Kagemusha

A sumptuous, spectacular jidai-geki, Kagemusha was one of two magnificent Shakespearean epics that Kurosawa would release in the 1980s; Ran — also set in the clan wars of 16th-century Japan, and also starring Tatsuya Nakadai — was the other. Nakadai plays a lowly thief who is spared execution by agreeing to act as a double for a great warlord he uncannily resembles. Kagemusha was, at the time of its production, the most expensive Japanese film ever made (it was later eclipsed by Ran). Kurosawa had considerable difficulty securing financing; to preserve a “film” he thought would never get made — but also in the hopes of attracting investors — he rendered his vision of the entire movie in hundreds of elaborate, intricate drawings and beautifully detailed paintings. When George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola came onboard, Kagemusha got made. The film’s visual splendour — the vivid colours, the grandeur of the court scenes and military regalia, the dazzling, dream-like battle sequences — testify to Kurosawa’s artistry and the meticulousness of his planning. Kagemusha shared the Palme d’Or at Cannes (with Fosse’s All That Jazz) and was nominated for two Oscars. “Probably the director’s most physically elaborate, awesome film. . . Majestic, stately, cool, and, in many of its details, almost abstract” (Vincent Canby, New York Times). Colour, 35mm, in Japanese with English subtitles. 162 mins.

Please note: Double-bill prices in effect for this film.