The hidden fortress
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | The hidden fortress |
| Original title | Kakushi Toride no San-Akunin |
| Country of production | Japan |
| original language | Japanese |
| Publishing year | 1958 |
| length | 139 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 12 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Akira Kurosawa |
| script | Shinobu Hashimoto , Akira Kurosawa |
| production | Akira Kurosawa |
| music | Masaru Satō |
| camera | Kazuo Yamasaki |
| cut | Akira Kurosawa |
| occupation | |
| |
The hidden fortress ( Japanese 隠 し 砦 の 三 悪 人 , Kakushi Toride no San-Akunin , Eng. "The three villains of the hidden fortress") is a feature film by Akira Kurosawa from 1958 with Toshirō Mifune in the role of general Rokurota Makabe .
action
The two run-down crooks Tahei and Matashichi are on the run after the ruler of the Akizuki family , for whose army they were employed, has been defeated. On the way they find gold pieces from the Akizuki treasure hidden in branches, which makes the surviving general Rokurota Makabe, who wants to smuggle this treasure and a girl into a friendly neighboring country, aware of them and wants to use them as porters. You come to a small high valley, which is framed by steep mountains and where there are few buildings, a cave and a secret spring. There the crooks, who also meet the mysterious girl here, are protected for a short time; it is the hidden fortress. But the calm is not permanent. Disguised as wood collectors, the three set off on the dangerous journey with Princess Yuki, who plays a mute and whose identity Tahei and Matashichi know nothing about. Again and again the two crooks try to outsmart Makabe and flee with the gold treasure, but they are so stupid that they endanger the group again and again. After they were able to free themselves from several seemingly hopeless situations thanks to Makabe's cunning and fighting strength, they are surrounded by enemy armies shortly before the border, the princess and Makabe are captured and the gold treasure falls into the hands of the enemy, only Tahei and Matashichi can escape.
In a juxtaposition of Princess Yuki and Makabe with the opposing General Tadokoro, an old comrade of Makabe who has switched sides, Yuki tells of the importance that the journey had for her: she grew up at court and she has her eyes for them simple people, their worries, their lives, their weaknesses and strengths open. Tadokoro is so impressed by this that he mutinies and flees with the two of them. With the help of the gold treasure, the princess succeeds in re-establishing the rule of her house, and the two crooks Tahei and Matashichi also receive a small reward.
background
The Japanese title speaks of the "three villains from the hidden fortress," and indeed General Makabe is an anti-hero, despite his superficial heroism and self-sacrifice. Similar to the two idiot crooks, he is ready to accept anything to achieve his goal; For example, he sacrifices his own sister without blinking an eyelid, to give the princess time to escape. Thus, the figure of the macabe is to a certain extent a forerunner of the ronin in yojimbo .
The film itself plays with the cliché of the heroic historical film that was mass-produced in Japan at the time. He tells the story from the point of view of the incompetent, stupid and greed-blind crooks, who remind of Laurel & Hardy with their pranks and slapstick interludes , and thus becomes a downright parody of the genre of jidai-geki . Nevertheless, it also contains a deeper meaning, namely the knowledge of the peculiarities of man, reflected in the story of the initiation of the princess. In general, the character of Princess Yuki was of central importance for Kurosawa, for whose role he had hundreds of actresses auditioned until he finally discovered the hitherto completely unknown Misa Uehara .
influence
The film was a major influence on George Lucas ' Star Wars , and there are some obvious parallels between the two stories. The stories are told from the point of view of the apparently “least important” characters in the film (the crooks Tahei and Matashichi or the droids C-3PO and R2-D2 ). The opening sequence (the two crooks arguing in the desert) and the final scene (in which they receive their reward from Princess Yuki who is enthroned in front of them and the generals flanking them) can also be found in Star Wars with Princess Leia. The wiping screen typical of Kurosawa , in which the next scene is not cut abruptly, but gently faded in so that parts of both images can be seen for a short time, was adopted by George Lucas for Star Wars and also for the star films produced afterwards. Wars episodes retained.
Reviews
“A poetic-realistic parable about the human desire for fame and power, developed in the form of an entertaining and action-packed historical adventure fairy tale. The partly spectacular, partly comedic scenes serve as a dramatic thread for exquisitely drawn character, milieu and landscape studies. "
“Heroes' ballad along with a rough rowdy game from the Japanese Middle Ages in an excellent cinematic design. Because of the strange acting style only interesting for art lovers. "
Awards
Akira Kurosawa received the Silver Bear for best director at the 1959 Berlinale . The film was also awarded the FIPRESCI Prize .
Remake
The director Shinji Higuchi made a remake of the film in 2008 under the same title.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Release certificate for The Hidden Fortress . Voluntary self-regulation of the film industry , September 2005 (PDF; test number: 103 787 DVD).
- ↑ Michael Kaminski: The Secret History of Star Wars . Legacy Books Press, 2008, ISBN 978-0-9784652-3-0 , pp. 50–52 ( first 100 pages as PDF, 4 MB ). first 100 pages as PDF, 4 MB ( memento of the original from July 6, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Ev. Munich Press Association, Review No. 467/1959
Web links
- The Hidden Fortress in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- The Hidden Fortress in the Criterion Collection (English)