Shakespeare lovers), Kagemusha is arguably Kurusawa's late-career masterwork: a film that is as hard to discern as it is easy to fall in love with.
Again, it's not completely fair to lionize the film in this way - as much as any Kurusawa fan may love Kagemusha, it is not a film without flaws - but now that this film sits near High and Low, Ikiru, and countless other Kurusawa works on my shelf, I'm happy - and proud - to see it there.
Warts and all, it's a late great from arguably the late great epic filmmaker.
The Video: How Does The Disc Look?
Boom. Kagemusha 's 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer is one of the most colorful and impressive upgrades Criterion has offered - well, since some of its earlier releases this year (bless them). Color contrast here is most immediately impressive - reds and greens literally POP off the screen - and line quality is detailed and sharp. Black levels are also significantly more powerful than I ever thought they'd be, and Criterion has done quite a bit to clean up the print from most dust and grime for this transfer. Killer.
The Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?
Given a nice four-channel discrete mix, Kagemusha also sounds fantastic on this Criterion release. Dialogue is noticeably more rounded and boomy than in other Kurusawa works, and the film's score and impressively frequent sound effects also come through with clarity and precision. The surround channels aren't given all that much of a workout - mostly due to design, not technical prowess here - but all in all, this mix will knock your socks off.
Also included are English subtitles.
Supplements: What Goodies Are There?
On Disc One, Stephen Prince's screen-specific audio commentary on Kagemusha is a must-listen for Kurusawa fans, even if it drags in spots during its three-hour run time. Author of The Warrior's Camera: The Cinema of Akira Kurusawa, Prince makes up for his sometimes-plain delivery by giving us an astonishing amount of information about the film and how it came to fruition. Excellent.
Also on the first disc of this release are three trailers for the film: the U.S. release trailer; the Japanese teaser; and, the Japanese trailer.
First up on Disc Two is Lucas, Coppola and Kurusawa, a documentary featuring interview footage from Kurusawa executive producers George and Francis about Kurusawa's influence on them as filmmakers and the business hurdles they had to go through in order to help Kagemusha reach theatres (20 minutes). Then we have another documentary - an excerpt from Akira Kurusawa: It is Wonderful to Create - that focuses on Kurusawa's legacy, and in this case, the specific importance of Kagemusha and what it meant for the master's later films (40 minutes).
Image: Kurusawa's Continuity is a mesmerizing featurette that uses Kurusawa's sketches and paintings to reconstruct the visual beauty of Kagemusha (35 minutes). It runs a little long - Kurusawa's creative output is staggering - but as a tool for Kurusawa completists, this is an exceptional addition to the Kurusawa DVD pantheon. Then we have A Vision Realized, a collection of storyboards from the film (as well as some of their filmed equivalents from the movie), and - most interestingly - a series of Suntory Whiskey commercials that were filmed on the set of Kagemusha that include appearances from Coppola and Kurusawa. Amazing.
Exclusive DVD-ROM Features: What happens when you pop the disc into your PC?
There are no DVD-ROM features on this DVD.
Final Thoughts
Kurusawa and Criterion fans will need to earmark forty bucks for this thing; it's amazing. With a stellar transfer, a great mix, and a simply awesome set of extensive special features, this Kagemusha release makes one wish Criterion would put every Kurusawa film on their release list. For newcomers, I'd recommend starting your Kurusawa appreciation elsewhere - anything from the recently-released Four Samurai Classics Criterion box set will do - but for decided Kurusawa-files, draw your swords and get ready to charge. Highly recommended.
|
