LoginThrone of Blood (1957) Reviews
Macbeth in a Japanese feudal setting
Posted : 1 year, 8 months ago on 4 August 2022 01:21
I am more of a Seven Samurai, Ran and Hidden Fortress fan myself when it comes to Akira Kurasawa's films. However I do think alongside the likes of Welles' Chimes at Midnight, Branagh's Much Ado About Nothing and Olivier's Richard III to be one of the finest films based on Shakespeare's work ever made. Throne of Blood is a somewhat loose adaptation of Macbeth, not as bloody perhaps and set in a Japanese feudal setting, and I am aware that it has been criticised for one-dimensional characters and its dramatic structure. For me though, the dramatic structure, even with the purposefully slow-moving pace(at times), was compelling and sometimes even moving in places, and the characters while not exactly complex are not that one-dimensional in comparison to other characters in other movies. Taketoki Washizu, masterfully played by Toshiro Mifune, is one of those villains where you do feel a lot of pity for at the end I found. Whatever Throne of Blood is criticised for, I cannot deny how powerful the atmosphere conveyed is here, it is very intense and eerie with a harrowing final scene. Kurasawa's direction is superb, the basic essence of Macbeth is there but there are also touches like the Forbidden Room that are part of the director's own creative touch. Of the other acting, which is not naturalistic to start with and considering the tone and subject matter all the better for it but always effective, Isuzu Yamada is a standout, determined and intensely still. And Throne of Blood is an incredibly well made film, the camera work is exemplary and the spooky sets add so much to the atmosphere. All in all, one of the finest Shakespeare adaptations on film. 10/10 Bethany Cox
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