http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ Akira Kurosawa Forums » Recent Posts en Fri, 19 Mar 2010 00:58:52 +0000 http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kurosawa-film-fest-on-turner-classic#post-2325 Thu, 18 Mar 2010 14:53:13 +0000 cocoskyavitch 2325@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>My friend sent me the full schedule, but it posts badly. Sorry. Never mind. The URL for Turner is here: </p> <p><a href="http://www.tcm.com/thismonth/article/?cid=290029" rel="nofollow">http://www.tcm.com/thismonth/article/?cid=290029</a> </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/where-im-at/page/3#post-2324 Thu, 18 Mar 2010 14:45:40 +0000 cocoskyavitch 2324@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Shogun was also on German tv...I was beginning to wonder what was up. </p> <p>The skiing on Karwendel Mountain (right near Garmisch-the world-famous neighbor) was breathtaking, graceful, courageous, other-worldly (for those who are Alpine eagles) but, for me it was a slogging class with Klaus-my taskmaster. </p> <p>I loved taking the tunnel through the mountain to the snow ledge on the edge of the world. I love the light, the air, the mountain's many moods-and seeing those experienced Alpine skiiers drop from the ledge into the abyss, and race like wolves down the mountain-it was amazing!</p> <p>I did get my Alpine certificate. But, it would be a misrepresentation to say that I am anything other than a novice. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/where-im-at/page/3#post-2323 Wed, 17 Mar 2010 20:03:06 +0000 Fabien 2323@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>I hope that your cooking recipes are succulent, Vili, for Arte is a very good television channel indeed and it's mainly due to its status, goals and direction. (Public service, independence, no ads, cultural vocation…)<br /> In fact, I consider that it's the best free television channel in France in every way.</p> <p>And I wonder about its vanishing in your country as its programs are supposed to be displayed (maybe partially) by cabled networks and national channels in Hungary, Poland, Romania, etc.</p> <p>Recently were displayed samurai-themed films, beyond Akira's one: <em>Twilight Samurai</em>, Oshima's <em>Taboo</em>… and series like <em>Shogun</em> (with Mifune and Chamberlain). </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/where-im-at/page/3#post-2322 Wed, 17 Mar 2010 17:13:15 +0000 Vili Maunula 2322@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Yes, we need skiing details, coco! <img src='http://akirakurosawa.info/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif' alt=':smile:' class='wp-smiley' /> Good to hear from you again!</p> <p>Fabien, we got Arte at some point until our cable provider decided to replace it with something, probably a cooking channel. It had quite a lot of interesting programs, and with its seemingly random mixture of French, German and the occasional English program, always a fun channel to watch when you needed to practice your language skills. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/where-im-at/page/3#post-2321 Wed, 17 Mar 2010 14:50:08 +0000 Fabien 2321@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>During the last and recent Berlin International Film Festival, the franco-german television channel Arte (dedicated to culture) displayed <em>Seven Samurai</em> in prime time and original version. (Which is not so frequent.)<br /> It might explain the 3 o'clock fancy you have met with.<br /> Or it is simply that this film is marvellous and universally renowned, I can't say.</p> <p>Anyway, was the skiing good? </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kurosawa-film-fest-on-turner-classic#post-2320 Wed, 17 Mar 2010 13:48:52 +0000 cocoskyavitch 2320@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>I don't have Turner Classic but a good friend tells me they are honoring Kurosawa with a film series-they are showing "<em><strong>The Most Beautiful</strong></em>" and "<em><strong>Judo Saga II</strong></em>"-so, not only hte expected films, but going deep! </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/where-im-at/page/3#post-2319 Wed, 17 Mar 2010 13:45:28 +0000 cocoskyavitch 2319@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>I woke up about a week ago, in my Post Hotel bedroom in Mittenwald, Germany, where I was enjoying a short ski vacation, to the sounds of the theme from <strong>Seven Samurai.</strong> Evidently, the Germans like their Kurosawa in Japanese with German subtitles, and at 3:00 in the morning. It was a delight to see it.</p> <p>It made me think that it is a film that nothing can kill. It was as riveting without explicable language (at least, to me!) as ever. Hail Kurosawa. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/leonardo-dicaprio-praises-kurosawa#post-2318 Sun, 14 Mar 2010 18:17:35 +0000 Vili Maunula 2318@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Well, sort of. Or maybe Kyodo News is making too much out of something that he said at a recent press junket. <a href="http://home.kyodo.co.jp/modules/fstStory/index.php?storyid=490472">See for yourself.</a> </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/yasujiro-ozu-an-artist-of-the-unhurried-world-the-guardian/page/2#post-2317 Mon, 08 Mar 2010 08:36:13 +0000 Ugetsu 2317@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Not about Ozu or Kurosawa at all, but I think this article in the<a href="http://www.nybooks.com/articles/23726"> NY Review of Books </a>makes some relevant points about modern criticism and where it can go wrong.</p> <p>If I interpret his point correctly, he is arguing that the tendency of some critics to try to detach themselves emotionally from the film they are reviewing in the interest of writing subjective, formalist critiques means that, quite simply, they are missing the point of a certain type of film in which the use of visuals is intended to overwhelm the viewer. Reading Thompsons comments on Ozu and Avatar (and his related dissing of Kurosawa), I think its a very relevant argument. Critics find it easier to love formal film making as it allows for formalist analysis, while film makers like Kurosawa who sought to overwhelm the viewers with sound, motion and visuals come off worse in these critics eyes. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/film-review-still-walking#post-2316 Mon, 08 Mar 2010 08:29:55 +0000 Ugetsu 2316@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Sorry you didn't like the film so much Vili - for once I think you are in a minority! But you make some very interesting points. I think you are right that the Grandfather character in Still Walking was a little inconsistent at times, although I put it down to a characterization of someone suffering from undiagnosed depression. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/my-wikipedia-challenge-to-kurosawa-fans#post-2315 Sun, 07 Mar 2010 22:57:47 +0000 dylanexpert 2315@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>I have just made comments on my blog in reply to Blah's and Vili's comments. Please check them out at <a href="http://cinegems.blogspot.com/2010/02/creating-wikipedia-kurosawa-page.html" rel="nofollow">http://cinegems.blogspot.com/2010/02/creating-wikipedia-kurosawa-page.html</a>. </p> <p>Yes, Master Thief, I was aware that May 24th was Bob Dylan's birthday, but it's great that he's playing in Tokyo this month even if it's not his birthday. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/film-review-still-walking#post-2314 Sun, 07 Mar 2010 15:27:56 +0000 Vili Maunula 2314@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Today, I finally had the chance to watch <em>Still Walking</em>. Having finally seen it, it was great to be able to read your reflections here Coco, as well as Ugetsu's from <a href="http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/yasujiro-ozu-an-artist-of-the-unhurried-world-the-guardian">another thread</a>.</p> <p>I wouldn't necessarily call <em>Still Walking</em> a great film (like Ugetsu does), but I am happy to have seen it. I got the feeling that Koreeda wasn't quite brave enough to develop the story as far as he should have, and as a result it remained in my opinion a little unfinished and uneven, in a sense disappointingly superficial.</p> <p>The acting, I felt, was also a little uneven. Hiroshi Abe, who I really got to like in <em>The Last Princess</em> (that remake of Kurosawa's <em>The Hidden Fortress</em>) was again excellent as the son. You as her sister was also really good, although hers was perhaps a little bit too bubbly a performance for the rest of the film. I have seen her previously at least in Koreeda's <em>Nobody Knows</em>, and quite like her. Yui Natsukawa's portrayal of the wife was also very good, as was Kirin Kiki's role as the grandmother.</p> <p>However, I found Yoshio Harada's portrayal of the grandfather quite poor. I'm a bit surprised that Coco seems to have liked him here -- for me, Harada was constantly off with his performance, and quite inconsistent from one scene to another. This was a major annoyance considering the importance of the character. Harada just didn't command the force and presence that I felt the grandfather character would have needed. It may of course have been a directorial choice to tone down the character, but either way I felt that this didn't work like it should have worked. Not that the role was easy.</p> <p>I also think that the ending could have been done differently. While forcing a full resolution would have been pretentious, I think that something could have been developed, especially in terms of the grandfather-grandson (even if not biological grandson) relationship, as now the story of the film felt a bit too aimless (even if I'm sure aimlessness was an intentional choice). Personally, I would have liked to see the grandson's missing of his biological father contrasted with his stepfather's difficulties communicating with his own father, and the relationship between the two explored through that contrast.</p> <p>I did like the cinematography, however. Unlike Coco, I found many of the framing choices quite interesting, but then again I have really grown to like Koreeda's style from his earlier films that I have seen.</p> <p>All in all, I was happy to see it, although perhaps also a little disappointed with the end result. But perhaps that was only to be expected, considering that I had been looking forward to the film for so long, both because of my interest towards Koreeda and because of all the glowing reviews.</p> <p>I will rate the film with 4.8 organic bananas from a scale of 3.21 used blankets. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/my-wikipedia-challenge-to-kurosawa-fans#post-2313 Sun, 07 Mar 2010 08:18:13 +0000 Master Thief 2313@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Doh! Dylan's birthday is 24 May not 24 March. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kathryn-bigalow-and-the-rules-of-action-movies#post-2312 Sat, 06 Mar 2010 19:38:00 +0000 Vili Maunula 2312@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>I actually have some level of respect for Stallone as a director. Not that I find his work exceptional, but he seems like quite a down to earth guy who knows his strengths and limits. And <em>Staying Alive</em> is always fun to watch!</p> <p><em>Rascal Shooters</em> would make a good title, though. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kathryn-bigalow-and-the-rules-of-action-movies#post-2311 Sat, 06 Mar 2010 19:17:32 +0000 Jeremy 2311@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>I wouldn't worry about The Expendables being too action pack, I mean all these guys are so old, how exciting can they be in their Rascal scooter?</p> <p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rascal_Scooters" rel="nofollow">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rascal_Scooters</a> </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kathryn-bigalow-and-the-rules-of-action-movies#post-2310 Sat, 06 Mar 2010 17:25:45 +0000 Ugetsu 2310@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <blockquote><p> It's not so much that Bigelow's films are breaking the rules, they just don't follow the conventions set by your typical 80s action films.</p></blockquote> <p>Yes, I think you are right about that - I wonder why the article wasn't written by Slates Dana Stephens (one of a tiny handful of current critics I like to read) - I'm sure she wouldn't have been so ignorant of film history.</p> <blockquote><p> What could go wrong?</p></blockquote> <p>One look at who is credited as director will tell you what could go wrong! </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kathryn-bigalow-and-the-rules-of-action-movies#post-2309 Sat, 06 Mar 2010 07:08:32 +0000 Vili Maunula 2309@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>I think that Jeremy's assessment of the situation is quite spot on. It's not so much that Bigelow's films are breaking the rules, they just don't follow the conventions set by your typical 80s action films. Then again, few action films do that these days. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bourne_%28film_series%29">Bourne films</a> have I think been especially effective in bringing back the type of action films that were popular before the 80s. Less muscle, more brain.</p> <p>Then again, Hollywood has for quite a number of years now been on a nostalgia trip even outside of the action genre, falling back on old conventions and filming styles (but often with a modern take). This isn't necessarily a bad thing. <em>Up in the Air</em> and <em>Shutter Island</em> come to mind as good examples of such recent films.</p> <p>Anyway, I wonder how long it takes for the action wheel to turn again, and muscle men take over our action screens again. I have high hopes for <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klnctxbAz1U&amp;feature=fvw">The Expendables</a>. I mean, just look at the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Expendables_%282010_film%29#Cast">cast list</a>! Stallone, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger... What could go wrong? <img src='http://akirakurosawa.info/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_razz.gif' alt=':razz:' class='wp-smiley' /> </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/reel-history-ran#post-2308 Sat, 06 Mar 2010 06:44:38 +0000 Vili Maunula 2308@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Thanks, Ugetsu! Interestingly, no mention of the <a href="http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kagemusha-fire-without-smoke-or-how-to-end-an-epic">arquebus</a> there. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/film-club-schedule-for-2010#post-2307 Sat, 06 Mar 2010 06:39:12 +0000 Vili Maunula 2307@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Indeed, it's been a bit quiet here lately, and I suppose that it's partly my fault for not having been able to be a more active host for various reasons.</p> <p>Which reminds me: would someone be interested in taking over the planning and execution of the planned Non-Kurosawa Film Club, where we would watch films other than Kurosawa? Basically, someone should come up with a schedule, and if possible recommendations for possible background reading and such.</p> <p>Oh, and welcome to the group hobosailor! </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kathryn-bigalow-and-the-rules-of-action-movies#post-2306 Thu, 04 Mar 2010 22:56:30 +0000 Jeremy 2306@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>I'm not sure, you want the great leaps and bounds occurring in films, simply doing so, because we can. This to me is the very problem with modern films, they try to remove themselves from the past, and interject a vast amount of technology or newness that ultimately does nothing to the core of movie ideals. Nearly no one has master the fundamentals, but yet they all try to blaze new trails to nowhere as quickly as they can. Thus you get abominations like Avatar <img src='http://akirakurosawa.info/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_eek.gif' alt=':shock:' class='wp-smiley' /> </p> <p>To defend Bigalow a bit, she does make movies generally better then most out there, but the more you look into them, the more you notice she forces the subject matter into the same Hollywood mold as everyone else. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/reel-history-ran#post-2305 Thu, 04 Mar 2010 11:31:57 +0000 Ugetsu 2305@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>A nice little article<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/mar/04/reel-history-akira-kurosawa-ran"> here </a>on Ran by historian Alex von Tunzelman, who writes a series called 'reel history' in the Guardian - essentially reviewing classic historical films from the point of view of a professional historian. I think this is the highest grade she's given to any major film. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/film-club-schedule-for-2010#post-2304 Thu, 04 Mar 2010 11:29:40 +0000 Ugetsu 2304@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Hi hobosailor, good to have you here, we need a few more perspectives to spice up the comments! Its gone a bit quiet now as people don't seem to be so interested in Kurosawa's later films (and also, as in my case, hobbled by lack of Region II availability), but I'm sure it'll liven up later. I'm really looking forward to tackling the early classics again, I think we only scratched the surface of most of the films in the first round of the AK film club. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kathryn-bigalow-and-the-rules-of-action-movies#post-2303 Thu, 04 Mar 2010 11:26:03 +0000 Ugetsu 2303@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>I agree with you entirely Jeremy, its sad that the action movie with all the advances in technology and CGI hasn't really advanced at all in the last few decades - in fact in many ways they've gone backward. In the last 10 years I think <em>Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon </em>is the only action movie that really thrilled me and made me want to watch it over and over. As you say, the newer, better action films are really just going back to the narrative basics already established decades ago. </p> <p>I haven't seen enough of her films to really comment in detail, but I do suspect that like her ex husbands films, there is more flash than substance to them. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/film-club-schedule-for-2010#post-2302 Thu, 04 Mar 2010 06:08:09 +0000 hobosailor 2302@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Hi folks,</p> <p>A newcomer here; I'm posting in this thread because I think that the AK Film Club idea as a whole is excellent--indeed, precisely the sort of discussion I enjoy. If I try to get on board for Scandal in April (the rest of March is busy for me), it will give me a great excuse to convince my spouse that I "need" to buy the Ecplise box. I just wish Criterion would ramp up their promised release of the pre-1946 titles, so I could restart at AK's beginning with all of you. However, please consider this a newbie's vote for the chronological restart plan, so that the Film Club discussions might keep rolling with Drunken Angel in November.</p> <p>One great thing is that, while I still have only seen Kurosawa on DVD, that's about to change with a massive local AK festival in Palo Alto; a few weeks from now, I'll have seen about 10 films on the big screen. Wow.</p> <p>This thread is filed under "Introduce Yourself," so I hope it's not rude to extend this "vote" post by doing so: I'm a lifelong film lover who has gradually traced my way back to the older films that influenced my contemporary favorites, and also to more aesthetically challenging films than the Hollywood fare I grew up with. I'm guessing that's true for many folks here.</p> <p>As for Kurosawa: Until not long ago, I had seen Rashomon, parts of Seven Samurai, and parts of Ran, but nothing else, and I thought of those three films as "important" but nothing I would take lots of time to watch again. Then I was given the Criterion sets of Rashomon and 7S as gifts, and started exploring. I couldn't believe what I was watching: somehow, something clicked and I was completely stupefied by the power and beauty of these films. In the past few months, the experience has intensified, and now AK is an obsession for me. I'm reading every book I can get my hands on, Richie, Prince, Goodwin, buying any DVD I can afford. A "day off" in the past several weeks is merely synonymous, for me, with "A chance to watch a Kurosawa film." That's why I went looking for sites, and this one impresses me the most, by far, in terms of the quality of discussion. Thanks, Vili.</p> <p>So far, I've watched The Quiet Duel, Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood, Hidden Fortress, Yojimbo, Sanjuro, and Ran. I can't even begin to "rank" these; each has its unique, singular quality for me and only Quiet Duel is not up to the level of the others (though I find it interesting, especially Mifune's performance). </p> <p>I'm thrilled to find a place where other people are as fascinated by these films as I am. When I become interested in a great artist, I tend to dive in all the way, trying to make sense of everything I can learn. I'm all the way in with AK now, and would be glad to learn whatever others have to share. (dylanexpert, if you're reading this post and you mean bob and not the poet, I'm right there with you, we should talk dylan sometime).</p> <p>As for other major film interests, I'd say Welles (with reservations), Ozu (only lately), Coppola and Scorsese in small doses, Boetticher and the Coens in any doses at all; the director who's been my favorite until Kurosawa is Aronofsky. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kathryn-bigalow-and-the-rules-of-action-movies#post-2301 Wed, 03 Mar 2010 20:01:46 +0000 Jeremy 2301@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Linking Bigalow with Kurosawa will forever give me nightmares. </p> <p>Bigalow hasn't broken the rules, but merely followed the long established rules of action films that others have ignored. It certainly could be said that Kurosawa helped pioneer these rules, if he didn't do so solely in regards to action movies. </p> <p>There is simply the usual cycling of how action films are done, for many years, it was simply dumb them down, and offer lots of explosions, lately, and there has been an attempt to add some intelligence behind the action.<br /> Bigalow is currently the critics little pet and they are crediting her with a genius she has merely copied(I would say poorly).<br /> Following actions films of the 1970's they are doing exactly was Bigalow is getting credit for, then in the 1980's they started to stupider, the 1990's a small reemergence of intelligence occurs, the 2000's there is a dip down due to what I think is realization by movie studios, that high profits for movies are the result of marketing, not critic review, or value of the movie-to say the audiences are easily tricked.<br /> Now, the audience are much wiser, cleaver marketing and big name actors are not enough anymore, the audience wants a decent story line, so around 2008 you see this change begin, and surely as 2010 continues on, you'll this "breaking of the rules", which but of course the actual following of rules, and as with nearly all movie rules, long established in the 1940's-1950's. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kathryn-bigalow-and-the-rules-of-action-movies#post-2300 Wed, 03 Mar 2010 08:09:43 +0000 Ugetsu 2300@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>I've just been reading this interesting article by Jessica Winter in <a href="http://www.slate.com/id/2246442/pagenum/all/#p2">Slate about Kathryn Bigalows movies </a>and how they 'break the rules' of action films.</p> <p>The reason I'm posting here is that as I was reading the article, it occurred to me that Kurosawa pretty much broke all those rules! Yojimbo and Sanjuro in particular seem to be Bigalow movies according to the criteria set by this writer (also his contemporary thrillers). I've always thought of Kurosawa as having pretty much written the script and established most of the key cliches of the modern action movie so its curious that the action film seem to have followed a loop whereby what was exciting and new back in the 1950's is... exciting and new again. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/my-wikipedia-challenge-to-kurosawa-fans#post-2299 Tue, 02 Mar 2010 00:12:20 +0000 Master Thief 2299@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Thanks dylanexpert. Great to see this project happening. Hope it suceeds for the birthday.</p> <p>By the way Bob Dylan is playing in Tokyo on the 23rd and the 24th - which is Bob's 69th birthday. But by your nickname I assume you knew that already. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/princess-mononoke#post-2298 Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:25:39 +0000 Vili Maunula 2298@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Apparently, a collection of essays, interviews and other material by Hayao Miyazaki includes an essay on Kurosawa's <em>Ikiru</em>. Or that's what <a href="http://www.toonzone.net/news/articles/32832/starting-point-1979-1996-a-look-at-the-unconventional-thinking-of-hayao-miyazaki">this review</a> suggests. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/kurosawa-100-tokyo-273-1642010#post-2297 Sat, 27 Feb 2010 09:44:21 +0000 akahige 2297@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Special film festival related with Kurosawa Akira will be held at a theatre in Tokyo from 27th March to 16th April in commemoration of the one-hundredth year since his birth, where his 30 masterpieces including Seven Samurai, Akahige, Yo-junbo, etc. will be shown.</p> <p><a href="http://www2.toho-movie.jp/movie/kurosawa/" rel="nofollow">http://www2.toho-movie.jp/movie/kurosawa/</a></p> <p>Brgds<br /> akahige </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/my-wikipedia-challenge-to-kurosawa-fans#post-2296 Sun, 21 Feb 2010 23:34:03 +0000 dylanexpert 2296@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>My blog post requesting your assistance in creating the Kurosawa Wikipedia page is now online. I have made comments on Vili's proposed structure and added my revised draft of the Lead Section of the article. Please add your corrections/suggestions in the Comments area. </p> <p>The post can be found at <a href="http://cinegems.blogspot.com/2010/02/creating-wikipedia-kurosawa-page.html" rel="nofollow">http://cinegems.blogspot.com/2010/02/creating-wikipedia-kurosawa-page.html</a>. </p> <p>I look forward to your comments. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/seven-samurai-whats-the-old-man-saying#post-2295 Sun, 21 Feb 2010 00:29:04 +0000 Jeremy 2295@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Well, there appears to be nothing close to "shetta" in Japanese, it could be an accent, or the old man's mumble . And indeed "hetta" comes back to "heri", however searching a bit, I have found hetta used often in regards to starvation, but it appears to be more a medical term, and can only be correctly attached when it refers to the human stomach when it's actively losing food. So, that would fit, in "heri" meaning to decrease.</p> <p>Of course I could be completely wrong again, but still "hetta" is close enough to starvation/hunger/hadn't had food for a while/a decrease, in what is obviously referring to the stomach with the use of "hara" , not to play a significant role. </p> <p>I got everything I was seeking, thanks a lot, couldn't of done it on my own. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/seven-samurai-whats-the-old-man-saying#post-2294 Sat, 20 Feb 2010 22:26:39 +0000 Jeremy 2294@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Thanks Vili, I didn't even think about finding the script. And thanks too for the time frame correction, I just grab the first issue I could find. </p> <p>It appears I was way off, and I was feeling so proud getting what I could.<br /> Now with what Vili provided, I hear exactly that, and wonder how the hell I heard otherwise. And how I missed the "yo" at the end is boggling, I mean Criterion offered a "!" for a reason. </p> <p>Anyways, I agree with Fabien the hetta, does sound more shetta, but I can't comment about that. </p> <p>I do however clearly hear "ue" which would suggest starvation, or empty stomach, so maybe that's what threw me off, but then it properly not "ue" but as Fabien suggest a interjection of some kind. I have to guess now it's a shorten "iie" (no) to just "e" which I heard in the past, to simply interject in a negative to the what was said.<br /> Any clue on that Vili?</p> <p>The French translation is rather interesting, and choice of words to translate the original Japanese is part of my interest. Thus the importance of finding the exact meaning in Japanese I'm seeking.<br /> The total point: I've been for a long time, under the belief the phrase the old man speaks is the very essence of the Seven Samurai, and all aspects, both the positive(Samurai not fighting for glory, money, etc, but for what is right) and ultimate negative(Samurai dying for relatively nothing, and those that remain alive, quickly tossed aside) of the movie can fit nicely within the phrase. I could go on and on about that line, but you get the idea. However of course my belief is depended on the true meaning of the line in Japanese. </p> <p>The help here gets me much further, I suppose I need to really dig into this "hetta" or "shetta" now. </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/seven-samurai-whats-the-old-man-saying#post-2293 Sat, 20 Feb 2010 13:43:56 +0000 Fabien 2293@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Except for hetta (I hear something nearer to <em>shetta</em>), I hear the same thing that you found in the archives, Vili.<br /> It seems tha my <em>shetta</em> coincides with Jeremy's <em>shi ta</em>, would it be related to a peculiar accent of the actor?<br /> And what about the <em>ue</em> (I hear <em>e</em>)? Would it be some kind of interjection rather than a meaningful part of the phrase?</p> <p>In french, the phrase has been translated into “Cherchez des samouraïs affamés.” (~= search for famished samurais)<br /> (It could be interesting to compare translation choices, as <em>famished</em> is different from <em>hungry</em> and <em>search</em> different from <em>find</em>, it gives slightly different orientations to the dialogues.) </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/seven-samurai-whats-the-old-man-saying#post-2292 Sat, 20 Feb 2010 09:52:56 +0000 Vili Maunula 2292@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Unless I'm mistaken, the old man's line can be found in the script posted at the Kurosawa Archives on <a href="http://www.ss.i.ryukoku.ac.jp/pearl/#xid=v3LquGx">this page</a>. It's at the bottom left corner of the right-hand page, the last line of dialogue before the arrow.</p> <p>You probably need to <a href="http://www.afc.ryukoku.ac.jp/Komon/kurosawa/index.html">enter the website</a> before the direct link works (if you haven't loaded the flash program, you get a log-in screen). If it still doesn't work for you, it's file number 22.14.01, page 13.</p> <p>Anyway, what it reads there is 腹のへった侍さがすだよ (hara no hetta samurai sagasu da yo), and that's what I hear, too. I'm not entirely sure what "hetta" here literally means, but if it comes from "heri" (to decrease), then I suppose a word-to-word translation could be "stomach decreased samurai search (emphasis)".</p> <p>By the way, the line is about 10:16 into my (new Criterion) print, in case someone is searching from 17:16 as suggested by Jeremy.</p> <p>I hope this helps! </p> http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/topic/seven-samurai-whats-the-old-man-saying#post-2291 Sat, 20 Feb 2010 07:04:11 +0000 Jeremy 2291@http://akirakurosawa.info/forums/ <p>Seven Samurai approx 17:16 into the movie the old man of the village, suggest the villagers (as translated by Criterion) "find hungry Samurai".</p> <p>I been beating my head trying to understand the old man's Japanese, but the mix of his mumble and my poor Japanese I'm having trouble.<br /> As typically online translators are worthless, and giving incorrect translations on every level.</p> <p>Thus far I understood what I believe is the 5 words of the 7(or more) that make up his statement:</p> <p>ue hairu no shi ta samurai ( 飢え入るのした侍 )</p> <p>Which is roughly "empty stomach obtain Samurai" but there are 2-3 more words he says, to which I don't understand.</p> <p>Sounds sort of like "sono staio" which is not correct Romanization just the best I can spell out. </p> <p>Anybody anything? I'm dying here.</p> <p>Ideally I need the kanji/kana, but any help on the romaji would be helpful as well. </p>