Throne of Blood

BFI Film Classics

by Robert N. Watson

Throne of Blood (1957), Akira Kurosawa's reworking of Macbeth , is widely considered the greatest film adaptation of Shakespeare ever made.
In a detailed account of the film, Robert N. Watson explores how Kurosawa draws key philosophical and psychological arguments from Shakespeare, translates them into striking visual metaphors, and inflects them through the history of post-World War II Japan. Watson places particular emphasis on the contexts that underlie the film's central tension between individual aspiration and the stability of broader social and ecological collectives - and therefore between free will and determinism.
In his foreword to this new edition, Robert Watson considers the central characters' Washizu and his wife Asaji's blunder in viewing life as a ruthless competition in which only the most brutal can thrive in the context of an era of neoliberal economics, resurgent 'strongman' political leaders, and myopic views of the environmenal crisis, with nothing valued that cannot be monetized.

Genres: Film, Nonfiction, Japan

98 pages, Paperback

First published July 23, 2014

Reviews

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Akira Kurosawa's Japanese adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth has become a classic. Robert N. Watson’s contribution on Throne of the Blood for the BFI Film Classics series, volumes in which run about 100 pages each, consists only of a scene-by-scene commentary pointing out aspects of Kurosawa’s art. So, don’t expect many details here about production or reception. However, this was a worthwhile read in terms of highlighting details of Kurosawa’s mise-en-scène that will benefit my future viewings of Throne of Blood.

[Michael P. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Watson is great when he finds parallels and differences between this film and Shakespeare's MACBETH and gives insights into the Japanese religion and politics that inform the film but are beyond the reach of most occidental audiences. The problem is his dull style. Work hard to read this book anyway and you may find it rewarding.

[Siamese Twin Cobra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Throne of Blood is one of my all-time favorite films (if you can't tell), but I'm not a big Shakespeare fan. In other words, I'm much more drawn to Kurosawa's samurai adaptation of Macbeth than the source material itself. Robert Watson's book helped me understand the film that much more.

[Cameron K]

Paperback from BFI

[Patrick McCoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

obert N. Watson has written some great commentary on one of Akira Kuroswawa's masterpieces in BFI: Throne Of Blood (2014). The Japanese title of the film, incidentally, is Kumonosu-jo (Spider's Web Castle). In the introduction, Watson points out that there was a tepid reaction when the film was first released-it was voted the fourth best film of 1957 in the Kinema Junpo end of the year list. However, over time it has garnered respect as one of Kurosawa's finest achievements and one of the best film adaptations of a Shakespeare play,Mac Beth, of all time. Watson cites its influence on him probably led him to become a Shakespearean professor. In fact, my own first viewing was as an assignment in an university Shakespeare course to watch the film and compare and contrast it with a filmed Royal Shakespeare performance of MacBeth. Watson states that it is a a profoundly ambivalent exploration of human morality that is at once intensely localized and transhistorical-and deeply self-conscious of the medium. In the next section, "A Guided Tour Through the Spider's Web," Watson analyzes the film with commentary chronologically as it was presented in the film: from "Day One" until it's conclusion on "Day Six." There are several photos to reflect points that Watson makes about mise en scene throughout the discussion. It is a very though provoking analysis and description, in fact, I was inspired to go back and watch my 2003 Criterion edition of the film again.