- Give a brief outline of the plot (action) of the film.
- Three men are seeking shelter from the heavy ran under a demolished building/structure. One of the men remains traumatized after finding a dead man in the woods, and he recalls different stories told in court describing what took place leading up to the death of the husband. Different stories are given by the accused bandit named Tajomaru, the wife named Masako, and a shaman who is detailing the story from the perspective of the deceased samurai husband. The final recollection is given by Kikori who actually witnessed what went down.
- What are the main symbols in the film, what do they represent?
- The main symbols I have noticed was the rain and sun. I believe the weather was very telling of the woodcutter’s emotional state. The heavy rain represented how distressed the woodcutter was about the samurai’s death. However, towards the end when the woodcutter decides to take care of the abandoned baby, there’s a shift in weather and it can represent the woodcutter’s clear state of mind after doing a deed as good as taking in a child. It seems as if his guilt cleared like the skies when he chose to take the baby in.
- What are the main philosophical questions (ideas) being raised by the film? How are these themes still relevant today?
- While watching the film, there were a lot of questions surrounding ethics that were provided. Such as whether the samurai would have been justified if he killed Tajomaru as a means of self-defense and whether it was ethical for the commoner to steal the kimono under the baby because he was having a hard time. I also questioned whether we ever would find the truth. These themes are still relevant today because cases of self-defense are still prominent today and people question whether one party is justified or not; people still question whether selfishness is given a pass in rough times. Also people still question whether we ever will find the truth; this is prominent in any court case,
- How is the structure of the film important to the telling of this story?
- The order of which the story is told from influences my perception of what really led to the samurai’s murder. At first, I believed Tajomaru’s story was true, until the credibility of his story was questioned with the introduction of the wife’s story.
- Whose story did you find most trustworthy and why?
- I found the woodcutter’s story most trustworthy because essentially the guilt that he had been building up the whole movie seemed to dissipate after he revealed the truth. The truth being he didn’t just find the samurai’s dead body, but that he witnessed what happened, but did get involved to prevent the murder. Essentially the woodcutter’s internal feelings associated with the story he told, made me believe his story the most.
- 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?
- Kurosawa is trying to say a man must make the best out of a situation and do a kind gesture to restore their karma. Though the woodcutter did not help the samurai, he can do good by taking care of the abandoned baby.
- 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?
- On the page, a character’s body language can be more vividly described. In a film, the audience depend on the actors to portray a specific body language that will provide subtle hints as to who is telling the truth. In the film, I was able to understand how guilty the woodcutter felt by the way he was hunched over and had his head down around the other men. On the page, readers would be able to get this body language form reading a page, but they may also get a glimpse into presumably a frown on his face, a quiver of his lip. All in all, in terms of telling body language, the page can provide more details. However, one thing that was greatly portrayed in films is how crazy Tajomaru is. The way he was laughing uncontrollably in the movie helped me visually see how crazy he was.
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