Michael lee taylor

Originally written 9/24/2020

Rashomon

This movie, to me at least, is by far a better movie then Citizen kane. You can
see how it can be considered the movie giant that many others stand on their shoulders
on, movies such as clue which burrowed the multiple possible events plot, horror
movies using the amazing beginning camera angles and positioning.
The camera set behind tree lines to create the illusion that the audience is
waiting and watching them. Creating an automatic sense of unease. The zoom in on the
face to establish an almost obliviousness to the characters surrounding. It sets
precedent for ideas and camera work that will be used well beyond the time the movie is
gone and forgotten.
As for the main story itself, it's phenomenal. A murder mystery plot where its not
about who dunnit, it was never about who dunnit, the killer confesses in his second line
that he did everything that would be considered a crime at the scene and merely ran
away, but its how he, and every other character tells the story in which the plot blooms.
The bandits story symbolizes a man who has lost his pride and is desperately
trying to piece it back together, telling a tale where bandits and samurai fight epic sword
fights to protect a fair maiden, almost authirein in style. But it's a lie
The wife's tale symbolizes a woman who lost her innocence and faces rejection,
showing her husband as a cold heartless man who mysteriously died after a final
rejection of his wife. But once again, this is also a lie.
The samurai's tale symbolizes a man who lost his dignity and honor from his own
actions, he paints it as a tale of betrayal, with his wife as the heartless one, accepting
the bandits advances .
All three parties lie to protect their own, and someone elses image while also
incriminating someone else. The only common thread is the formed bond between the
bandit and samurai, which becomes clear as the woodcutter tells the final story.
The wood cutter is the one who originally finds the body as his first recounting of
events states, but that too, was a lie. He lied most likely to pawn off the lovely dagger
the women had to support his kids and to remain out of the crosshairs.
His story becomes the most believable given it protects no ones image, not even
his own, it paints the bandit as a scared coward, the women as a psycho who wishes to
see the two fight to the death over her, and the husband as a cold callous man, willing
to abandon his wife for a horse. Arguably, its the worst tale of the bunch given theres no
set good guy like the other ones. At least in those, theres someone you can root for.
The story begins and ends with a resounding of the above tales at a gate famous
for a tale in which a demon ran away due to his fear of the viciousness of man, the
temple is in disarray, falling apart and rotten, the yard piled with fearsome demonic
statues that seem cold and dead. The man listening to the tales seems to be a
representation of those demons. The absolute worse someone can muster, one who
assumes the worst of all, who can see the worst in all and point it out bluntly, instead of
being perturbed by the stories, he revels in it. He taunts the monk who after each tale
becomes slightly more despondent and loses his faith in man.
By the end he steals the kimono off a baby and leaves, now only the monk and
woodcutter remain. The monk is seen caring for the baby, the wood cutter moves
towards it but the monk quickly tries to move away, in that one movement, he had lost
all hope in his fellow man, he feared that the wood cutter despite confronting the man
would stoop to their level and steal even more of the fine cloth the baby was swaddled
in.
But the movie ends on a positive note, the wood cutter promises to adopt the
child and take care of it among his own children. He passes through the gate with child
in hand, the monk standing under the gate, the meaning of passing through one
meaning to shift from the mundane and earthly to the sacred and virtues. As if to
reassure the audience, that despite the stories they have just heard, there are people of
endless self sacrifice willing to do all they can for the people they love, or the people
they have just met.
This is a beautiful movie that im glad we got to watch for this class, i feel as
through it will help me in the future in my own writing, as if it helped my thoughts and
ideas on character motivation and the ideas of desperation and how it connects to “evil”
acts.