Rashomon (1950)

The rape of a bride and the murder of her samurai husband are recalled from the perspectives of a bandit, the bride, the samurai's ghost and a woodcutter.

Director:

Akira Kurosawa

Writers:

Ryûnosuke Akutagawa (stories), Akira Kurosawa (screenplay)

Stars:

Toshirô Mifune, Machiko Kyô, Masayuki Mori

Top Rated Movies #131 | Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 9 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Toshirô Mifune	...	Tajômaru
Machiko Kyô	...	Masako Kanazawa
Masayuki Mori	...	Takehiro Kanazawa
Takashi Shimura	...	Woodcutter
Minoru Chiaki	...	Priest
Kichijirô Ueda	...	Commoner
Noriko Honma	...	Medium
Daisuke Katô	...	Policeman

Storyline

A priest, a woodcutter and another man are taking refuge from a rainstorm in the shell of a former gatehouse called Rashômon. The priest and the woodcutter are recounting the story of a murdered samurai whose body the woodcutter discovered three days earlier in a forest grove. Both were summoned to testify at the murder trial, the priest who ran into the samurai and his wife traveling through the forest just before the murder occurred. Three other people who testified at the trial are supposedly the only direct witnesses: a notorious bandit named Tajômaru, who allegedly murdered the samurai and raped his wife; the white veil cloaked wife of the samurai; and the samurai himself who testifies through the use of a medium. The three tell a similarly structured story - that Tajômaru kidnapped and bound the samurai so that he could rape the wife - but which ultimately contradict each other, the motivations and the actual killing being what differ. The woodcutter reveals at Rashômon that he ...

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Plot Keywords:

unreliable narration | rape | medium | heavy rain | contradictory accounts | 

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Taglines:

The great, exciting Japanese production that brings a new experience to the cinema.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Named by director Daniel Petrie as his favorite film in an AFI poll.

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Goofs

Around the 22:30 mark (in the Criterion release), the bandit explains to the husband about the sword and where it came from, but the words don't even come close to matching his lips' movements.

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Quotes

Tajômaru: I already had you, but I only want you more. It's very hard. I beg you to be my wife.

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Alternate Versions

In order to get the film into more mainstream U.S. theatres, RKO also released this film in an English dubbed version.

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Connections

Referenced in Magnum, P.I.: I Witness (1984)

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Soundtracks

Woman's Tale Theme (Bolero)
Written by Fumio Hayasaka inspired by Maurice Ravel's "Bolero", using the same background rhythm, and similar orchestration and build-up, but different melodic lines.

User Reviews

Kurosawa, do I need to say more

Kurosawa tells a story four times through different characters. The characters tell the story different four times. In flash-backs, all as the characters tell them, we see the stories. Are they lying, are they all telling their own truth or is there someone who tells THE truth? The way this is handled by Kurosawa is absolutely masterful.

Of course, his direction is great. Together with cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa they do a tremendous job with the atmosphere in the woods. With perfect light angles it looks beautiful.

A real Japanese classic.

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

26 December 1951 (USA)

Also Known As:

Rashomon

Filming Locations:

Japan

Box Office

Budget:

$250,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$15,942, 28 July 2002

Gross USA:

$46,808

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$46,808

Company Credits

Production Co:

Daiei

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1