RAN 259
Film Productions). After the box office success of Jean- Jacques Beineix’s Diva (1981),
Silberman was able to put up most of the money needed to back Ran, which ended
up costing ¥2.4 billion (i.e., $12 million), the most expensive Japa nese film pro-
duced up to that time. Kurosawa cast Tatsuya Nakadai (who played the dual lead
roles in Kagemusha) as Hidetora Ichimonji, an aging Sengoku- era warlord based
on Mōri Motonari who decides to abdicate as ruler in favor of his three sons. Prior
to production, several hundred elaborate costumes had to be created by hand, an
arduous pro cess that took two years to complete. Pre- production also involved
extensive location scouting and set construction, for example, a castle destroyed
in the middle of the movie had to be specially built on the slopes of Mount Fuji,
only to be burned down.
Production
Akira Kurosawa was 75 years old when he directed Ran (June 1984– February 1985)
and was nearly blind when the initial photography started. He required assistance
in order to frame his shots, and his assistants used hundreds of his story board
paintings as templates to construct and film scenes. Almost the entire film is done
in long shot, with only a handful of close- ups. An enormous undertaking, Ran used
some 1,400 extras, 1,400 suits of armor (designed by Kurosawa himself), and 200
horses, some of them imported from the United States. Over his long career,
Kurosawa worked with the same crew of technicians and assistants. Toward the
end of the shoot, Kurosawa lost two of his old stalwarts. In January 1985, Fumio
Yamoguchi, the sound recordist on nearly all of Kurosawa’s films since 1949, and
Ryu Kuze, action coordinator on many of them, died within a few days of each
other. A month later (1 February 1985), Kurosawa’s wife of 39 years, Yôko Yagu-
chi, also died. Kurosawa halted filming for just one day to mourn before resuming
work on the picture.
Plot Summary
[Act I] Hidetora Ichimonji (Tatsuya Nakadai), a power ful warlord near the end of
his life, decides to divide his kingdom among his three sons: Taro (Akira Terao),
Jiro ( Jinpachi Nezu), and Saburo (Daisuke Ryu). The oldest son, Taro, is bequeathed
the sought- after First Castle and is named commander of the Ichimonji clan. Jiro
and Saburo are given the Second and Third Castles, respectively. Hidetora retains
his title of Great Lord, and the two younger sons are expected to rally behind Taro.
Saburo calls his father a fool, stating that he can’t expect loyalty from sons who
grew up watching their father use the most cruel, heartless methods for power and
domination. Hidetora is threatened by his son, but his servant, Tango (Masayuki
Yui), defends Saburo. Hidetora responds by exiling both men. Nobuhiro Fujimaki
(Hitoshi Ueki), a visiting warlord, sees Saburo’s fervor and forthrightness and asks
him to wed his daughter. [Act II] After Hidetora divides his remaining lands between
Jiro and Saburo, Taro’s wife, Lady Kaede (Mieko Harada), encourages Taro to gain
control of the entire clan. Emboldened, Taro tells Hidetora to give up his title of
Great Lord. Hidetora, now betrayed by two sons, runs to Jiro’s castle only to dis-
cover that Jiro plans to use him in his own scheme for power and influence. Unsure