REVIEW: DVD Release: Ran

Film: Ran
Release date: 20th November 2006 (Blu-ray released 28th September 2009)
Certificate: 15
Running time: 153 mins
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Starring: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu, Daisuke Ryu, Mieko Harada
Genre: Action/Drama
Studio: Optimum
Format: DVD
Country: Japan

If the Lucas and Spielberg assisted production of 1980’s Kagemusha was Kurosawa’s flawed dress rehearsal for the epic blood soaked fable he had always envisaged, then his revisit to the genre, Ran, is very much the real thing - a silence to his critics, and an amazing visual experience.

As with 1957’s Throne Of Blood, which was closely modelled on Macbeth, Kurosawa once again drew inspiration from Shakespearean tragedy, adapting King Lear – albeit, this time, with several subtle differences, most notably the inclusion of several ‘new’ characters and interesting moral dilemmas.

Faithful to the original source material, the plot is based around an ageing warlord who decides to divide his kingdom amongst his three offspring. Unlike Lear, however, who had three daughters; our protagonist has three sons with which to contend with. The youngest son (adopting the Cordelia role) vocally dismisses his idea as senility and insanity, and inevitably transpires to be the only one to remain loyal to his father despite his impending madness. Chaos ensues, greed and ambition prevail, and ultimately the outcome is tragic beyond even Shakespeare’s own inventions…


The transition from an Elizabethan setting to feudal Japan is seamless. The story itself could easily be a morality tale from almost any culture, but somehow in Kurosawa’s hands it seems quintessentially Japanese. Kurosawa himself seems to have embraced his Japanese heritage more so than in previous efforts, adopting naturalistic filming techniques such as static camera angles and long takes evoking the performances and staging of traditional No plays, rather than the favoured American influenced sweeping and panning camera techniques employed in films like The Seven Samurai.

The look of the film is extremely theatrical with over the top physical performances, lavishly coloured set design, wardrobe and makeup. Despite the extravagance and stylistic nature, they never detract from the verisimilitude and realism of the film. The makeup of the main character, crumbling warlord Hidetora, in particular, is made up to evoke ghostly theatrical imagery. His face resembling a Kabuki mask, a style of theatre derived from 16th century Japan, but given his circumstances, it is accepted and never questioned.

Kagemusha was perceived in many circles to be somewhat of a failure, due to its inability to make an emotional connection with the audience. Ran has no such issues, and Kurosawa obviously intended to address this issue head on. He succeeded by crafting much more empathetic characters and situations, and decided to cast a wide range of talent that, for the most part, he hadn’t previously worked with (having mysteriously parted ways with regular collaborator Toshiro Mifune before the production of Kagemusha).

Hidetora, as expertly portrayed by Kurosawa veteran Tatsuya Nakadai, is a more complex individual than Shakespeare’s titular character. Plagued by madness and guilt, he wanders throughout the lush landscape with his loyal retainer Tango and fool Kyomai encountering various characters and events that only disturb him further - spiralling towards the events that form the film’s unavoidable conclusion. Tension builds as storm clouds gather symbolising the impending doom, and while everyone is blinded by their own agendas, only the fool Kyomai remains the voice of reason (the film’s moral compass, and some much needed comic relief as there are many unsettling scenes of brutal violence).

The most disturbing scenes involve those featuring Lady Kaede, a character specifically invented for Ran - she evokes the power Goneril had in Lear and an almost Lady Macbeth ability to manipulate the males for her own benefit, essentially instigating all of the events that occur within the narrative. The performance by Mieko Harada is chilling, yet demands sympathy and respect from the audience when we learn of her past and her abilities. She also evidently displays far superior leadership skills than Hidetora or any of the three brothers. The inclusion of Kaede detracts from potential homo eroticism and misogyny created by dominance of a nearly all-male cast by providing a fully rounded feminist presence. These complex and, at times, contradictory characters demonstrate how Kurosawa had evolved as a filmmaker by this point - much more comfortable with symbolism and ambiguity than overt morality pieces.

The technical aspects of this film also show much more competence and confidence. The panoramic battle scenes and choreography are mesmerising, eclipsing anything done by any filmmaker before or indeed subsequently. Not even Peter Jackson’s Lord Of The Rings or Edward Zwick’s The Last Samurai come close. One harrowing battle scene, in particular, features absolutely no diegetic sound, only the eerie yet intense score provided by an array of traditional instruments. This gives a necessary distancing from the violent imagery, but somehow enables it to become all the more captivating.

Cinematographers Takao Saito and Masaharu Ueda do the astonishing job of utilising the vibrant colour palette featuring the many lush greens that are on display in the mountainous locations to give a sense not of calm and tranquillity but instead sinister foreboding - enhancing the mood of the film brilliantly, complimented by the haunting score.


Ran is a cinematic tour de force, a modern day updating of a classic tragedy brought to the screen by a true visionary. A masterpiece of the highest order and a startling return to form. Now the film is available on blu-ray for the first time, the opportunity to experience it in high definition is not to be missed.