Ran (1985)

• Year: 1985
• Released: 01 Jun 1985
• Country: Japan, France
• Adwords: Won 1 Oscar. 30 wins & 23 nominations total
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089881/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/ran
• Metacritics: https://www.metacritic.com/movie/ran
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: Japanese
• MPA Rating: R
• Genre: Action, Drama, War
• Runtime: 162 min
• Writer: Akira Kurosawa, Hideo Oguni, Masato Ide
• Director: Akira Kurosawa
• Cast: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu
• Keywords: revenge, castle, gun, epic, assassination,

	8.2/10
	96/100
	96% – Critics
	95% – Audience

Ran Storyline

A story of greed, a lust for power, and ultimate revenge. The Great Lord Hidetora Ichimonji has decided to step aside to make room for the younger blood of his three sons, Taro, Jiro, and Saburo, the Lord’s only wish now being to live out his years as an honored guest in the castle of each of his sons in turn. While the older two sons flatter their father, the youngest son attempts to warn him of the folly of expecting the three sons to remain united; enraged at the younger son’s attempt to point out the danger, the father banishes him. True to the younger son’s warning, however, the oldest Son soon conspires with the second son to strip The Great Lord of everything, even his title.

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Ran Movie Reviews

A film requiring patience with huge rewards for the viewer!

The ‘Kurosawa’ adaptation of King Lear in his film ‘Ran’ is a tremendous memorable film.

It is a very dramatic film with many soliloquies and dialogue, but if you are patient with it, you are treated to some of the most epic scenes of cinematic brilliance that Kurosawa made. After all it is Shakespeare and one must be patient with it if they are not a fan of the old school theatre.

Colourfull clashing armies, The lord awaiting his fate in a burning castle, a brilliant execution scene (I consider the BEST I have ever seen film ever), and the blind being left in the hands of Buddha?

While Seven Samurai will always be his perfection, Ran is more than an enjoyable movie that should be seen. Just stick with it and you’ll never forget it.

Rating 9 out of 10.

excellent but not among his very best

I absolutely love the films of Akira Kurasawa and have seen most of them. And, for some reason, this is not among my favorites although it is one of his highest rated films on IMDb. Perhaps I’m just being too picky, but I think MAYBE its popularity is because it was made somewhat recently and some of his older (and I think more interesting) films are sometime forgotten. After all, MOST of the IMDb reviewers are old enough that they could have seen this film on the big screen, while very few could have seen his earlier films in all their glory. The other reason why I think it’s a little overrated is that his version of Macbeth (Throne of Blood) is the best retelling of Shakespeare and so Ran, despite it being wonderful, pales if you see them one after another (like I did). And finally, the characters and their interactions are just sterile–with little understanding or life to the them.

So what DOES this film have going for it? Well, the word is SPECTACLE. Like KAGAMUSHA (which came out around the same time), it had a big budget and glorious locations. It is simply a gorgeous film to see. Some watch Kurosawa for the spectacle, I tend to look more at the characterizations which are really secondary in this film.

Give me a film like Kurosawa’s IKARU or SCANDAL over a film like this.

Akira Kurasawa’s take on King Lear

I loved Kurasawa’s Throne of Blood, and heard this was even better. And indeed it was, for me second only to Seven Samurai as his best film and one of the finest movies ever made. As with any Kurasawa film, it is superbly made with the camera work in look and technique masterly and the colour and period detail really sumptuous. The battle sequences are even more epic in scope and emotional impact than Seven Samurai, aided by the spectacle and camera work. The music is rousing and haunting, almost sometimes paying homage to Mahler, the script is literate and thoughtful and the story intensely moving. Add to that Kurasawa’s ever immaculate direction and the truly remarkable lead performance Tatsuya Nakadai and you have an even more brilliant film. Rounding off is the truly Machiavellian performance of Mieko Harada as the daughter-in-law figure. The over-two-and-a-half-hour length and slow pacing didn’t hinder Ran in the slightest, at least to me anyway, though some not used to Kurasawa’s style may be deterred. In conclusion, there wasn’t much I really could add to the wonderful reviews already, but I do think Ran is a superb film with much to admire. 10/10 Bethany Cox