Akira Kurosawa

[Drunk Monk]

Kurosawa's final film. If there was ever a movie that was sorely in need of a swordfight, it is Madadayo.

As most of you know, I worship Akira as a director god. Several of his films would be in my personal top 10 and Seven Samurai remains my fav film of all time. But Madadayo was very disappointing the master's final work. It revisits old themes of the quirky master, very reminiscent of the old man in Akira's first color film Dodes'ka-den (which is absolutely brilliant storytelling and if you haven't seen it, you should really treat yourself to a masterpiece of film). There's a lot of drinking and smoking. After WWII, young Japanese men wear suits, drink and smoke, and walk around in rubble. Old sensei (meaning professor of German here, not martial arts) wear traditional hakama, drink and smoke, and walk around in rubble. There's a bollywood number of drunken men wearing suits and singing a stupid drinking song that goes on way too long. There are some stereotypic Kurosawa techniques and motifs - the rain, the long static shot, the sudden dream sequences, but at 2 hours plus, well, at the end of his illustrious career, Kurosawa sensei needed an editor.

[Drunk Monk]

S got into this 50's movie kick two weeks ago - we've seen Gigi (my boss's namesake, which is really weird to watch now), Harvey (which I still love because you never see Harvey except in the painting), How to Marry a Millionaire (which evokes vintage fantasies of Monroe and Bacall) and Roman Holiday (what red-blooded man would ever refuse Audrey's drunken and dosed request to be undressed? Gregory, you are so gay).

Then I managed to squeeze in my ALL TIME FAV #1 film, the Seven Samurai, which I haven't rewatched in years. It's still awesome. Every shot. Every nuance. My family enjoyed it too. S kept teasing me about its length. T kept asking questions about what was going to happen as it was her first real samurai film. She really liked the 'laughing guy' - Mifune's character - but then who doesn't?

Then we went on to some more Hollywood 50's flicks, Jailhouse Rock (Elvis dancing is really weird now), Pillow Talk (Tony Randall - what a loser), Rebel without a Cause (Dean is still really amazing, and there's a knife fight).

Then I managed to squeeze in another Kurosawa fav, the inspiration for Star Wars, The Hidden Fortress. That film is better than I remember it. It works on so many levels. I think in the end, it is Kurosawa's happiest film. My family were equally impressed.

[cranefly]

It really hurts me to admit to this, but ... I saw Pillow Talk at the drive-in when it first came out.
Our parents took us kids along.

I remember being very confused by all the nudity and what the people were doing.
No, wait a sec. There was no nudity. I recall being rather bored. Milche Toast comes to mind, thinking about the movie.

It was Behind the Green Door that confused me with all its nudity and what the people were doing. I was 22 at the time.

[Drunk Monk]

I was 22 at the time.

Did you parents take you? Because that would explain a lot.