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BLOODY BRILLIANT


THRONE OF BLOOD MOVIE REVIEW

“Look upon the ruins

Of the castle of delusion

Haunted only now

By the spirits

Of those who perished

A scene of carnage

Born of consuming desire

Never changing

Now and throughout eternity”

These words ignite Akira Kurosawa’s immortal regicide piece, Throne of Blood, an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth set in medieval Japan. The film stars the iconic partner of Kurosawa, Toshiro Mifune, as the General Taketoki Washizu, and Isuzu Yamada as his Lady Asaji. Through these performances, Kurosawa’s direction, and deep commitment to Noh theatre, Throne of Blood is a stark, haunting tale of jealousy and ambition.

The first thing that pops out in this film is how cold it feels. From the opening music to its portrayal of murder it’s alienating, and one the few films that actually benefits from being black and white, giving it a dead atmosphere that is impossible for any color to emulate. However, this doesn’t mean it was done by merely fate, or accident. The direction from Kurosawa manages to gift the film a sense of building dread from each scene to the next.

Another aspect that gives the film its chilling and haunting emanations are the aspects derived from Noh plays. While this is a story from Shakespeare, Kurosawa executes it in the style of Japanese theatre, and seemingly effortlessly. The aforementioned music, simplistic sets that isolate the characters (thus isolating the viewer), and the actors facial expressions and makeup are all components of this.

In order to pull of Noh masks without masks, the film absolutely depended on having competent enough actors to do so. And despite having a very small one, the consistently strong cast remains to be one of the most memorable parts of the film. Toshiro Mifune portrays his character as an animal, but not just as an animal on the hunt, but a scared one. His eyes expose the entire mind of his character, his rage, his regret, his desire, but he has the physical presence required for any emotion he’s feeling. The counter for his performance is Isuzu Yamada’s, who guides his character through manipulation and incentive, not unlike how one would train a dog, further emphasizing the animal in General Washizu. But this contrast is only necessary for the film to feel as tense as it does, despite most scenes being merely conversations between the two.

All of these instruments are collected by Kurosawa to conduct a symphony that sings a song that, despite being a simple one, and one ages old, manages to haunt and provide caution for those who desire too much. Thus earning Akira Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood a 9.5 out of 10.

★★★★★★★★★½

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