Throne of Blood

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Template:Short description Template:Infobox film Template:Nihongo is a 1957 Japanese epic jidaigeki film co-written, produced, edited, and directed by Akira Kurosawa, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. The film transposes the plot of English dramatist William Shakespeare's play Macbeth (1606) from Medieval Scotland to feudal Japan, with stylistic elements drawn from Noh drama. The film stars Toshiro Mifune and Isuzu Yamada in the lead roles, modelled on the characters Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.

As with the play, the film tells the story of a warrior who assassinates his sovereign at the urging of his ambitious wife. Kurosawa was a fan of the play and intended to make his own adaptation for several years, delaying it after learning of Orson Welles' Macbeth (1948). Among his changes was the ending, which required archers to shoot arrows around Mifune. The film was shot around Mount Fuji and Izu Peninsula. With a budget of Template:USD (Template:Inflation), the film was one of the most expensive films ever made in Japan at the time of its release.<ref name="Variety"/>

Despite the change in setting and language and numerous creative liberties, Throne of Blood is often considered one of the best film adaptations of the classic play, and has received much critical praise. The film won two Mainichi Film Awards, including Best Actor for Toshiro Mifune.<ref name=":0" />

Plot

Childhood friends and samurai commanders Washizu and Miki are called to the Spider's Web Castle, the estate of local lord Tsuzuki, after defeating the lord's enemies in battle. On their way through the Spider's Web Forest, they encounter an evil spirit who foretells their future. The spirit informs them that Washizu will be named Lord of the Northern Garrison and Miki will become commander of the first fortress that day, that Washizu will later become Lord of Spider's Web Castle, and that Miki's son Yoshiteru will eventually become lord.

When the two reach the castle, Tsuzuki rewards them with exactly what the spirit had predicted. As Washizu discusses the events with his wife Asaji, she convinces him to murder Tsuzuki when he visits. She offers drugged sake to Tsuzuki's guards, incapacitating them and allowing Washizu to kill Tsuzuki with a spear. She then frames an unconscious guard, who is killed by Washizu in the ensuing chaos. Both Kunimaru, Tsuzuki's vengeful son, and Noriyasu, one of Tsuzuki's advisors, suspect Washizu's treachery and try to warn Miki, but Miki refuses to believe them.

Under Asaji's influence, Washizu comes to question Miki's loyalty but nevertheless chooses Yoshiteru as heir, as he and Asaji have no child of their own. Washizu plans to inform Miki and Yoshiteru about the decision at a grand banquet, but Asaji reveals that she is pregnant, leaving him in a quandary. He eventually decides to eliminate Miki and Yoshiteru.

At the banquet, an agitated Washizu drinks sake copiously as the guests await Miki and Yoshiteru's arrival. He hallucinates and sees Miki's ghost and, in a delusional panic, reveals what has transpired by exclaiming that he is willing to slay Miki a second time, unsheathing his sword and slashing at Miki's empty seat. Asaji has the guests dismissed. One of Washizu's men arrives carrying a bundle containing the severed head of Miki, and informs the couple that Yoshiteru has escaped. Washizu kills the man in a fit of anger.

As Washizu grows increasingly paranoid and tyrannical, his men begin to doubt and fear him, and rumors circulate that Yoshiteru, Kunimaru, and Noriyasu have joined forces with their onetime rival Inui. Washizu is distraught by the news that his heir has been born dead. In order to ascertain the outcome of the impending battle, he returns to the forest in search of the evil spirit. The spirit tells him that he will not be defeated in battle until "the trees of the Spider's Web Forest rise against the castle", leading him to believe that his victory is all but assured.

The next morning, Washizu finds Asaji in a semi-catatonic state, trying to wash clean an imaginary stain and stench of blood from her hands. He is then told by panicked soldiers that the trees of Spider's Web Forest have risen to attack them. A desperate Washizu tries to muster his troops, but they ignore his commands and fire arrows at him, severely wounding him. When Washizu tells them that to kill their lord is treason, they accuse him of having done the same. As his enemies approach the gates, he succumbs to his wounds, attempting to draw his sword as he dies. It is then revealed that the attacking force had used trees, cut from the forest during the night, to shield their advance onto the castle.

Cast

Actor Character Macbeth analogue
Toshiro Mifune Taketoki Washizu MacbethTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn
Isuzu Yamada Lady Asaji WashizuTemplate:Sfn Lady MacbethTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn
Takashi Shimura Noriyasu Odagura MacduffTemplate:Sfn
Akira Kubo Yoshiteru Miki FleanceTemplate:Sfn
Yōichi Tachikawa Kunimaru Tsuzuki MalcolmTemplate:Sfn
Minoru Chiaki Yoshiaki Miki BanquoTemplate:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn
Takamaru Sasaki Lord Kuniharu Tsuzuki King DuncanTemplate:Sfn
Chieko Naniwa WitchTemplate:Sfn The Three WitchesTemplate:Sfn
Kokuten Kōdō First General
Sachio Sakai Washizu's samuraiTemplate:Sfn
Yū Fujiki Washizu's samuraiTemplate:Sfn
Kichijirō Ueda Washizu's workmanTemplate:Sfn
Takeshi Katō Tsuzuki's samurai
Shōbun Inoue Tsuzuki's messenger
Asao Koike Tsuzuki's messenger
Eiko Miyoshi Senior lady-in-waiting
Isao Kimura Messenger (Phantom)
Seiji Miyaguchi Messenger (Phantom)

Crew

Template:Div col

  • Akira Kurosawa – director, co-writer, producer, editor
  • Eiji Tsuburaya – special effects director
  • Yoshimitsu Banno – assistant director
  • Kuichirō Kishida – lighting
  • Takao Saitō – camera assistant
  • Masao Fukuda – still photographer
  • Kohei Ezaki – chief art director
  • Yoshirō Muraki – art director and costume designer
  • Masanori Kobayashi – make-up artist
  • Ichirō Minawa – sound effects

Template:Div col end Personnel taken from Throne of Blood by Robert N. Watson.Template:Sfn

Production

Development

Noh was an influence on the film.

William Shakespeare's plays had been read in Japan since the Meiji Restoration in 1868,Template:Sfn though banned during World War II for not being Japanese.Template:Sfn Director Akira Kurosawa stated that he had admired Shakespeare's Macbeth for a long time, and that he envisioned making a film adaptation of it after he completed his 1950 film Rashomon. When he learned that Orson Welles had released his own version of Macbeth in 1948, Kurosawa decided to postpone his adaptation project for several years.Template:Sfn

Kurosawa believed that Scotland and Japan in the Middle Ages shared social problems and that these had lessons for the present day. Moreover, Macbeth could serve as a cautionary tale complementing his 1952 film Ikiru.Template:Sfn

In May 1956, Kurosawa announced that he would be producing three samurai films for Toho, Throne of Blood, The Hidden Fortress, and Revenge, each to be filmed from September 1956 to early 1957 by other directors.Template:Sfn Ishirō Honda, best known for directing the 1954 kaiju film Godzilla, was slated to direct Throne of Blood, but Kurosawa ended up directing all three films himself.Template:Sfn

The film combines Shakespeare's play with the Noh style of drama.Template:Sfn Kurosawa was an admirer of Noh, which he preferred over Kabuki. In particular, he wished to incorporate Noh-style body movements and set design.Template:Sfn Noh also makes use of masks, and the evil spirit is seen, in different parts of the film, wearing faces reminiscent of these masks, starting with yaseonna (old lady).Template:Sfn Noh often stresses the Buddhist doctrine of impermanence. This is connected to Washizu being denied salvation, with the chorus singing that his ghost is still in the world.Template:Sfn Furthermore, the film score's use of flute and drum are drawn from Noh.Template:Sfn

Writing

All three of Kurosawa's frequent script collaborators participated for the first time: Hideo Oguni, Shinobu Hashimoto, and Ryūzō Kikushima, each working with the director for their fourth time. Initially, the screenwriters wrote the script with the intention that it would be directed by Ishirō Honda, but Toho insisted Kurosawa take the directing position after reading the script and realizing a large budget was required for the film.Template:Sfn

Set design

Cast and crew members on the open set of Throne of Blood, published in the early September 1956 issue of Kinema Junpo. (from left to right) Shinjin Akiike, Fumio Yanoguchi, Kuichirō Kishida, Samaji Nonagase, Takao Saito, Toshiro Mifune (in the jeep), Minoru Chiaki, Takashi Shimura, Teruyo Nogami (scripter), Yoshirō Muraki, Akira Kurosawa, Hiroshi Nezu, Asakazu Nakai, and Sōjirō Motoki.

The castle exteriors were built and shot on the volcanic slopes of Mount Fuji.Template:Sfn The castle courtyard was constructed at Toho's Tamagawa studio, with volcanic soil brought from Fuji so that the ground matched.Template:Sfn The interiors were shot in a smaller studio in Tokyo. The forest scenes were a combination of actual Fuji forest and studio shots in Tokyo. Washizu's mansion was shot in the Izu Peninsula.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

In Kurosawa's own words: Template:Quote

Production designer Yoshirō Muraki said the crew opted to employ the color black in the set walls, and a lot of armor, to complement the mist and fog effects. This design was based on ancient scrolls depicting Japanese castles.Template:Sfn

Special effects

The scene in which trees from the Spider's Web Forest approach the castle, was created by Toho's special effects department and directed by Eiji Tsuburaya. Originally, this scene was longer, but Kurosawa cut several shots of trees from the film because he was unimpressed by them.Template:Sfn

Washizu's death scene, in which his own archers turn upon him and shoot him with arrows, was in fact performed with real arrows, shot by knowledgeable and skilled archers. During filming, Mifune waved his arms, which was how the actor indicated his intended bodily direction. This was for his own safety in order to prevent the archers from accidentally hitting him.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Release

The film was released theatrically in Japan on January 15, 1957, by Toho,Template:Sfn and grossed Template:¥, making it the second-highest-grossing Japanese film of 1957,Template:Sfn after Shintoho's Emperor Meiji and the Great Russo-Japanese War, which grossed ¥542.91 million.Template:Sfn In the United States, the film was distributed by Brandon Films with English subtitles at 105 minutes and opened on November 22, 1961.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

Throne of Blood was the first film to be screened at the 1st BFI London Film Festival on October 16, 1957.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn After the screening, Akira Kurosawa attended a party at film critic Dilys Powell's house, and had dinner with actor Laurence Olivier, and actress Vivien Leigh who were planning on playing Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in a film adaptation of William Shakespeare's Macbeth that never materialized. Olivier told Kurosawa that he had enjoyed watching the film and was impressed by the scene in which Toshiro Mifune's Macbeth is shot by arrows. Isuzu Yamada's acting impressed Leigh, and she asked why Yamada made such little movement when she was mad.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

In 1991, the film was released in the United States on LaserDisc by The Criterion Collection, and on VHS by Media Home Entertainment.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Toho released the film on DVD in Japan in 2002 and on Blu-ray in 2010.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2013, Madman Entertainment distributed the film on DVD in Region 4.<ref name="Madman">Template:Cite web</ref> In Region A, The Criterion Collection released the film on Blu-ray in 2014, having released the film on DVD 10 years earlier.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2018, the film was screened by the National Film Archive of Japan at the Essential 2018 National Film Archive Opening Cinema Memorial in Kyōbashi, Tokyo, along with 9 other Japanese films.<ref name="National Film">Template:Cite web</ref> In 2021, the Kawakita Memorial Film Institute screened a 4K remaster of the film at the 12th 10am Film Festival.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Reception

Critical response

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 96% based on 47 reviews, with an average score of 8.80/10. The site's consensus states: "A career high point for Akira Kurosawa – and one of the best film adaptations of a Shakespeare play."<ref name="RottenTomatoes">Template:Cite Rotten Tomatoes</ref>

When it was released in the United States in 1961, the Time review praised Kurosawa and the film as "a visual descent into the hell of greed and superstition".<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Bosley Crowther from The New York Times called the idea of Shakespeare in Japanese "amusing", and complimented the cinematography.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Most critics stated it was the visuals that filled the gap left by the removal of Shakespeare's poetry.Template:Sfn

U.K. directors Geoffrey Reeve and Peter Brook considered the film to be a masterpiece, but denied it was a Shakespeare film because of the language.Template:Sfn Film historian Donald Richie praised the film as "a marvel because it is made of so little: fog, wind, trees, mist".Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Film critic Stephen Prince compared its minimalist landscapes to the painting technique sumi-e.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

David Parkinson of Empire magazine rated it 5 out of 5, calling it "highly cinematic" and "a film studded with magnificent set-pieces".<ref name="Empire">Template:Cite web</ref>

The film has received praise from literary critics despite the many liberties it takes with the original play. The American literary critic Harold Bloom judged it "the most successful film version of Macbeth".Template:Sfn Sylvan Barnet writes it captured Macbeth as a strong warrior, and that "Without worrying about fidelity to the original," Throne of Blood is "much more satisfactory" than most Shakespeare films.Template:Sfn Film historian David A. Conrad wrote that just as Shakespeare's play commented on "questions of legitimacy, masculinity, and civil war" that resonated in early 17th-century England, Kurosawa's movie engages with contemporary Japanese debates about the "spiderless cobweb" of postwar bureaucracy and industry.Template:Sfn In his Movie Guide, Leonard Maltin gave the film four stars, calling it a "graphic, powerful adaptation".Template:Sfn

Accolades

Award Category Recipient(s) Result Template:Abbr
Venice Film Festival Golden Lion Akira Kurosawa Template:Nom Template:Sfn
Kinema Junpo Awards Best 10 Japanese Films Template:Draw Template:Sfn
Best Actress Isuzu Yamada Template:Won
Mainichi Film Awards Best Actor Toshiro Mifune Template:Won <ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref>
Best Art Direction Yoshirō Muraki Template:Won
Blue Ribbon Awards Best 10 Japanese Films Template:Draw <ref name="BlueRibbon">Template:Cite web</ref>
Technology Award Yoshirō Muraki Template:Won
Visual Technology Awards Art Yoshirō Muraki Template:Won <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Legacy

Akira Kurosawa's 1960 film The Bad Sleep Well, was heavily influenced by William Shakespeare's Hamlet, as well as The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas.Template:Sfn Roman Polanski's 1971 film version of Macbeth has similarities to Throne of Blood, in shots of characters on twisted roads, set design, and music to identify locations and psychological conditions.Template:Sfn Toshiro Mifune's death scene was the source of inspiration for Piper Laurie's death scene in the 1976 film Carrie,Template:Sfn in which knives are thrown at her, in this case by character Carrie White using her psychic powers. In 1985, Kurosawa returned to adapting Shakespeare, choosing the play King Lear for his final epic film Ran, and again moving the setting to feudal Japan.Template:Sfn

Throne of Blood is referenced in the anime film Millennium Actress (2001) in the form of the Forest Spirit/Witch.Template:Citation needed It was adapted for the stage by director Ping Chong, premiering at the 2010 Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, Oregon.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

See also

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References

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Bibliography

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