Ran - Akira Kurosawa
This is the epic tale of great lord Hidetora Ichimonji (Tatsuya Nakadai – Harakiri & Yojimbo) ceding power to his sons. He has accumulated great wealth in his lifetime and no longer wants the troubles of leadership.
The story follows as each of his sons take their turn in betraying him often at the behest of Lady Kaede (Mieko Harada – Dreams & Lullaby of the Earth). Kaede is a powerful force but it is Ichimonji steals the show.
Taro & Tango
The only two people who remain true to the old lord throughout are his son Taro (Akira Terao – After the Rain & Half a Confession) and his vassal Tango (Masayuki Yui – Kagmusha & To End All Wars).
Taro is banished right at the start for refusing to accept his father’s abdication and dies at his father’s side after coming to the rescue.
Tango remains at Hidetora’s side throughout and suffers almost as much as the lord for all the terrible choices Hidetora makes.
Taro and Tango are poorly rewarded for their loyalty.
Beware the Woman in Red
Lady Kaede is a truly evil force. As soon as the abdication becomes certain she plays the brothers against each other and against Hidetora, even if they are happy for him to stay with them to start off with.
She refuses to allow the old lord’s kingdom survive and would rather see it burn than any of them rule it – and this is exactly what she gets. She is an intelligent manipulator of her husband and the vassals around her.
One of her conquests is killing of Lady Sue. There is a great scene after the generals return after failing to kill Sue to which Kaede responds: “Until I have her head you will never see me again.” Part of me was thinking that this would probably be best for all involved – unfortunately it was not to be.
The Great Lord & Succession
We realise very early on that ceding power isn’t the done thing. Hidetora’s first mention of it is what leads to the falling out with Taro. This is a really interesting development story-wise.
It is also very odd how the actual succession plays out. It is almost as if Hidetora doesn’t realise what the order to succeed actually means until he is signing the order.
However, there is a nice scene where he immediately calls out Lady Kaede’s treachery following the succession and his expulsion from the first castle.
The Steps To Insanity
As he is slighted by each of his sons his looses part of himself – until he himself is banished. Each son in turn refuses support. He travels from castle to castle that until days earlier were his.
What I find so bizarre is that things that seem very clear to an audience appear to be missed by the old lord. Even when the truth of his third son’s aid is right in front of him he refuses to accept the truth and heads to his ill-fated third castle.
The culmination of the Hidetora’s failure is when he cannot find a sword to commit suicide as the third castle falls. Slipping between madness and sanity is brilliantly portreyed throughout the end of this disturbing narrative.
The Verdict
The film has some really nice moments and some great acting. The problem is that this all hangs off a story structure that doesn’t make a lot of sense.
The audience sees, time and time again, a clear path to salvation. Yet, we are not given any reason as to why Hidetora takes the actions he does.
My gut feeling is that aspects of Hidetora’s motivation do not translate well from a Japanese audience to a western one. Perhaps there are things to do with honour that are clear to the Japanese audience that make Hidetora’s action make sense. Without this background I cannot understand this film.
