AK 100: 25 Films by Akira Kurosawa (DVD, 2009, 25-Disc Set, Criterion Collection

Description: Description The creator of such timeless masterpieces as Rashomon, Ikiru, Seven Samurai, Yojimbo, and High and Low, Akira Kurosawa is one of the most influential and beloved filmmakers who ever livedand for many the greatest artist the medium has known. Now, on the occasion of the centenary of his birth, the Criterion Collection is proud to present this deluxe box set celebrating his astonishing career. Featuring twenty-five of the films he made over the course of his fifty years in moviesfrom samurai epics to postwar noirs to Shakespeare adaptationsAK 100 is the most complete set of his works ever released in this country, and includes four rare films that have never been available on DVD. Includes: Sanshiro Sugata (1943) Akira Kurosawas dazzling debut as a director is about the rivalry between judo and jujitsu, and it concerns the moral education and enlightenment of Sanshiro, played by Susumu Fujita. The Most Beautiful (1944) Akira Kurosawas patriotic World War II morale booster focuses on a volunteer corps of women working at an optics factory to produce lenses for binoculars and targeting scopes, and was shot on location at the Nippon Kogaku factory in Hiratsuka. Sanshiro Sugata Part Two (1945) This sequel to Akira Kurosawas first film, which Kurosawa was compelled to make under studio pressure, reunites most of the principal cast members from the original. The Men Who Tread on the Tiger's Tail (1945) The story of Kurosawas The Men Who Tread on the Tigers Tail derives from Noh and Kabuki plays depicting a famous twelfth-century incident in which the lord Yoshitsune and a small group of samurai cross enemy territory disguised as monks and must persuade border guards to let them through. No Regrets for Our Youth (1946) In Akira Kurosawas first film after the end of World War II, future beloved Ozu regular Setsuko Hara gives an astonishing performance as Yukie, who transforms herself from genteel bourgeois daughter to independent social activist during a tumultuous decade in Japanese history. One Wonderful Sunday (1947) This affectionate paean to young love is also a frank examination by Akira Kurosawa of the harsh realities of postwar Japan. During a Sunday trip into war-ravaged Tokyo, Yuzo and Masako look for work and lodging, as well as affordable entertainments to pass the time. Drunken Angel (1948) In this powerful early noir from the great Akira Kurosawa, Toshiro Mifune bursts onto the screen as a volatile, tubercular criminal who strikes up an unlikely relationship with Takashi Shimuras jaded physician. Stray Dog (1949) When a pickpocket steals a rookie detectives gun on a hot, crowded bus, the cop goes undercover in a desperate attempt to right the wrong. Kurosawas thrilling noir probes the squalid world of postwar Japan and the nature of the criminal mind. Scandal (1950) A handsome, suave Toshiro Mifune lights up the screen as painter Ichiro, whose circumstantial meeting with a famous singer is twisted by the tabloid press into a torrid affair. Ichiro files a lawsuit against the seedy gossip magazine, but his lawyer, Hiruta (Takashi Shimura), is playing both sides. Rashomon (1950) The murder of a man and the rape of his wife in a forest groveseen from four different perspectives. Akira Kurosawas meditation on the nature of truth transformed narrative cinema as we know it. The Idiot (1951) The Idiot, an adaptation of Fyodor Dostoyevskys masterpiece about a wayward, pure souls reintegration into societyupdated by Kurosawa to capture Japans postwar aimlessnesswas a victim of studio interference and public indifference. Today, this folly looks ever more fascinating. Ikiru (1952) An aging bureaucrat with stomach cancer decides to strip the veneer off his existence and find meaning in his final days. Considered by some to be Akira Kurosawas greatest achievement, Ikiru offers a multifaceted look at a life through a prism of perspectives. Seven Samurai (1954) In Akira Kurosawas Seven Samurai (Shichinin no samurai), sixteenth-century villagers hire the eponymous warriors to protect them from invading bandits. This gripping three-hour ride is one of the most beloved movie epics of all time. I Live in Fear (1955) I Live in Fear presents Toshiro Mifune as an elderly, stubborn businessman so fearful of a nuclear attack that he resolves to move his reluctant family to South America. Kurosawa depicts a society emerging from the shadows but still terrorized by memories of the past and anxieties for the future. Throne of Blood (1957) Akira Kurosawas Throne of Blood reimagines Macbeth in feudal Japan. Starring Kurosawas longtime collaborator Toshiro Mifune and the legendary Isuzu Yamada as his ruthless wife, the film tells of a valiant warriors savage rise to power and his ignominious fall. The Lower Depths (1957) Working with his most celebrated actor, Toshiro Mifune, Akira Kurosawa faithfully adapts Maxim Gorkys classic proletariat play, keeping the originals focus on the conflict between illusion and reality. The Hidden Fortress (1958) A general and a princess must dodge enemy clans while smuggling the royal treasure out of hostile territory with two bumbling, conniving peasants at their sides; its a spirited adventure that only Akira Kurosawa could create. The Bad Sleep Well (1960) A young executive hunts down his fathers killer in director Akira Kurosawas scathing The Bad Sleep Well. Continuing his legendary collaboration with actor Toshiro Mifune, Kurosawa combines elements of Hamlet and American film noir to chilling effect. Yojimbo (1961) To rid a terror-stricken village of corruption, wily masterless samurai Sanjuro (Toshiro Mifune) turns a range war between two evil clans to his own advantage in Akira Kurosawas visually stunning and darkly comic Yojimbo. Sanjuro (1962) In Kurosawas sly companion piece to Yojimbo, the jaded samurai Sanjuro helps an idealistic group of young warriors weed out their clans evil influences, and in the process turns their image of a proper samurai on its ear. High and Low (1963) Toshiro Mifune is unforgettable as Kingo Gondo, a wealthy industrialist whose family becomes the target of a cold-blooded kidnapper in Akira Kurosawas highly influential High and Low, a compelling race-against-time thriller and a penetrating portrait of contemporary Japanese society. Red Beard (1965) A testament to the goodness of humankind, Akira Kurosawas Red Beard chronicles the tumultuous relationship between an arrogant young doctor and a compassionate clinic director (Toshiro Mifune, in his last role for Kurosawa). Dodeska-den (1970) By turns tragic and transcendent, Akira Kurosawas Dodeska-den follows the daily lives of a group of people barely scraping by in a slum on the outskirts of Tokyo. Kurosawas gloriously shot first color film displays all of his hopes, fears, and artistic passion. Kagemusha (1980) In his late, color masterpiece, Akira Kurosawa returns to the samurai film and to a primary theme of his careerthe play between illusion and reality. Sumptuously reconstructing the splendor of feudal Japan and the pageantry of war, Kurosawa creates a meditation on the nature of power. Madadayo (1993) Kurosawas final film is a tribute to Hyakken Uchida (Tatsuo Matsmura), an educator and writer of enormously popular aphoristic stories. Based on Uchidas writings, the film pieces a narrative together with distinct episodesanecdotes and parties, ceremonies and celebrations.

Price: 950 USD

Location: Saint Clair Shores, Michigan

End Time: 2024-11-17T18:42:27.000Z

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