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4 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :- How to make a very good film out of somebody else's masterpiece, 22 December 2005 Author: MisterWhiplash from United States
Akira Kurosawa's RAN is generally regarded as one of his very best films. It is clear by the amount of critical praise it received (not to mention it's IMDb top 250 status) that it is regarded by many as one of the director's most challenging, audacious pieces of work. It's King Lear filtered through the simplest, most daring Akira Kurosawa one could figure, with compositions that stay with the open viewer long after the film ends. It is with this in mind that Chris Marker- avant-garde director of films like La Jetee- takes on Kurosawa's film for his own documentary project. Like Kurosawa's film, there are some deliberate shots as well, plus narration that sometimes tries for the poetic and sometimes misses. But its own straightforward, unique qualities parallel those of the film in the film. One example of its difference to a film like Lost in La Mancha is that here the audience has more hindsight as to the actual course of the film (completed) and that it leaves room for any kind of interpretation in presentation. Take when Marker focuses squarely on the images of make-up, the heavy metal costumes for the extras, and the everyday dialog that goes on with people that are taken for granted occasionally amid the filmmaker's own vision of a scene. They're shown in very matter-of-fact ways, as to not obtrude too much into Kurosawa. There are some curious, odd cut-backs to a room with a TV, recorder, and other things that Marker uses to cut away to from the location shooting, which can be hit or miss. It's seeing the Japanese master himself making this film, and what goes into it, that keeps in fascinating throughout. It's one of the more awe-inspiring films about real modern film-making around.
1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- Missed opportunity, 26 January 2008 Author: rsvivek from India
*** This comment may contain spoilers ***
Chris Marker's One Day in the Life of Andrei Arsenevic is a superb account of one man's life through a strange viewpoint of a fellow director. Given that Akira Kurosawa would have been a more "approachable" personality than Andrei Tarkovsky, my eyes lit up on finding A.K. However, it was a disappointment. A.K. is boring, utterly slow and leaves a lot to be desired. Marker's documentary is primarily shot on location Kurosawa's 1985-release, Ran. Curiously, even the scenes of filming are more or less disappointing. Kurosawa, in one of his last films, can be seen in various moods while an interview of his, plays intermittently in the background. Some of his earlier films like Rashomon, Throne of Blood and the Seven Samurai contribute few snippets, but are restricted to a small corner of the screen while a daft-looking red background overwhelms it. Thankfully, the one place where some sort of energy finds its way is when Kurosawa's technicians and old faithfuls get attention. It is the most interesting part of the entire documentary. For something which lasts just around 70 minutes and whose main subject is as good an auteur as Kurosawa, Marker's A.K. falls short of expectations.
6 out of 18 people found the following comment useful :- A pleasure for fans of Kurosawa, 26 January 2000 Author: Jonathan Rimorin
Chris Marker's elliptical, oblique documentary on the making of Akira Kurosawa's "Ran" is an uneasy blend of hagiography (usual Cahiers du Cinema stuff) and Marker's trademark meditations on the mediating role of technology in memory and the human experience, plus probably aging, and etc., etc., etc. These Gallicisms seem out-of-place; but the philosophies are easily discarded. What makes the film a pleasure are the glimpses we see of Kurosawa's work processes, in addition to all the detail and work that goes into the making of a true epic.
1 out of 16 people found the following comment useful :- Making of at its worst, 19 May 2005 Author: kmajury02 from Belfast
I got the Ran DVD and this was packaged with it. i thought it would be great because this is from Chris Marker director of La Jetee. how wrong i was this is boring pretentious filmaking at its best. if you like long takes of a tape recorder and an old man walking round who we are told on numerous occasions that he has impeccable manners then this is right up your ally. Avoid this you could probably learn more about the making of the film from watching it. this provided no insight in the world of Kurosawa all i know about him is he has impeccable manners or have i mentioned that already... But anyway just because you are a competent filmmaker doesn't mean your a competent filmmaker about filmaking. Oh and PS Akira Kurosawa has impeccable manners!
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