Akira Kurosawa and an Introduction to Classic Japanese Cinema
In a career that spanned 57 films over 30 years, Akira Kurosawa became the face of Japanese cinema. In his early years, Kurosawa was subjected to the early deaths of two of his brothers and an earthquake that leveled his home city of Tokyo. These events led the future director to look differently both at life and the budding film industry. By the time he became a director, Kurosawa refused to shy away from touchy or difficult subjects. His films became masterful studies of both the good and the bad of mankind.
From 1948 to 1950, Kurosawa would dominate the Japanese film industry by making films that were both gritty and retrospective to the struggles of a rebuilding country. From the film, Drunken Angel which displayed occupying forces in a negative manner to Scandal which attacked the Japanese media’s approaches to news reporting. The 1950′s and 1960′s would bring international success to Kurosawa and allow him to push boundaries in his films. Rashomon was the first of this wave of films as it depicted the rape of a samurai’s wife from many different characters’ viewpoints. With each success, Kurosawa brought more international attention to himself and the Japanese film industry.