1. Give a brief outline of the plot (action) of the film.

The story starts out with two men taking shelter from a downpour in a beat-down house, and then another man joins them. One man starts telling a story that he was in the woods with an axe, and he discovered a samurai hat, a woman’s hat, and rope. After that, he found a dead body. Then the priest starts talking about how when he was walking, he met a woman with a veil and a samurai (it was his dead body that was found). Then they talk about how a bandit was thrown off the horse that belonged to the dead samurai. The bandit says he didn’t fall off, but he drank from a river that had a dead snake, so he felt sick and went to the ground. The bandit then talks about how he tricked the samurai and tied him up. He brings the samurai’s wife there and then “seduces” her. The wife tells the bandit to duel her husband and that she will go with the winner. The bandit kills him, and the wife flees. The wife says that after she was raped, the bandit left, and she begged her husband for forgiveness and to kill her. Her husband didn’t forgive her, and she fainted. When she woke up, her husband killed himself. The dead samurai was able to give his side of the story through his spirit. He says his wife asked the bandit to kill him after she was raped. The bandit was disgusted and told the samurai that if he wanted, the bandit would kill her. The wife flees, and the husband kills himself. The woodsman then says that all three stories are a lie and that the wife made them fight, and the bandit won. After his story, they hear a baby cry, and the commoner steals a kimono and amulet left behind for the baby. The woodsman confronts him, and the commoner says that the woodsman stole the wife’s pearl dagger.

2. What are the main symbols in the film, what do they represent?

The child sybolizes faith in humanity. The dagger represents greed. The rain symbolizes a gloomy story.

3. What are the main philosophical questions (ideas) being raised by the film? How are these themes still relevant today?

I believe that the main themes in the movie are perspective and faith. Perspective is still relevant todaby since everyone has their own unique perspective. Faith is also still relevant since people still do/don’t have faith in humanity.

4. How is the structure of the film important to the telling of this story?

The structure is important because it helps the viewer see the point of view of least trustworthy to most trustworthy. This changes the viewers perspective each time.

5. Who’s story did you find most trustworthy and why? 

I thought the woodsman’s story was the most trustworthy because he had no motive to hid anything besides for the dagger.

6. Consider the final scene when the Priest chooses to hand the baby over to the Woodsman. What is Kurosawa trying to say with this gesture?

He is trying to say that his faith in humanity is restored, since he now trusts the woodsman.

7. Rashomon is an adaptation of a short story written by Akutagawa, consider what elements are present in the film that enhance or diminish a story like this. Are there aspects to the story that might be better served on the page, why?

Some aspects that might be better written are the stories themselves since I feel like the extra details writing provides will help the reader decide who to believe.