Rashomon
A crime is committed in ancient Japan. A samurai warrior is murdered, and his wife, raped. A woodcutter and a priest narrate the story to a commoner, one rainy day.
The murderer who committed the crime, the victim (the samurai’s wife), the spirit of the dead man who talks through a medium, and finally the actual witness (a woodcutter)—all have differing versions of what happened.
How is that possible? Who is telling the truth? Why do people lie? What do they want to hide? These are some of the philosophical questions raised by Kurosawa in his highly acclaimed “Rashomon”.
While the woodcutter recounts his version of the crime, a baby is heard crying. The priest, the commoner, and the woodcutter go toward it, and the commoner tries to steal some objects from the baby. The woodcutter reproaches the commoner for stealing from the abandoned baby, but the commoner questions him about an object that went missing from the scene of the crime, figuring out that the woodcutter had something to do with it. The commoner laughs at the woodcutter saying all men are selfish and the woodcutter is no different.
When the priest witnesses this scene, his faith in humanity is lost. It is however, restored when the woodcutter explains that he wants to adopt the baby since he already has six children and another one will not be too much trouble. The priest now understands why the woodcutter had to steal and gives the baby to him, saying he has restored his faith in humanity.
This movie, made in 1950, is considered one of Kurosawa’s masterpieces, winning him popularity the world over.
A crime is committed in ancient Japan. A samurai warrior is murdered, and his wife, raped. A woodcutter and a priest narrate the story to a commoner, one rainy day.
The murderer who committed the crime, the victim (the samurai’s wife), the spirit of the dead man who talks through a medium, and finally the actual witness (a woodcutter)—all have differing versions of what happened.
How is that possible? Who is telling the truth? Why do people lie? What do they want to hide? These are some of the philosophical questions raised by Kurosawa in his highly acclaimed “Rashomon”.
While the woodcutter recounts his version of the crime, a baby is heard crying. The priest, the commoner, and the woodcutter go toward it, and the commoner tries to steal some objects from the baby. The woodcutter reproaches the commoner for stealing from the abandoned baby, but the commoner questions him about an object that went missing from the scene of the crime, figuring out that the woodcutter had something to do with it. The commoner laughs at the woodcutter saying all men are selfish and the woodcutter is no different.
When the priest witnesses this scene, his faith in humanity is lost. It is however, restored when the woodcutter explains that he wants to adopt the baby since he already has six children and another one will not be too much trouble. The priest now understands why the woodcutter had to steal and gives the baby to him, saying he has restored his faith in humanity.
This movie, made in 1950, is considered one of Kurosawa’s masterpieces, winning him popularity the world over.
Comments