Macbeth Rewritten

Premonition is a dangerous game when it comes to storytelling but if you have a master storyteller like Akira Kurosawa then have no fear you are in for an amazing journey, even if the end is foretold. Throne of Blood (1957) works off a little known piece of work by one William Shakespeare, Kurosawa takes Macbeth and transforms it into a 15 Century film about one mans passive struggle to fulfill a ghostly foretelling of his future as king of the hallowed Spider Web Castle. Taketori Washizu, played by Kurosawa regular Toshiro Mifune is running scared the whole film. He feels trapped by the future and his wife's persistence on the truth of the premonition. Now the question becomes, was the premonition true, or did Washizu by his actions force the desired result?

Toshiro Mifune is perfect in this role. His larger than life actions and reactions suite his character. He is a man who's eyes are always possessed with fear and to look into them even for a second you know that he knows his doom is sealed. Another haunting and persuasive performance comes from Isuzu Yamada, the wife of Washizu. She acts as the catalyst for all that happens. She is both persistent and calculated, you as an audience member understand why Washizu follows her lead. She is the perfect contrast to the spirits in the film, she is like the living ghost, foretelling the future by forcing her hand.

Structurally Throne of Blood is a perfect film. It navigates its plot with a foreboding cloud lingering over it at all times. I often worry as a filmmaker how to deal with a story that is so heavily dependent on a passive unlikeable character (Through The Woods). Kurosawa does it by not drawing to much attention to that character and letting the ultimate sense of demise take over. Although, if there is one thing about the film that kept me from being overly engaged it is this lack of connection to any characters.

The combination of this perfect script along with Kurosawa's immaculate direction gives you a truly layered film. First of all, let me say, I don't know how this man uses so much fog. More importantly his direction is unique here in that he lets a lot play out in very wide open spaces. It is like the characters cannot escape the frame, and or their fate. Between the camera moves and the great minimalist set design, we as an audience feel just as trapped as the characters in the film.

The ending of Throne of Blood has to go down as one of the best endings of all times. The images of the fog and trees and Washizu's downfall are both simplistic and haunting. Yes it may be a sometimes slow ride to get to the ending, and some scenes do drag by todays standard, but as a whole it is a masterpiece.

****1/2