How can such a tiny man execute such enormous cinematic ambitions?

I was not expecting that Akira Kurosawa’s big budget epic Ran would satisfy the majority of my expectations for any movie, all in one film. The film was already off to a great start when I learned that it was based off of a Shakespeare play. I thought this blended perfectly with the context of feudal Japan. More specifically, one of my favorite parts of the movie is the Noh theatre element because it makes it easier for Kurosawa to set up the characters motives quickly, and spend more time having fun with the stark character conflicts.Hand in hand with the element of noh theatre is Kurosawa’s typical overly animated acting style of the characters in his films. Watching the characters is entertaining in itself because you don’t need to strain yourself in figuring out what the character is about.
Another great part of the film was the big budget aspect. Watching all of those extra’s running around with sweet samurai costumes and neat feudal Japanese set was reminiscent of the joy that I experienced when I played with my action figures as a youngster. It is as if Kurosawa is playing the same way, only with way way more materials at his disposal.