The Film History of Akira Kurosawa Quiz

Answer: No Regrets for Our Youth

'No Regrets for Our (or 'My') Youth' was Kurosawa's first film to question the fascism he had most recently been living under. The film also features kissing, something that wasn't allowed in Japanese cinema prior to the end of the war (the U.S. occupation force, aka SCAP, insisted that Japanese film mimic western film in this sense).

Answer: Toshiro Mifune

This marked the fifth collaboration between Mifune and Kurosawa, among a total of sixteen different films in which they worked as an actor-director team. Rashômon, which was given the English title 'In the Woods' (people still call it 'Rashômon', even in the English speaking world), was remade into an American western called 'The Outrage' in 1963, a film that starred Paul Newman in the Mifune role.

Answer: John Sturges

Sturges rendition of this Kurosawa classic that features seven samurai protecting a small village from ravaging bandits is quite good, but doesn't quite stand up to the original. The Sturges version featured actors such as Yul Brynner, Eli Wallach, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson and James Coburn, all as gunfighters hired to protect a small Mexican village. Kurosawa's film features Toshirô Mifune once again, this time alongside notable Japanese film stars such as Takashi Shimura and Seiji Miyaguchi.

By the way, one alternate English title that was used early on for 'The Seven Samurai' was 'The Magnificent Seven'.

Answer: Macbeth

This was the first of two film adaptations of Shakespeare from Kurosawa. Once again, the acting of Toshirô Mifune is featured in this film, that takes place during the Japanese medieval times. Especially watch for the performance of Isuzu Yamada as Lady Asaji Washizu (the Lady Macbeth role).

Answer: Star Wars

The 1977 blockbuster classic 'Star Wars', by George Lucas, was roughly a remake of Kurosawa's 'The Hidden Fortress', though the stories do diverge at many critical moments. Lucas claims that the most inspiring aspect of 'The Hidden Fortress' for him is that the story is told through the eyes of the two thieves, much as Star Wars roughly follows the adventures of two robots, R2D2 and C3PO.

Answer: The Bad Sleep Well

'The Bad Sleep Well' is a tale obviously inspired by Shakespeares' 'Hamlet', though the bard is not featured among the writing credits. In this film, a young corporate-type attempts to expose the corruption occurring within his company. Clearly, Kurosawa was disturbed by the growing unscrupulousness within the post-war business environment in Japan, and this was his protest.

Answer: Clint Eastwood

Only Eastwood could provide such a tolerable rendition of the Sanjuro Kuwabatake character, played once again by Toshirô Mifune in 'Yojimbo' (or 'The Bodyguard'). Leone was rather quick to pick up on this story, making his 'A Fistful of Dollars' (or 'Per un Pugno di Dollari') just three years later in 1964. 'Yojimbo' has been remade a number of other times as well, most notably as 'Django' by another Italian filmmaker, Sergio Corbucci.

Answer: George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola

Lucas and Coppola were both big fans of Kurosawa and both stepped in to help bring 'Kagemusha' (aka 'The Shadow Warrior') to the screen during the time when Kurosawa's career was clearly at a low point. The story takes place during the late 16th century, chronicling a period in which a clear power shift was taking place among the Japanese elite.

It focuses on the story of Shingen Takeda (Kagemusha), one of those vying for power.

Answer: Ran

Once again back in the limelight after the international success of 'Kagemusha', Kurosawa embarked on this great project that was finally completed by 1985, and is known to us as 'Ran'. For this film, once again, Lucas and Coppola (along with Steven Spielberg) helped provide the funding for its completion.

The story is roughly based on 'King Lear', Kurosawa's second film directly based on the bard's work (or third, if you count 'The Bad Sleep Well'). Unlike in 'King Lear', however, the three children of the king are male rather than female.

Answer: Martin Scorsese

'Dreams' was probably Kurosawa's most personal and certainly his least coherent work, in terms of story. Kurosawa literally features his own dream sequences in this haunting and beautiful film. Another fan of Kurosawa's work, Scorsese appears in this film as Vincent van Gogh in one dream sequence, fitting considering that van Gogh was on the cusp of the modern art movement.