The US Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has completed a digital restoration project to clean up Rashomon, and will be premiering the new print at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater on September 18 to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Kurosawa’s passing.
The September 18 screening kicks off a three-month Kurosawa retrospective, which also includes many other of the director’s movies, as well as an exhibition displaying a selection of Kurosawa’s paintings and other artwork.
On the opening night, the Academy will also host a panel discussion, the participants of which are still largely to be announced, but should include people Kurosawa worked with, as well as his family members, including his son and the present head of Kurosawa Productions, Hisao Kurosawa.
The exhibition, titled Akira Kurosawa: Film Artist, will run in the Academy galleries until October 4.
Source: Variety.
Update: Much more information about the restoration and the retrospective can be found at SciFi Japan.
I wonder who did the actual clean up, and how good it is compared to a new stuff Criterion is doing and the current Criterion Rashomon.. The last movie I saw, that was remaster by the MPAA, they commissioned Warner Brothers and it look like crap. Apparently they where under the impression if you just brighten everything up, to the point that whites become blown out, people will think it looks better.
I would consider going for this thing, but being in California 🙄 Lets just I, uhh…to avoid a string of 4 letter words– dislike the place.