Ikiru - Criterion Collection

Ikiru - Criterion Collection
by Akira Kurosawa

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Actor: Haruo Tanaka, Minoru Chiaki, Nobuo Kaneko, Shinichi Himori, Takashi Shimura
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Brand: Image Entertainment
Cinematographer: Asakazu Nakai
Writer: Akira Kurosawa
Producer: Sojiro Motoki
Writer: Hideo Oguni
Writer: Shinobu Hashimoto
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: Japanese (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Subtitled)
Format: Black & White, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC, Special Edition, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 143 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-01-06
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Criterion

DVD Reviews of Ikiru - Criterion Collection

DVD Review: Identity Crisis
Summary: 3 Stars

This film of Kurosawa's has hovered like an unsolved problem in my mind ever since I watched it a couple of weeks ago. Its true that it inspired a lukewarm reaction in me, and I've been pondering why my feelings about it are so different from the overwhelmingly enthusiastic majority. I can accept the possibility that perhaps my artistic appreciation is not as well developed as that of some. But I have considered the matter, and I don't believe any amount of reevaluation is going to make me like it any better. I don't take such a critical stance lightly because: (1) Akira Kurosawa is one of my favorite film-makers. Throne of Blood, Dersu Uzala, and Seven Samurai would all be on my top-ten list. (2) I have no wish to show disrespect for the opinions of all those who evidently revere the film. But I take my books and movies seriously. While I expect them to be entertaining, I am also looking for a positive stimulus or suggestion to give me a new or heightened perspective about life. This is what I failed to find in Ikiru. Kurosawa's stance throughout this movie seemed to me to be more didactic and ideological than insightful. Kurosawa appears to have had some strong opinions that he wanted to convey with this story. The character of Watanabe, the protagonist, seems to be more of a symbolic victim than a real human being. "The System" has beaten him down and destroyed his spirit. If Watanabe is the victim, then society itself is shown to be the villain. We are given such a negative picture of the bureaucracy, where Watanabe is a minor official, that the obvious conclusion is that the system is rotten and should be overthrown. I question whether the Japanese system was ever so stagnant and repressive to initiative as it is portrayed here, for in the years following this film, Japan went on to become a technological and economic powerhouse. By implication, Watanabe himself is also to blame for his benighted state of soul. Most of the other employees who work under him are thriving in the cynical, venal, self-serving atmosphere. But he was evidently once a man of ideals, and when he had that knocked out of him, he withdrew and became a mummy rather than be involved in the petty intrigues of the office. Essentially, he was an individual who should have made a difference, but he abdicated his responsibility. I think Kurosawa was holding both society and individuals like Watanabe up for reproof. That Kurosawa thought that activism was the answer for both personal and societal ills seems obvious, given the direction taken by the protagonist in dealing with his fatal diagnosis. I admit I have a problem accepting books or films that inject politics into their themes in a heavy-handed way. Even though properly directed activism is a good thing, I am resistant to fictional portrayals that are designed to influence the viewers to adopt the opinions of the writers or directors. These fictional portrayals can be manipulated and fine-tuned to present a very emotionally persuasive, but distorted picture of actual circumstances. It seems to me that there was a very concentrated effort in Ikiru to use the device of gaining sympathy for Watanabe to also gain an endorsement of Kurosawa's condemnation of society as a whole. Why would Kurosawa be so negative on society, and especially bureaucracy? Maybe he felt that his artistic expression was being hampered by the bureaucracy of film studios, and he extrapolated his frustration to society as a whole. I don't say the character of Watanabe is undeserving of pity; not only because he was facing death - we all have to face that. It is pitiful to see a human being capitulating to exterior influences without even putting up a fight. There are no doubt many people trapped in bureaucratic rubber-stamp type jobs who can identify with Watanabe. What I can't identify with is someone who ignores all the tools at their disposal that can be used for personal empowerment. There are billions of neurons in our brains by means of which we can utilize thoughts, books, music, relationships, activities to give meaning to our lives. I agree that it is a positive thing and there is a certain poetic beauty to Watanabe's final achievement of getting the playground for the children. Thus he was able to die happy with the feeling that his life had had meaning. But Kurosawa's blistering attack on society continues unabated, as we are shown that things return to status quo after the death of the protagonist. I really can't say that any of the messages of Ikiru are bad, as such. Its just that I felt it was so extreme in its viewpoint that this detracted from the believability of both the acting and the storyline.

DVD Review: Am I even qualified to review this title?
Summary: 5 Stars

Ikiru is a classic. It's a simple movie that far exceeds the sum of its parts. There are many classic movies, but very few of them have such a timeless and relevant theme. Roger Ebert said that Ikiru might be one of the few movies that makes you rethink how you live your life, and I think he's right. You owe it to yourself to see this movie once. Life is short. Don't procrastinate. You'll be glad you did. If any movie inspires to live life to its fullest and to try and be a better person, it's Ikiru.

DVD Review: I'm sorry, this one wasn't great.
Summary: 2 Stars

I'm a HUGE Kurosawa fan, and I'm obviously in the minority here, but I thought this movie was horrible. It was painfully boring, entirely too long, and the point was belabored over and over in the most uninteresting of ways and the most laborious of conversations. I fell asleep about 3/4 of the way through and truly didn't care about the ending or what happened.

For fairness sake, I have to add that my husband really enjoyed the movie and thought it was great. I was baffled, but I guess a lot of other people think it's wonderful too.

DVD Review: A wonderful movie!
Summary: 5 Stars

It was sad, but life affirming at the same time. One of Kurosawa's best! Highly recommended!

DVD Review: A primer for all corporate executives and mandatory for HR Dep'ts
Summary: 5 Stars

Alas I am retired, otherwise I would require all staff executives to see this film. It is timeless in its depiction of corporate/government meaningless work, the jokeying for credit when, miraculously, something is accomplished, and the beauty that life can nevertheless offer to the individual mired in the system. And for film buffs, a true masterpiece. Note particularly the artistry of the scene near the end showing the cloudy sky viewed beyond the electric train catenary wires. Others have noted the perfection of the actors. For those so inclined, picking out the numerous casting overlaps with "The Seven Samurai" may be an entertaining effort.

Description of Ikiru - Criterion Collection

In this film, considered by some critics to be Akira Kurosawa's greatest and most compassionate achievement, Takashi Shimura (Seven Samurai) portrays Kenji Watanabe, an aging bureaucrat with stomach cancer forced to strip the veneer off his existence and find meaning in his final days.

Blessed with timeless humanity, grace, and heartbreaking compassion, Ikiru is one of the most moving dramas in the history of film. Legendary director Akira Kurosawa is best remembered for his samurai epics, but this contemporary masterpiece ranks among his greatest achievements, matched in every respect by the finest performance of Takashi Shimura's celebrated career. Shimura, who nobly led the Seven Samurai two years later, is sublimely perfect as a melancholy civil servant who, upon learning that he has terminal cancer, realizes he has nothing to show for his dreary, unsatisfying life. He seeks solace in nightlife and family, to no avail, until a simple inspiration leads him to a final, enduring act of public generosity. Expressing his own thoughts about death and the universal desire for a meaningful existence, Kurosawa infuses this drama with social conscience and deep, personal conviction, arriving at a conclusion that is emotionally overwhelming and simply unforgettable. --Jeff Shannon

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