1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000 2 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000 3 00:00:31,081 --> 00:00:35,281 This is what I always say to my film crews. 4 00:00:35,441 --> 00:00:39,521 To create something, it must be based on memories... 5 00:00:41,161 --> 00:00:43,121 Every night we watched TV, 6 00:00:43,241 --> 00:00:47,801 and the tale it told clashed with our everyday reality: 7 00:00:48,401 --> 00:00:51,361 the black slopes of Mount Fuji, historical characters 8 00:00:51,521 --> 00:00:54,081 and the presence of Akira Kurosawa. 9 00:01:31,441 --> 00:01:35,121 30th October 1984. Scene 40. 10 00:01:35,281 --> 00:01:38,361 An old father shares his kingdom among his three sons. 11 00:01:38,521 --> 00:01:43,241 Shunning the most loyal, he faces the ingratitude of the two others. 12 00:01:43,841 --> 00:01:45,921 A familiar-sounding story... 13 00:01:46,281 --> 00:01:50,361 Kurogane is there, so he glances at Kurogane. 14 00:01:50,481 --> 00:01:53,561 That's when I say "action". 15 00:01:54,081 --> 00:01:56,041 Shall we do it like that, then? 16 00:01:56,161 --> 00:02:01,001 When you're over there, if you keep still it doesn't work. 17 00:02:11,201 --> 00:02:13,721 ...but for me to leave! 18 00:02:14,521 --> 00:02:16,121 Open the gates! 19 00:02:16,521 --> 00:02:18,761 Yes, that's good. 20 00:02:20,241 --> 00:02:23,281 And then walk over there. Right? 21 00:02:31,881 --> 00:02:35,361 Turn back unintentionally, and then show surprise, OK? 22 00:02:35,481 --> 00:02:37,561 That's important. 23 00:02:37,921 --> 00:02:39,721 A long rehearsal. 24 00:02:39,881 --> 00:02:43,001 Kurosawa often rehearses his actors for hours, 25 00:02:43,161 --> 00:02:46,001 just for one take. 26 00:02:46,361 --> 00:02:50,401 No back-up takes. The back-up is all in the rehearsing. 27 00:02:59,881 --> 00:03:02,681 Tatsuya Nakadai plays Hidetora. 28 00:03:02,921 --> 00:03:05,921 He's King Lear and not King Lear, 29 00:03:06,081 --> 00:03:09,321 more like his echo, bouncing among these castles 30 00:03:09,561 --> 00:03:12,561 that Kurosawa has had built on Mount Fuji's slopes. 31 00:03:12,721 --> 00:03:15,401 Nakadai, the doppelganger hero of Kagemusha, 32 00:03:15,561 --> 00:03:18,801 has worked for Kurosawa for over 20 years. 33 00:03:18,961 --> 00:03:22,641 He's not the only example on the set of this continuity. 34 00:03:49,001 --> 00:03:51,161 Four of them? 35 00:03:51,321 --> 00:03:52,201 Yes, four. 36 00:03:52,401 --> 00:03:55,841 During this rehearsal Nakadai gets his lines wrong, 37 00:03:56,001 --> 00:04:00,601 using a more modern word than the one he should say. 38 00:04:01,081 --> 00:04:03,641 Kurosawa courteously corrects him each time. 39 00:04:03,801 --> 00:04:08,281 We shall try to convey the sense with our subtitles. 40 00:04:08,641 --> 00:04:12,481 As you look at his face, you stop straining and grow sad. 41 00:04:13,001 --> 00:04:14,041 Go! 42 00:04:31,721 --> 00:04:32,881 Too long. 43 00:04:53,241 --> 00:04:55,401 - Open the gates! - "Unlatch." 44 00:04:55,561 --> 00:04:57,321 Yes. "Unlatch the gates." 45 00:04:57,481 --> 00:04:59,961 Keep that posture. 46 00:05:01,401 --> 00:05:03,201 Like this? 47 00:05:03,321 --> 00:05:04,761 Careful when you turn back! 48 00:05:05,001 --> 00:05:08,121 I understand. I shouldn't come this way? 49 00:05:08,681 --> 00:05:10,441 - Like this? - Yes. 50 00:05:10,841 --> 00:05:12,521 And at that point... 51 00:05:13,321 --> 00:05:17,121 You've been looking down, but you straighten your body. 52 00:05:17,281 --> 00:05:19,481 From the body first? I get it. 53 00:05:35,521 --> 00:05:37,481 Unlatch the gates! 54 00:05:41,641 --> 00:05:45,321 The bleeding doesn't look right with his back to the camera. 55 00:05:45,481 --> 00:05:47,721 Fix that, please. 56 00:05:57,761 --> 00:06:01,201 Seen from the side, one masks the other one. 57 00:06:10,841 --> 00:06:14,201 I'd like one to be half a pace behind the other. 58 00:06:30,561 --> 00:06:32,281 Utter nonsense! 59 00:06:32,441 --> 00:06:37,041 We'd be pleased to accept, if you are alone, Father. 60 00:06:42,201 --> 00:06:45,201 You are retired, Father. 61 00:06:45,361 --> 00:06:47,521 You don't need your soldiers. 62 00:06:52,961 --> 00:06:54,321 Open the gates! 63 00:06:54,481 --> 00:06:55,361 "Unlatch." 64 00:06:55,561 --> 00:06:57,681 Our work tools off the set: 65 00:06:57,841 --> 00:07:01,361 these fragile cassettes recorded by those close to Kurosawa 66 00:07:01,481 --> 00:07:03,681 of conversations with him, 67 00:07:03,841 --> 00:07:07,601 clips of the film Ran itself, not yet pinned down, 68 00:07:07,801 --> 00:07:10,001 and our miraculous video player 69 00:07:10,121 --> 00:07:13,521 on which we watch his old films, again and again. 70 00:08:24,761 --> 00:08:27,321 - This and this are the same. - Why? 71 00:08:27,481 --> 00:08:29,801 I've got the same thing. 72 00:08:34,441 --> 00:08:37,081 - That's mine! - Is it? 73 00:08:49,361 --> 00:08:51,921 We don't know how many there are. 74 00:09:01,001 --> 00:09:03,041 Anyone without armour? 75 00:09:37,761 --> 00:09:40,641 This horse? It's Saito's. 76 00:10:17,961 --> 00:10:20,521 Idiot! Sorry. 77 00:10:23,201 --> 00:10:26,801 We must avoid stealing a beauty which is not ours, 78 00:10:26,921 --> 00:10:29,401 playing with the backlighting. 79 00:10:29,561 --> 00:10:33,281 Of course, something of the film's beauty will get through, 80 00:10:33,481 --> 00:10:37,281 but we shall try to show what we see just as we see it. 81 00:10:38,561 --> 00:10:42,561 Don't make me laugh! I'm doing my best. 82 00:12:20,921 --> 00:12:22,441 That's gone brown. 83 00:12:22,601 --> 00:12:25,881 It's this shape because of my wig. 84 00:12:26,001 --> 00:12:27,961 Where's the wig? Here? 85 00:12:28,161 --> 00:12:29,961 My hair's long. 86 00:12:31,641 --> 00:12:34,881 - This is real hair, this is the wig. - More like an extension. 87 00:12:35,041 --> 00:12:39,321 - This here is real hair. - And from here it's a wig? 88 00:12:39,441 --> 00:12:41,401 A U-shape... 89 00:12:42,081 --> 00:12:44,961 - It's smooth. - As long as you can't see the join. 90 00:12:45,081 --> 00:12:46,721 Ouch! 91 00:12:47,521 --> 00:12:50,161 - It's slipped! - No, it hasn't, you liar! 92 00:12:50,321 --> 00:12:51,441 And that? 93 00:12:52,921 --> 00:12:54,161 That's my own. 94 00:12:54,361 --> 00:12:57,801 - How about this here? - Here? 95 00:13:16,121 --> 00:13:18,761 1st November 1984, 10 in the morning. 96 00:13:18,961 --> 00:13:20,601 Scene 53. 97 00:13:20,761 --> 00:13:22,801 The troops of Hidetora 's first son 98 00:13:22,961 --> 00:13:25,281 - one dash on a yellow pennant - 99 00:13:25,401 --> 00:13:30,641 gather in front of the third son's castle. 100 00:13:31,081 --> 00:13:35,321 Infantry and cavalry manoeuvre on Mount Fuji's black soil. 101 00:13:35,681 --> 00:13:38,801 The sky is overcast, as required. 102 00:13:39,321 --> 00:13:42,721 A light mist lingers at ground level. 103 00:13:43,561 --> 00:13:47,841 We don't yet know how quickly the seasons here can change. 104 00:14:00,841 --> 00:14:03,241 Where should they all go? 105 00:14:10,041 --> 00:14:11,281 Where should they go? 106 00:14:11,481 --> 00:14:12,921 This way. 107 00:14:15,761 --> 00:14:18,961 We're going to start shooting! 108 00:14:31,001 --> 00:14:33,961 Those at the sides, watch carefully! 109 00:14:38,241 --> 00:14:43,041 Maybe you weren't told earlier, but when you're standing 110 00:14:43,241 --> 00:14:46,921 keep your left hand on the hilt of your sword. 111 00:14:47,041 --> 00:14:51,321 And your right hand is 10 centimetres lower. 112 00:14:53,321 --> 00:14:56,961 And when you're carrying your spear, hold it with your left hand. 113 00:14:57,121 --> 00:14:59,841 With your left hand, on your right shoulder. 114 00:15:00,001 --> 00:15:03,721 If you do that, the tip will be at the right height. 115 00:15:03,881 --> 00:15:07,321 This is the most important point. 116 00:15:08,041 --> 00:15:10,361 Look carefully to left and right, 117 00:15:10,601 --> 00:15:12,641 and don't hit the man's legs in front. 118 00:15:12,801 --> 00:15:15,481 Then put your left hand back to the hilt. 119 00:16:22,841 --> 00:16:25,321 Shall we change the course, then? 120 00:16:25,481 --> 00:16:28,641 Well, this is the direction they come... 121 00:16:29,281 --> 00:16:30,761 That's the way. 122 00:16:31,721 --> 00:16:33,401 It goes like this... 123 00:16:39,201 --> 00:16:41,161 And Yonoda is right there. 124 00:16:54,521 --> 00:16:56,561 Everyone turn right! 125 00:17:18,521 --> 00:17:20,161 Kurosawa commands. 126 00:17:20,321 --> 00:17:23,521 Since The Seven Samurai, he's filmed important scenes 127 00:17:23,681 --> 00:17:24,961 with three cameras. 128 00:17:25,121 --> 00:17:28,241 For him, that's three different angles to control, 129 00:17:28,361 --> 00:17:31,441 for us, three chances of ending up in the shot! 130 00:17:31,601 --> 00:17:35,001 All day long we see him battling the filmmaker's usual demons: 131 00:17:35,161 --> 00:17:37,881 the actor sounding wrong, the horse stumbling, 132 00:17:38,001 --> 00:17:39,601 unwelcome gusts of wind 133 00:17:39,761 --> 00:17:44,121 and the sun hiding during rehearsals but coming out for takes. 134 00:18:11,961 --> 00:18:14,081 This is best for us both! 135 00:18:14,241 --> 00:18:16,921 Your voice is too high. Say it lower. 136 00:18:18,401 --> 00:18:22,001 If your voice is too high-pitched, you have less presence. 137 00:18:24,521 --> 00:18:26,801 Right now... no? 138 00:18:37,961 --> 00:18:40,161 I don't know if it's my age, 139 00:18:40,281 --> 00:18:43,241 but I've never been so exhausted on a film set. 140 00:18:46,401 --> 00:18:49,721 Glimpsing the peak makes the mountain harder to climb. 141 00:18:50,161 --> 00:18:54,201 And the slope of Mount Fuji is so steep 142 00:18:54,721 --> 00:18:58,521 that it's really hard to walk forward. 143 00:18:58,641 --> 00:19:00,801 I keep sliding down. 144 00:19:02,081 --> 00:19:06,201 And the air pressure is very different. 145 00:19:07,081 --> 00:19:10,521 I thought I was going deaf, 146 00:19:10,721 --> 00:19:13,521 but I held my nose and breathed, and it clicked. 147 00:19:13,721 --> 00:19:15,921 Like being on a plane. 148 00:19:19,841 --> 00:19:22,441 Anyway, I've walked a lot. 149 00:19:43,321 --> 00:19:46,161 - A little bit more. - Move forward! 150 00:19:57,201 --> 00:19:59,881 When it becomes necessary to scatter cement powder 151 00:20:00,041 --> 00:20:02,441 for the horses' hooves to kick up, 152 00:20:02,601 --> 00:20:06,441 assistant director and continuity get stuck in with the grips. 153 00:20:06,601 --> 00:20:10,121 It's as if everyone, despite their professional credentials, 154 00:20:10,281 --> 00:20:13,201 considers the film a collective enterprise, 155 00:20:13,361 --> 00:20:15,561 for which no task is too menial. 156 00:20:15,761 --> 00:20:19,521 We see Kurosawa 's closest aide helping with the make-up, 157 00:20:19,681 --> 00:20:22,681 the gaffer cutting the grass with the set designer, 158 00:20:22,841 --> 00:20:25,161 the clapper boy rehearsing stunts... 159 00:20:26,001 --> 00:20:27,441 Most unusual! 160 00:20:30,361 --> 00:20:31,441 Ready? 161 00:20:31,601 --> 00:20:33,241 Everybody ready? 162 00:20:39,041 --> 00:20:41,121 Say it clearly. 163 00:20:42,321 --> 00:20:44,801 Get them to turn along this line. 164 00:20:44,961 --> 00:20:46,401 OK, understood! 165 00:20:48,721 --> 00:20:50,441 You forget everything! 166 00:20:50,601 --> 00:20:54,481 Come on the inside. Join the formation. 167 00:20:55,641 --> 00:20:57,881 What are you doing? Get over here! 168 00:20:58,041 --> 00:21:00,281 You should be behind this horse. 169 00:21:04,601 --> 00:21:07,881 Is there a gap there? Then move the horse forward. 170 00:22:26,161 --> 00:22:28,761 Just wait a little bit longer. 171 00:22:30,881 --> 00:22:33,681 Just wait a little bit longer. 172 00:23:22,081 --> 00:23:24,761 Just when everything's ready, the wind dies away. 173 00:23:31,401 --> 00:23:34,081 The flag's not fluttering, is it? 174 00:23:34,241 --> 00:23:36,441 No, we're waiting for the wind. 175 00:23:39,201 --> 00:23:41,321 I know there's no wind. 176 00:23:41,721 --> 00:23:43,601 - Is it moving? - It's fluttering. 177 00:23:43,721 --> 00:23:45,121 It's whipping! 178 00:23:45,281 --> 00:23:46,321 Ready! 179 00:23:47,921 --> 00:23:49,081 Start! 180 00:23:50,001 --> 00:23:52,001 Open the gates! 181 00:24:06,841 --> 00:24:09,561 Ton-chan, this way! Move forward! 182 00:24:09,721 --> 00:24:13,081 Odo! Move forward, closer to the wall! 183 00:24:13,321 --> 00:24:16,801 Not too far that way. Come this way, to the camera. 184 00:24:17,201 --> 00:24:19,921 There are plenty of young faces in the crew, 185 00:24:20,081 --> 00:24:22,321 but most of Kurosawa 's people 186 00:24:22,521 --> 00:24:24,721 have been with him for a dozen films. 187 00:24:25,121 --> 00:24:27,761 Ishiro Honda, the creator of Godzilla, 188 00:24:27,881 --> 00:24:30,641 was an assistant with him in the 1930s. 189 00:24:30,761 --> 00:24:33,121 Asakazu Nakai filmed The Seven Samurai, 190 00:24:33,281 --> 00:24:35,561 Cobweb Castle and Kagemusha, 191 00:24:35,721 --> 00:24:38,161 along with Takao Saito. 192 00:24:38,321 --> 00:24:41,361 Only they could interpret the three-camera instructions. 193 00:24:42,801 --> 00:24:45,441 Yoshiro Muraki is always production designer. 194 00:24:45,601 --> 00:24:49,321 For Red Beard, he filled the drawers with real medicine, 195 00:24:49,481 --> 00:24:52,281 even though the drawers were never opened. 196 00:24:52,761 --> 00:24:57,081 The sound for The Hidden Fortress, Kagemusha and Dodesukaden 197 00:24:57,241 --> 00:24:59,721 was recorded by Fumio Yanoguchi. 198 00:24:59,921 --> 00:25:02,801 The gaffer Takeharu Sano only began with Kagemusha, 199 00:25:02,961 --> 00:25:07,001 but he's now one of the loyal inner circle. 200 00:25:07,161 --> 00:25:08,641 Seven, like the Samurai. 201 00:25:08,801 --> 00:25:10,961 The seventh is Teruyo Nogami, 202 00:25:11,161 --> 00:25:12,761 on the set, at the editing, 203 00:25:12,921 --> 00:25:15,521 technician, diplomat and confidante, 204 00:25:15,681 --> 00:25:19,881 and the veteran, since she was continuity girl on Rashomon. 205 00:25:45,201 --> 00:25:49,001 Fumiaka Okada was already assistant director on Kagemusha. 206 00:25:49,281 --> 00:25:51,601 Yes, that's the position. 207 00:25:58,321 --> 00:26:00,521 OK, let's take one step forward. 208 00:26:00,681 --> 00:26:02,281 One step forward! 209 00:26:02,641 --> 00:26:03,721 We marvel: 210 00:26:03,841 --> 00:26:08,041 "Those eyes saw Mifune shot with arrows in Cobweb Castle, 211 00:26:08,201 --> 00:26:12,321 or watched him run through a young Nakadai in Sanjuro. 212 00:26:12,721 --> 00:26:16,921 Those are the ears which recorded the little song in Dodeskaden. 213 00:26:17,281 --> 00:26:20,601 While editing this film, we heard of Yanoguchi's death. 214 00:26:20,761 --> 00:26:23,001 We remember his wit, his kindness, 215 00:26:23,121 --> 00:26:25,681 his elegance, like a slim old cat, 216 00:26:25,841 --> 00:26:30,001 and we dedicate to his memory these shots of him working. 217 00:27:11,481 --> 00:27:14,041 We get to know the little solar system 218 00:27:14,201 --> 00:27:16,321 orbiting around Kurosawa: 219 00:27:17,041 --> 00:27:18,281 his chef, 220 00:27:20,001 --> 00:27:22,121 the man who forecasts the weather, 221 00:27:22,441 --> 00:27:26,201 Vittorio, the Italian assistant who runs everywhere, 222 00:27:26,361 --> 00:27:28,481 a visiting producer, 223 00:27:28,641 --> 00:27:33,441 and some characters whose importance we are not yet fully aware of: 224 00:27:33,601 --> 00:27:35,041 the horses. 225 00:28:02,601 --> 00:28:05,841 And, at the centre of the system: Sensei. 226 00:28:06,001 --> 00:28:09,601 We have also got in the habit of calling him sensei, "master". 227 00:28:10,041 --> 00:28:13,081 In all disciplines, from ikebana to martial arts, 228 00:28:13,281 --> 00:28:16,001 the sensei, reaching technical perfection, 229 00:28:16,161 --> 00:28:18,801 attains a sort of spiritual bonus. 230 00:28:18,961 --> 00:28:21,561 The aura of respect around Kurosawa 231 00:28:21,721 --> 00:28:24,921 is totally unlike the fear which those who lack his genius 232 00:28:25,041 --> 00:28:27,561 like to impose on their film sets. 233 00:28:27,721 --> 00:28:29,841 Like the sword masters of old, 234 00:28:30,001 --> 00:28:32,081 Sensei ignores distractions. 235 00:28:32,241 --> 00:28:36,001 He talks about the job in hand, he reflects on experiences... 236 00:28:36,161 --> 00:28:39,521 Asked why he does this or that, he says, "It came naturally." 237 00:28:39,681 --> 00:28:43,321 Are you all resting? Until three o'clock, all right? 238 00:28:44,321 --> 00:28:47,161 I wish the set went on a bit further. 239 00:28:49,881 --> 00:28:52,161 - Horsemen! - Yes! 240 00:28:52,361 --> 00:28:53,361 With the spearmen! 241 00:28:53,561 --> 00:28:56,681 I don't want it to look like they're just shooting horses. 242 00:28:58,281 --> 00:29:00,601 It looks like a castle in the fog. 243 00:29:12,441 --> 00:29:15,081 It only comes this far across... 244 00:29:15,601 --> 00:29:17,041 Let me see... 245 00:29:17,201 --> 00:29:20,121 We could do something bold, 246 00:29:20,281 --> 00:29:22,481 and add some on. 247 00:29:24,721 --> 00:29:27,081 We could trim this a bit. 248 00:29:27,721 --> 00:29:32,481 It's not the right side but it's OK, because we only need roofs. 249 00:29:37,881 --> 00:29:41,001 When the sun comes out, start shooting. 250 00:29:41,241 --> 00:29:42,801 Here, thanks. 251 00:30:19,041 --> 00:30:23,201 The speed and the simplicity of the means are impressive. 252 00:30:23,361 --> 00:30:25,601 The crew moves between castles, 253 00:30:25,761 --> 00:30:28,281 dismantling and transporting gantries and spotlights. 254 00:30:28,481 --> 00:30:30,961 And, in less time than a game of billiards, 255 00:30:31,121 --> 00:30:33,961 Sensei has shot seven battle scenes. 256 00:30:34,121 --> 00:30:36,481 As if they all had a double, 257 00:30:36,641 --> 00:30:38,361 a handyman kagemusha! 258 00:31:05,041 --> 00:31:06,041 Like this? 259 00:31:06,561 --> 00:31:10,761 Yes, that's it. Do it like that. 260 00:31:15,001 --> 00:31:17,641 You should be watching like this, 261 00:31:17,761 --> 00:31:20,161 hold the sword and charge! 262 00:31:38,361 --> 00:31:40,761 The second son dismisses the vassals 263 00:31:40,921 --> 00:31:43,281 who have betrayed his brother for him, 264 00:31:43,441 --> 00:31:48,041 for the good reason that they could very well betray him too. 265 00:31:48,201 --> 00:31:51,681 Sensei is in an excellent mood. It won't last. 266 00:31:52,681 --> 00:31:54,321 Oh, sorry! 267 00:31:54,681 --> 00:31:56,681 Let's do that again. 268 00:31:56,841 --> 00:31:59,801 And don't leave Ito behind the other three. 269 00:32:02,281 --> 00:32:06,201 Not one after the other. Can't you come forward together? 270 00:32:06,441 --> 00:32:07,801 On the horses. 271 00:32:08,001 --> 00:32:09,281 Both together. 272 00:32:11,321 --> 00:32:13,441 Calm down, Ikoma! 273 00:32:13,721 --> 00:32:17,761 If the person on the horse is tense, that's bound to happen. 274 00:32:24,041 --> 00:32:25,721 Now go back. 275 00:32:29,961 --> 00:32:31,521 Go back, I said. 276 00:32:35,441 --> 00:32:36,441 More clearly. 277 00:32:36,601 --> 00:32:39,321 If you're facing that way, we can't see. 278 00:32:42,441 --> 00:32:45,641 No! Everyone on the horses is too tense. 279 00:32:45,801 --> 00:32:48,401 It makes the horses skittish. 280 00:32:50,761 --> 00:32:52,601 Ride them more calmly. 281 00:33:02,801 --> 00:33:07,241 I always end up using horses. Maybe it's because I like them. 282 00:33:07,641 --> 00:33:10,041 Especially Yama-san's horses. 283 00:33:12,721 --> 00:33:15,761 The horse is sort of the main character. 284 00:34:13,441 --> 00:34:16,281 It's nice before we start shooting. 285 00:34:17,881 --> 00:34:21,921 Early morning, still dark, leaving the hotel... 286 00:34:23,361 --> 00:34:26,601 Driving up Mount Fuji 287 00:34:26,761 --> 00:34:29,761 in the early light of day. 288 00:34:29,921 --> 00:34:33,001 People opening up the cars and trucks, 289 00:34:33,161 --> 00:34:35,841 taking out their armour and so on... 290 00:34:39,841 --> 00:34:42,241 Actors in armour, leading their horses. 291 00:34:45,401 --> 00:34:47,961 Stop it! What a silly horse you are! 292 00:34:48,441 --> 00:34:51,081 Wait, stay there... That's it. 293 00:35:01,321 --> 00:35:05,961 We put those braziers on the set. 294 00:35:09,081 --> 00:35:12,921 Soldiers standing around braziers... That's a good scene. 295 00:35:14,561 --> 00:35:17,321 Soldiers standing around in that wide open space. 296 00:35:17,481 --> 00:35:21,801 An excellent scene, but no one would think of filming that. 297 00:36:10,521 --> 00:36:13,281 There have been lots of horses in Kurosawa 's life, 298 00:36:13,401 --> 00:36:15,761 since this childhood scene. 299 00:36:34,921 --> 00:36:37,201 Horses are not rare in cinema. 300 00:36:37,401 --> 00:36:40,561 But is it just by chance that when "Macbeth" Mifune 301 00:36:40,721 --> 00:36:44,041 is mulling over ideas of murder stirred up by his wife, 302 00:36:44,201 --> 00:36:48,641 a white horse paces round and round in the courtyard behind him? 303 00:36:48,801 --> 00:36:51,481 Is it by chance that twice in Kagemusha, 304 00:36:51,641 --> 00:36:54,481 a horse denounces the impostor by throwing him? 305 00:36:54,641 --> 00:36:59,481 Or, rather, the imposter is fishing for proof of his authenticity. 306 00:36:59,641 --> 00:37:01,561 Once the sentence is passed, 307 00:37:01,761 --> 00:37:05,801 the truth-revealing horse remains like a black devil 308 00:37:05,961 --> 00:37:09,401 in a shot of horses and rain familiar to us from elsewhere. 309 00:37:26,361 --> 00:37:29,481 When John Ford met Kurosawa, he said, 310 00:37:29,641 --> 00:37:31,961 "You really like rain." 311 00:37:32,121 --> 00:37:35,321 Sensei replied, "You've watched my films carefully." 312 00:38:25,081 --> 00:38:28,441 16th November, 10 in the morning. 313 00:38:28,601 --> 00:38:33,041 Does he like this rain, which has stopped filming for two days? 314 00:38:34,081 --> 00:38:36,681 Toru Takemitsu, composer of the original music, 315 00:38:36,881 --> 00:38:41,161 fragments of which you've been hearing during this film, 316 00:38:41,281 --> 00:38:44,561 comes to get a feel for the set. 317 00:38:45,161 --> 00:38:47,401 He hasn't seen the castles before. 318 00:40:05,561 --> 00:40:06,721 Makie: 319 00:40:06,881 --> 00:40:10,001 the traditional art of applying gold to lacquervvork. 320 00:40:11,401 --> 00:40:14,201 Kurosawa wants a night scene to evoke this effect. 321 00:40:14,361 --> 00:40:17,681 To this end, he's having a field of wild grass painted gold. 322 00:40:18,361 --> 00:40:21,201 The whole crew become jolly harvesters, 323 00:40:21,361 --> 00:40:24,441 like in a Soviet film of the 1950s. 324 00:40:30,121 --> 00:40:31,601 We'll soon be finished. 325 00:41:00,961 --> 00:41:04,201 If the bottom leaves are good, keep them. 326 00:41:04,321 --> 00:41:05,801 I'll use them by the water. 327 00:41:06,441 --> 00:41:08,361 The young leaves are good. 328 00:41:08,601 --> 00:41:11,001 Careful not to damage the ears. 329 00:41:32,041 --> 00:41:34,521 Sensei meditates among the grass. 330 00:41:34,681 --> 00:41:37,041 He waits for the tracking shot to be ready, 331 00:41:37,201 --> 00:41:39,041 looks through the camera, 332 00:41:39,201 --> 00:41:43,561 asks for more track to be added, goes back to meditating, 333 00:41:43,681 --> 00:41:46,081 returns to the camera... 334 00:41:46,321 --> 00:41:48,921 It's noon. Night falls at five. 335 00:42:04,881 --> 00:42:08,561 Honma, can you bring me one more box! 336 00:43:13,201 --> 00:43:15,961 For this scene Sensei has drawn a moon, 337 00:43:16,121 --> 00:43:19,201 the like of which no one has seen since Méliès. 338 00:43:40,761 --> 00:43:43,121 By 8, all is ready for a first take. 339 00:43:43,721 --> 00:43:45,321 Whenever you're ready! 340 00:43:48,441 --> 00:43:49,761 Ready... 341 00:43:54,641 --> 00:43:55,801 Start! 342 00:44:10,521 --> 00:44:12,521 Light torches! 343 00:44:15,121 --> 00:44:17,281 Yes. That was fine, wasn't it? 344 00:44:17,841 --> 00:44:20,041 Nice work, Mr Moon! 345 00:44:20,801 --> 00:44:22,721 "Nice work, Mr Moon!" says Sensei. 346 00:44:22,881 --> 00:44:24,921 It's 10 p.m. and they pack up. 347 00:44:25,081 --> 00:44:28,281 Kurosawa gives his instructions for the next day. 348 00:44:28,441 --> 00:44:32,321 He's been commanding operations since 10 this morning. 349 00:44:32,841 --> 00:44:35,401 This scene is cut during the editing. 350 00:44:38,161 --> 00:44:40,281 1st September 1923. 351 00:44:40,401 --> 00:44:45,081 A huge earthquake hit the Japanese coast from Yokohama to Tokyo. 352 00:44:45,521 --> 00:44:47,801 Then came the fires, 353 00:44:47,961 --> 00:44:52,121 and a night of horror - a date in the history of human stupidity. 354 00:44:52,321 --> 00:44:55,641 The citizens of Tokyo massacred hundreds of Koreans 355 00:44:55,801 --> 00:44:58,521 whom they blamed for the earthquake. 356 00:44:58,641 --> 00:45:02,361 A "final solution" for immigration before its time. 357 00:45:02,521 --> 00:45:05,801 The next day, 13-year-old Akira Kurosawa 358 00:45:05,961 --> 00:45:08,841 was taken round the ruins by his brother. 359 00:45:09,001 --> 00:45:11,081 He wanted to close his eyes 360 00:45:11,281 --> 00:45:14,041 to the swollen, disfigured bodies in the Sumida River, 361 00:45:14,201 --> 00:45:17,161 but his brother made him keep his eyes open. 362 00:45:17,361 --> 00:45:21,801 In his autobiography, Kurosawa recalled his brother's words: 363 00:45:22,001 --> 00:45:26,041 "Shut your eyes to scary things and you'll be more frightened. 364 00:45:26,241 --> 00:45:30,121 Look directly at them and nothing will scare you ever again." 365 00:45:52,801 --> 00:45:55,241 9th November 1984. 366 00:45:55,401 --> 00:45:58,681 Over 60 years after his first encounter with horror, 367 00:45:58,841 --> 00:46:03,561 Sensei must once again tackle human cruelty in his film. 368 00:46:04,721 --> 00:46:06,721 Hey, check that leg! 369 00:46:06,881 --> 00:46:08,921 Turn the face to the ground. 370 00:46:10,361 --> 00:46:12,321 A bit more. 371 00:46:21,721 --> 00:46:24,641 He doesn't like us lingering on this aspect of his work, 372 00:46:24,801 --> 00:46:27,041 as if he were obsessed with violence. 373 00:46:27,201 --> 00:46:31,201 For him, he says, these are mere technical problems to be solved. 374 00:46:53,841 --> 00:46:58,481 He's already on the ground when he's like that? 375 00:47:02,521 --> 00:47:04,521 That's enough, isn't it? 376 00:47:09,841 --> 00:47:11,721 We'll do your back later. 377 00:47:12,561 --> 00:47:16,361 The smoke is supposed to be in the shot. 378 00:47:16,521 --> 00:47:18,401 The smoke is out of the frame. 379 00:47:18,561 --> 00:47:20,761 Dai-chan, to the right! 380 00:47:30,041 --> 00:47:32,961 Watch carefully. The smoke's staying too low. 381 00:47:50,761 --> 00:47:53,721 You weren't watching where it was going. 382 00:47:58,641 --> 00:48:01,681 It's no good like that. Just keep calm. 383 00:48:01,841 --> 00:48:05,201 Camera here, object here, and the smoke in between. 384 00:48:05,401 --> 00:48:07,401 You should walk through once. 385 00:48:14,841 --> 00:48:16,881 I hate the sight of blood. 386 00:48:17,641 --> 00:48:20,921 I was once told, by Masayuki Mori, 387 00:48:21,081 --> 00:48:23,921 that I'm someone who's easily scared. 388 00:48:26,841 --> 00:48:29,401 And he asked me if... 389 00:48:30,441 --> 00:48:34,801 if I hated bloody scenes and things like that. 390 00:48:35,081 --> 00:48:36,801 I said he was right. 391 00:48:37,001 --> 00:48:39,361 I asked him how he knew 392 00:48:39,521 --> 00:48:42,561 and he said, "Because you have a vivid memory." 393 00:48:42,721 --> 00:48:47,761 I don't know if I get scared because I pay close attention, 394 00:48:47,921 --> 00:48:52,241 or if I pay close attention because I'm scared! 395 00:48:52,761 --> 00:48:55,161 Probably, when I'm on the set, 396 00:48:55,361 --> 00:48:59,601 I can express that sort of thing in great detail in my films. 397 00:49:01,201 --> 00:49:05,361 I don't really know. But I don't like it at all. 398 00:49:21,561 --> 00:49:24,361 A close-up! You're being filmed! 399 00:49:26,321 --> 00:49:28,001 Don't look at the camera. 400 00:49:28,201 --> 00:49:30,841 No one'll see you in the film. Make the most of it! 401 00:49:31,001 --> 00:49:33,161 Do they know your name? 402 00:49:34,641 --> 00:49:37,401 - Write your name for them. - On your chest. 403 00:49:37,561 --> 00:49:38,881 Subtitles! 404 00:49:40,241 --> 00:49:45,281 NAMELESS WARRIORS ON MOUNT FUJI 405 00:49:46,601 --> 00:49:50,001 - He should come forward. - Kato, move forward! 406 00:49:50,361 --> 00:49:51,361 Come this way. 407 00:49:51,561 --> 00:49:52,641 This way. 408 00:49:52,801 --> 00:49:55,441 Those people there aren't in the shot. 409 00:49:58,121 --> 00:50:00,721 Where do you think you're running to? 410 00:50:06,641 --> 00:50:08,281 Come from the left. 411 00:50:14,521 --> 00:50:18,241 We're setting up the shot! Get back! Get back! 412 00:50:23,561 --> 00:50:26,801 You didn't move back in time, and this happens! 413 00:50:26,921 --> 00:50:28,961 I can't see the horses or anything. 414 00:50:30,961 --> 00:50:32,161 Ready... 415 00:50:34,001 --> 00:50:35,401 Start! 416 00:50:44,401 --> 00:50:45,441 Cut! 417 00:50:45,721 --> 00:50:49,201 Niizaki, there's no point falling down there. 418 00:50:49,361 --> 00:50:50,641 He acted it well. 419 00:51:01,801 --> 00:51:02,841 Ready... 420 00:51:03,841 --> 00:51:04,921 Start! 421 00:51:13,681 --> 00:51:14,841 Cut! 422 00:51:19,241 --> 00:51:22,481 OK, then... Bring some cold water. 423 00:51:22,601 --> 00:51:24,521 Bring us some cold water. 424 00:51:31,081 --> 00:51:33,481 - How's the fire? - The people behind? 425 00:51:33,641 --> 00:51:35,401 Wait for it... 426 00:51:36,801 --> 00:51:38,441 Draw your bows! 427 00:51:41,161 --> 00:51:42,161 Fire! 428 00:51:49,481 --> 00:51:52,001 One side isn't alight. 429 00:52:06,921 --> 00:52:07,961 Wonderful! 430 00:52:09,721 --> 00:52:12,521 Yes, that way, that way... 431 00:52:15,721 --> 00:52:18,001 It's really hard to wind! 432 00:52:18,161 --> 00:52:21,361 You have to wind as fast as he's running. 433 00:52:35,721 --> 00:52:36,721 Ready! 434 00:52:36,881 --> 00:52:38,081 Ready... 435 00:52:40,001 --> 00:52:41,321 Start! 436 00:52:51,281 --> 00:52:55,361 The lunch break also offers the chance to warm up. 437 00:52:55,521 --> 00:52:57,041 Hot soup, rice 438 00:52:57,241 --> 00:53:00,481 and lunch boxes stacked with neatness and precision. 439 00:53:01,561 --> 00:53:05,001 It's getting colder on the slopes of Mount Fuji, 440 00:53:05,361 --> 00:53:07,401 which is never caught on film, 441 00:53:07,561 --> 00:53:09,561 but whose presence weighs on us. 442 00:53:09,721 --> 00:53:11,401 Its snowcap has doubled in size, 443 00:53:11,641 --> 00:53:14,721 and everyone knows that snow would stop filming. 444 00:53:14,841 --> 00:53:17,881 Kurosawa is now also battling against the weather. 445 00:53:18,041 --> 00:53:21,681 Each foggy day is a serious threat to the film. 446 00:53:23,121 --> 00:53:25,761 Anyone not finished their lunch yet? 447 00:54:31,441 --> 00:54:34,161 Once you take your clothes off, 448 00:54:34,321 --> 00:54:36,441 you don't feel the cold any more. 449 00:54:42,841 --> 00:54:45,841 One o'clock. Shooting is called off, 450 00:54:46,001 --> 00:54:49,441 and in the icy wind the extras get dressed quickly. 451 00:54:50,281 --> 00:54:54,161 In the fog, the archers could no longer see their arrowheads. 452 00:54:54,321 --> 00:54:55,801 Nothing could be done. 453 00:54:56,201 --> 00:54:58,401 The horses go back in their trailers. 454 00:54:58,961 --> 00:55:00,641 Brought from America in the spring, 455 00:55:00,801 --> 00:55:03,441 they've known Kyushu's summer heat 456 00:55:03,601 --> 00:55:06,201 and charged heroically on grass. 457 00:55:06,321 --> 00:55:08,961 Now they are on the moon. 458 00:55:28,841 --> 00:55:32,721 We watched as this polar station quickly emptied. 459 00:55:32,881 --> 00:55:35,521 In 30 minutes the armour was gathered up, 460 00:55:35,681 --> 00:55:39,481 the arrows packed away, the spears tied in bundles. 461 00:55:39,681 --> 00:55:41,961 The crew's cars and extras' buses 462 00:55:42,121 --> 00:55:44,001 moved out like a military convoy. 463 00:55:44,601 --> 00:55:46,561 An orderly retreat. 464 00:55:47,401 --> 00:55:50,561 Today, the fog won. 465 00:56:14,281 --> 00:56:19,081 The fight between film and fog becomes a guerrilla combat. 466 00:56:19,201 --> 00:56:22,521 Sensei keeps his troops always at the ready. 467 00:56:22,681 --> 00:56:24,281 A clearing means a take. 468 00:56:24,441 --> 00:56:25,841 Sometimes he improvises, 469 00:56:25,961 --> 00:56:29,681 shooting a misty shot to edit into the smoky scenes. 470 00:56:29,801 --> 00:56:34,001 He hacks his film out of the weather like a sculptor. 471 00:57:33,841 --> 00:57:35,921 Get your bows ready. 472 00:58:11,641 --> 00:58:14,961 Keep that rhythm. Everyone do it together. 473 00:59:33,161 --> 00:59:35,481 - Ready to go! - OK! 474 00:59:36,921 --> 00:59:38,001 Ready... 475 00:59:39,641 --> 00:59:40,641 Start! 476 00:59:42,801 --> 00:59:44,161 Horses! 477 00:59:59,001 --> 01:00:01,761 And finally, the fog capitulates. 478 01:00:03,281 --> 01:00:04,921 Stamp your feet! 479 01:00:45,681 --> 01:00:46,961 With the sun back, 480 01:00:47,081 --> 01:00:51,001 Sano's assistants draw coloured strips on the reflectors, 481 01:00:51,641 --> 01:00:56,401 his own invention for giving each character a leitmotif of light. 482 01:00:57,441 --> 01:00:59,161 These are the preparations 483 01:00:59,321 --> 01:01:02,801 for the taking of the third castle by the troops of two brothers, 484 01:01:02,961 --> 01:01:04,761 in noise and fury, 485 01:01:04,921 --> 01:01:08,201 in the chaos which gives the film its title: Ran. 486 01:02:09,241 --> 01:02:10,841 Like every morning at 10, 487 01:02:11,001 --> 01:02:15,121 the white Mercedes drops Sensei off by the first castle. 488 01:02:15,281 --> 01:02:17,001 He is happy now. 489 01:02:17,161 --> 01:02:18,761 Even the fog is on his side. 490 01:02:18,921 --> 01:02:22,881 Once more he'll struggle up the slopes of Mount Fuji, 491 01:02:23,001 --> 01:02:24,921 once more he'll use horses 492 01:02:25,081 --> 01:02:29,481 to depict the incisive movements of these ancient Japanese warriors. 493 01:02:29,881 --> 01:02:32,161 Sensei must indeed be happy. 494 01:02:36,601 --> 01:02:37,881 Good morning. 495 01:02:41,641 --> 01:02:45,921 How did the warriors of that time come by that military spirit? 496 01:02:50,321 --> 01:02:54,961 They had to be prepared to die without hesitation. 497 01:02:55,161 --> 01:02:57,761 Or, paradoxically, they couldn't survive. 498 01:02:57,961 --> 01:03:01,641 The concept of good and bad... 499 01:03:04,601 --> 01:03:06,641 wasn't the same as nowadays. 500 01:03:06,801 --> 01:03:10,281 They were more pragmatic. 501 01:03:11,201 --> 01:03:14,281 When you look at an ancient Warrior's writings, 502 01:03:14,521 --> 01:03:16,761 you can see how extraordinary he was. 503 01:03:16,921 --> 01:03:18,201 But to a modern eye, 504 01:03:18,361 --> 01:03:21,361 he may look like a traitor and so on. 505 01:03:21,561 --> 01:03:24,761 Merely to survive in that era was very hard. 506 01:03:24,921 --> 01:03:26,961 Everyone studied a lot. 507 01:03:27,121 --> 01:03:30,201 They were all very well educated. 508 01:03:30,641 --> 01:03:33,041 You can see that in their writings. 509 01:03:38,041 --> 01:03:40,281 We'll start giving commands, 510 01:03:41,721 --> 01:03:44,241 from "forward" to "stop". 511 01:03:44,401 --> 01:03:45,881 Please pay attention. 512 01:03:47,481 --> 01:03:52,081 Number one troop! Second spear corps! Everyone! 513 01:03:53,681 --> 01:03:56,161 When I say "forward", start stamping. 514 01:03:56,401 --> 01:03:57,801 Forward! 515 01:03:58,401 --> 01:04:02,801 One, two... Left, right, left, right... 516 01:04:02,921 --> 01:04:06,521 All in the same rhythm! Left, right... 517 01:04:06,681 --> 01:04:09,361 Everybody... 518 01:04:10,161 --> 01:04:11,441 Stop! 519 01:04:15,761 --> 01:04:18,441 That was excellent. 520 01:04:52,841 --> 01:04:56,601 When you're climbing the horses will slow down, 521 01:04:56,721 --> 01:04:59,121 so don't follow too close behind. 522 01:05:02,361 --> 01:05:05,481 Try to keep the tops of the poles still. 523 01:05:05,641 --> 01:05:08,121 I know it's difficult, but do your best. 524 01:06:57,521 --> 01:07:00,121 We don't need smoke at the back! 525 01:07:03,761 --> 01:07:05,361 We don't need smoke there! 526 01:07:05,521 --> 01:07:07,761 Who decided to do that? 527 01:07:09,521 --> 01:07:13,281 We only need smoke at the front, not at the back! 528 01:08:02,081 --> 01:08:03,161 Time to eat! 529 01:08:03,321 --> 01:08:06,721 We'll carry on after eating! But we'll eat first! 530 01:08:17,081 --> 01:08:20,241 So I saw this sign which said "computer", 531 01:08:20,441 --> 01:08:23,081 but when I picked up the handset, 532 01:08:23,241 --> 01:08:25,921 the spring wasn't even working properly! 533 01:08:51,521 --> 01:08:56,681 The spirit of cinema is to show people what they want to see. 534 01:08:57,521 --> 01:08:59,441 Everyone's forgotten that. 535 01:08:59,561 --> 01:09:04,041 If it's theatre, you watch from certain angles. 536 01:09:04,201 --> 01:09:07,161 There's the stage, the curtain, the audience's seats... 537 01:09:07,481 --> 01:09:10,201 They're the restrictions of theatre. 538 01:09:10,361 --> 01:09:12,361 But cinema is different. 539 01:09:12,521 --> 01:09:16,481 The cameras can get in from every direction. 540 01:09:16,641 --> 01:09:18,681 That's the character of cinema. 541 01:09:40,601 --> 01:09:41,641 Ready... 542 01:09:43,641 --> 01:09:45,041 Start! 543 01:10:15,841 --> 01:10:17,241 Cut, cut! 544 01:10:19,201 --> 01:10:20,961 A horse fell. 545 01:10:23,281 --> 01:10:24,561 Cut! 546 01:10:24,761 --> 01:10:26,721 Stop slowly! 547 01:11:28,481 --> 01:11:30,921 Subtitles: Eclair Media