‘Akira Kurusawa’s Dream’s’ (also known as ‘I Saw a Dream like This’ and ‘Such Dreams I Have Dreamed’) was developed in 1990 from personal interpretations of the Japanese director’s own dreams. The film features eight different segments of dreams from different stages of his life, based more upon imagery than dialogue. It was distributed by Warner Brothers, costing twelve million dollars to produce.
It can be difficult to analyse Kurusawa’s films, due to his avoidance of discussion upon their meanings and interpretations. He is avoidant upon talking of his work, only that he notes through categorising these dreams as being ‘a form of art within themselves’, as well as their originally being eleven dreams, shortening to eight, hinting at a non-linear storyline. He also reflects an ‘unconscious process of creation’ through this movie, which compliments his quote feature in Vogue before production: ‘Nothing reveals the creator more than the body of the work itself’.
The segments follow in this order, with additional notes next to them to my references as to why they may be postmodern:
‘Sunshine through the rain’ –
• Study of language/subtitles – due to it being in Japanese
• Sighting of Japanese culture – allows audience to experience part of their civilization, therefore blocking out own and needing to interpret film through this diverse viewing, not one that they are comfortable with
• Reference to title – ‘Sunshine through the rain’ – loner girl standing still in pouring rain, seemingly unaware of harsh weather around her – levels of unreality? Typical small child may be immature in situation
• Unusual reference to ‘foxes’ – animal versus nature?
• Baroque – arty expression through pretty, eccentric Japanese culture
• Significant lingering image of forest between cut, to linger a questioning opening of this film
• Use of heavy fog – fictional elements – retelling of a story, horror-like? Likewise to ‘The Fog’
• Ironic as focuses on memory, although dream may have be interpreted from memory
• Introduction of group act as a religious segment, introducing different religious beliefs within our society. Diverse but common to them – open mind needed and harsh upon atheism?
• Scared child behind a tree – typical stereotype of young being fragile and hopeless in confrontation. Reflects age dominance within society
• Juxtaposition of clean child/previous beauty of scene in reflection to the mud/wet ground that the child steps on. Shows divides within society
• Child would be advised to not travel far from home, therefore the seriousness/formal architecture of the building in juxtaposing of the forest (presumably nearby) adds to individual’s ignorance
• Fox delivers a knife to a child, referring to high crime rates to those who are at a younger age. Akira’s interpretation of mass crime rate at that time reflected into dreams?
• Mother turns back on child – disgrace of some families/parents. Discarding of children and lack of love and support highlighted here
• Imagery of child within a mass, beautiful landscape (bright vagrant flowers, beautiful sky, rainbow, etc...) reflects nature’s superiority over humans and how minute we are in comparison to the world? Although we aim to destroy it by taking its resources. Improved technology of time – highlights Enlightment as boy is forced to find himself. Also differs from audience’s expectations to view a ‘fox’ or corruptive scene, and concludes on magnifying imagery
‘The Peach Orchid’
• Elders dominating the young – boy left aside and not acknowledged. Also feminist hint, at women take control/orders, differing from typical patriarchal society views
• Religious references and confusment, as boy stares at statues bemuses
• More artistic expression – typical Japanese bright reds/purple – adds to obvious culture
• Adds to boy being alone, as singled out in forest
• Sexual hints? Boy chasing girl – maturing, chasing sexual desires? Bell from girl is a warning sign. Multiple endings at introduction of adults - adults dressed up block his way, possibly blocking his maturity at such a young age
• Their costume typical/bright – Japanese culture, although a master shot reveals they’re in a variety of different costume. This could reflect an open state towards different culture/religion throughout the world
• Different dancing could signify the stages of life? Happy music/child at end reveals answers have been completed, answering his scared nature towards death?
‘The Blizzard’
Blurry image – unclear to viewer exact position of storyline – interpretations/post modernist’s main goal of memory dependency needed here. Gasps and sighs of are only noise, also adding to a questioning plot and high level of focus through cognitive. Cinematography main centre of opening, forcing viewer to maintain focus upon screen
• Unknowing as to what is going to happen, relying upon ‘suspension of belief’
• High level of reality, as people experience these phenomena’s daily – adds to a complex viewing upon this being a ‘dream’
• Interruption of speech – shocks viewer
• Desperation from actors – harsh reality of death and pain/suffering from others reflected. Adds to people’s scared attitudes towards death within society.
• Man tackles death from guardian angel – people’s hidden desires towards someone ‘watching over them’ and saving them from death. Adds to fear and need of comfort
• No technology within epic scene – highlights part of a dream’s ‘reality’?
• Caring for others, showing not everyone’s selfish and unreliable. Brighter through this aiming of saviour – also slow paced shot to add to a fictional, unreality element (reminder it’s a dream)
‘The Tunnel’
• Diverse from other dreams – more reality in opening location. Tunnel highlights he’s entering a new world?
• Dog highlights anger/rage within society, juxtaposition from the man’s previous calm mood. Red filter on dog connotes rage – a warning sign towards new situations?
• Long walking scene – forces audience to rely on cognitive and interpret own meanings from previous shot, as well as added tension for the other side of the tunnel? World appears ‘normal’ again on outside of tunnel, but dog reflect al is not what it seems
• Tunnel – signifies death
• Soldier appearing – unexpected. Is of a man visiting from dead – relies upon death again, as he appears to ponder upon it, to almost being confronted. Soldier staring back and into distance highlights his shock/confrontation with death. Man has to persuade him of his death, but he cannot accept. Adds to ignorance and greed in society, as well as how people deal negatively with loss.
• The mass amount of soldiers corresponds with their marching, as almost a summoning to death with beats of boots – heartbeat like. Adds to counting down/nearing to death, depending on interpretation of viewer.
• Level of reality in retelling of a story of soldiers dying at ‘action’ – ‘third platoon’.
• ‘Returning to the world like this proves nothing’ – world not worthy of, people live life then should rest, nothing to come back for, society is destroyed within itself/the world physically...
• When man confronts dog, is now not scared – highlights now he’s confronted death once, he’s not frightened? Dog could highlight a ghost/Lucifer/evil spirits, summoning him – retelling of stories, whether interpreted fictional or not
‘Crows’
• Reality shown through ‘Vincent Van Gogh’ paintings – actual life story of viewing his art? Typical young man, recognisable to all of audience. Factual through real man/ Historical quotes from the man
• Juxtaposition between man and paintings, as they are surreal whilst he highlights reality – therefore ironic as this is moreover a dream.
• Overall baroque of film forms from Gogh
• Postmodern technology highlighted, as cut in of painting reveals reality – painting comes to life. Highlights a trend in technology. Heterotopology formed from this, as the space we live in is drawn out as he falls from it into a painting
• Shifting of narratives from this through a metalepse
• Confusement of settings – old-fashioned but bright (e.g. a worn down house with a yellow cottage in same shot) – a combination of futuristic elements combined with historical
• Levels of concentration needed between language, as varies between English and Japanese
• Ironic – reference from painter to ‘a dream’
• Use of Martin Scorsese as Gogh – adds to aim of cinematic element l
• Use of cut shots of train (‘I drive myself like a locomotive’) moving to highlight his brain fast-forwarding diverse the audience from shot and forces them to value previous elements of plot – interpretations fully allowed here
• Historical element to cutting ear off – reality morphed into dream, which is fictional
• Multi-layered imagining – technology allowing man to morph into paintings and different world – to become one within the paintings, as well as the audience to become one with the film and overall the dream. Meaning of dream revealed as he consumes himself through paintings – possible diverse career from directing?
• Personal dreams highlighted here? As man begins in a gallery, he concludes actually within the paintings, concluding that he has achieved his two dreams – to meet Gogh and be a painter? Or moreover, be Gogh, due to receiving advice from the man? – adds to Kurusawa’s personal admirations towards to painter, therefore in reference to relating to his dreams. Adds that looking at paintings ‘changed the real world for me’, referring to his future career in doing this through film rather than art
• The use of the black crow’s interruption the man’s sight of Gogh may connote interruption of his plans/dreams, which is represented when he falls out of the painting and confronts ‘Wheat field under threatening skies with crows’.
• Pulled back to reality in conclusion, finalising not all dreams come true, but to still believe. Also refers to a symmetrical look on the film, as he puts on his hat on the right side of a painting, then leaves taking it off on the left. This could refer to a learning of respect from his journey.
• Overall, adds to understanding a ‘visual art’ – people assume crows represent Gogh’s fragile, mental state, however has been stated a ’crows flew away, terrified by the report of a gun’ which ‘Vincent had just fired’, going on to ‘feel a failure’. Therefore, the overall direction of the dream lies on not presume interpretation, in reference to over-interpretation of the audience – as noted by Umberto Eco – as may direct in opposite direction compared to intention of the artists work. It shows how limited people’s conceptions can be.
‘Mount Fuji in Red’
• Use of technology, differing from crowded natural scene to explosive volcanoes on green screen
• Historical elements combined with futuristic – real Mountain (tallest in Japan at 3,776m) and last erupted in 1707-1708, although individuals portrayed as recent e.g. new clothes, modernised fences, a car in background etc..
• Could reflect societies needs to conform and mould together – shown as a group, when people usually prefer to individualise
• Apocalypse style – adds to an omen for our future state? A threat/scare to humans, as well as a hint at the death fear references beforehand in previous dreams
• Separation hint – both small-scale and large (within family and throughout society) Nuclear plant blamed as the danger – shows people’s dislike towards it, but could also be a confrontation to the human kind towards their abuse upon the planet.
• Distorted imagery through repetition of fog: carnavilized as worlds fragmented as well as forming a significant image between the space
‘The Weeping Demon’
• Juxtaposition between nuclear bomb and flower – adds to thought processes, as have to use cognitive upon historical events, areas of war, or just interpret own past of this story
• Tension created in repetition of many continually walking – adds to suspicion and forces wonders upon who he is, what he’s doing, what’s happened personally to him, where he’s going, etc.. .Achieves goal of absorbing story fully as viewer adapts into story of why? No answers are given in the opening here
• Assumption of man being hurt in bomb, but in fact ‘I used to be human’ adds to Eco’s theory of ‘over-interpretation’
• Man tells story – ‘long ago...’ could be retelling a fictional historical element
• Adds to how mankind disrupt planet, through flashback of flowers representing its beauty, although now the use of war has disturbed/began to ruined the earth – societal issue
• Watch as fast pace of flowers dying – post modern technology shown within a historical story? Also adds to the fast-paced society issue of the world being harmed
• Use of large flowers – bizarre and unordinary. Twists upon nuclear bombs destroying what also remains on earth, such as humans born with birth defects, for example. The ‘poisonous wastes’ literally changing/exploiting the earth
• An apocalypse reference – ‘it has destroyed our birds, our animals...’, therefore aiming to scare the audience. An omen upon our Earth – perhaps exaggerated through the dream element, but references and similarities similar to those shown in film have been found, so it is overall possible
• Use of ‘horned-devil’: people will develop and change in form, may become the norm? Also possible religious reference to apocalypse, with ‘devils’ ruling earth? Also retelling of God damning us all, in reference to Adam and Eve story, as these individuals all suffer, with references to their horns beginning to hurt.
• Contrast in colour – the reality of this to a puddle reflecting colour – is a reminder of this being a dream, as abnormalities follow around. Colour could symbolise pain to come
‘Village of the Watermills’
• Multi-cultural children, all polite and holding hands, sensible and kind: a wishful society, one that would be full of peace and love. Picking flowers – also symbolises peace
• Man walking alone – why, what’s he doing? Also use of various turn-wheels, may represent an individual’s spinning thoughts whilst going for a simple walk
• Range of ages adds to a range of people within society – from young man to group of young children to an elderly male – highlights peace within ages, rather than bias that sometimes reflects within a disrupted society
• Questioning interpretations over the village having no name – history of the film
• Conversation about societies views – straight forward to audience – differs slightly, but also marks only their opinion, allowing discussion for audience
• Use of tree shot to signify their conversation and allow it to linger in audience’s mind
• Old man telling story – typical convention, therefore not postmodern
• Remembrance clearly highlighted – within people and his ‘love’ highlights memory (ironic for postmodernism) as well as an individual’s strong feelings upon an area, never leaving their grasp
• Ambiguous in time of film – appear old-fashioned through costume and setting, although man re-appears with a bright, neon orange gown on – probably uncommon in past times: adds to the use of historical with present
• Culture gathering together in a parade – highlights the coming together of people, possibly through peace during the previous negative, death-related features of before. Ambiguous however as in a single language, which is unreliable and unknown to some
• Use of coffin is ambiguous – people appear to be celebrating, as shown with their glorious singing and dancing and bright colours, although they carry a coffin, but appear to neglect this. May inflict views upon rather than being pessimistic at the death of a loved one, to indeed glorify upon their life. The deceased may represent the man’s wife who he talks of passing on, as he takes over parade in glee
• The use of symmetry in this represents other areas of the videos, as the man walks along a journey alone, to watching people walk along together in happiness, followed by walking alone by him in end. May reveal – through coffin – people end up alone in finale, although life may be experienced in thoughtful (as man represents) or happy (as parade represents) manners
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