Reimagined Shakespeare Maration Movie 2: Throne of Blood (1958)

Many writers and directors are known to take an established and well known story, and add their own flourishes in order to turn it into something new while keeping the intricacies of the source.  This can have different effects upon the material as well as the product.  Through the Reimagined Shakespeare Marathon, ten movies have this same treatment done to them and the results are likely to vary.

In 1957, Akira Kurosawa and a few others decided to rewrite Macbeth into a feudal Japanese setting.  From what I remember of reading Macbeth in grade ten (sophomore in high school), the plot is basically intact.  Guy 1 and Guy 2 get prophecies and these prophecies come true in dire ways.  Guy 1’s wife and Guy 2’s son play crucial parts in the tragic tale.  That seems fairly right though I think there may have been slight character changes or drops.  However, the main themes and plot points still exist as I remember them.

Feudal Japan as depicted in Kurosawa films is similar to a mixture of the Medieval Era and the Wild West.  In the case of Throne of Blood, the medieval elements far outweigh the Wild West elements which make for a much easier translation from the Shakespearean script to Japanese film.   It’s not too far removed from the setting of the source while still being distanced enough to make it feel fresh and new, figuratively speaking, of course.  The film is over fifty years old.

One of the things that I must take note of is the effects used to depict the supernatural aspects of the story.  It was 1958 which means that no computer graphics could be used.  There was a forced dependence upon practical effects such as lighting, camera trickery, makeup, masks, etc. in order to convey mysterious forces.  The way that these techniques were used throughout Throne of Blood helped to intensify the situations.  The evil spirit in the woods vanishing through camera trickery, the use of staging, the makeup in accompaniment with the black and white nature of the film making, and the lighting of the sets/shooting areas all combined to make for a rather spooky evil spirituality.  I know this didn’t really say much but this is one case where watching would help you to understand what I am trying to say.

I would regret it if I didn’t point out the acting.  Kurosawa almost always knows how to cast the right actor in the right role to make for the best possible film.  In this case, Toshiro Mifune was cast as Washizu, the Macbeth surrogate.  Mifune played the anger, the terror, and the panic all pitch perfect to make for some great tension in the character.  I don’t believe that anyone else could have done a better job in the role.

There isn’t too much that I can say to represent how well I think the movie is made or how much I like Throne of Blood.  I would, however, like to direct you to a website in which someone has written a good piece called Throne of Blood, Macbeth, and the Complexities of Adaptation.  There, the writer gets into details that I do not have the proper knowledge to cover, as well as discusses the Polanski version of Macbeth and what makes the two adaptations different and the same.  It’s an interesting, well informed essay that may help you to understand Throne of Blood a little bit more.

To sum everything up, I like Throne of Blood a lot.  It’s a well made film and a rather great adaptation of Shakespeare’s masterpiece.  It shows what someone could do with source material to make it their own while still remaining faithful.  This is how all adaptations should work.

The next film up in the Reimagined Shakespeare Marathon is King of Texas, a 2002 television movie adaptation of King Lear.  I’m interested to see what comes of this one.