Rashomon

Movie Review- Rashomon

It has been stated by critic, Roger Ebert, Rashomon was a ground breaking cinematic expression and

a trailblazer for the current films we watch today. Quite the contrary. The mixture of stories

reminds the movie goer of a bad dream laced with four psychotic experiences. Each witness

(bandit, woman, murdered man, and the woodcutter) account became confusing as the story

progressed.

 

The movie lost its spark in the beginning scenes. The first scene appeared intriguing because the

dramatic rain scene and the destruction deceives the viewer into believing the movie will include

choreographed action sequences or a plot filled with a purpose and a progressive conclusion. The

court official set the anticipation for the remainder of the film by appearing confused. He states, “I

don’t understand.” It reminds the viewer of an Alfred Hitchcock movie, A Paradine Case. As the

wood cutter began the long walk through the woods, I became disconnected.  Kurosawa’s attempt

to capture the essence of the woodcutter’s journey caused the storyline to shift from exciting to

what’s the point. There was no significant purpose to capture scenic views of the forest for 4-5

minutes.

Creating subjective points was inventive during this period of filmmaking. However, the character

portrayals became more psychotic as the movie progressed.  The propensity to overact made the

story unbelievable. The bandit’s laughter, facial expressions were comical but did not fit the

cinematic flow as other traditional Japanese films. The opposing viewpoints of the couple did not

add any value to the storyline because all parties embellished their stories and the viewer was

unable to draw a reasonable conclusion based on the different court testimonies. This makes the

movie very frustrating.

The story lacked purpose as it progressed. During court procedures, it is common for all witness

testimony to be cross examined. The characters’ accounts were not challenged by the court.

There were no disputative responses from the court.  The viewer experiences a range of

conclusions with no objective information. The soothsayer’s dance (dead man’s account) was

farfetched. It is difficult for the viewer to decipher the significance of the discovery of the baby to  

four different testimonies and a murder. The movie goer spends 1:28 minutes searching for true

and accurate conclusion that will never exist.

To lie is to tell your false truth, or to tell your false truth is a lie. Either way, it will never be the

truth.  For those who seek purpose and conclusion during their movie experience, I do not

recommend viewing this film.