There is no doubt that Akira Kurosawa had great affection for the rich history of his native Japan. Watching films like Rashomon and Seven Samurai show his attention to detail and his desire to make those stories as authentic as possible. However, Kurosawa also thoroughly enjoyed American novels and stories as well as anything Western-related. In this film, he borrows heavily from American dramas of the time using similar costumes, set pieces and locations to showcase a story that some say is reminiscent of Hamlet, though I don't know.
As the story opens, we know very little and through the first ten minutes or so we know even less as we see all the events happen through the media's point of view. Then, we follow Nishi, a hardworking secretary who married his boss' daughter in the opening credits. As the story unfolds, we learn Nishi's father was forced to commit suicide and he is after revenge on the men responsible. Kurosawa masterfully keeps us in the dark for practically the entire time so that the only time everything really comes together is at the end. Toshiro Mifune does a good job of playing someone who keeps most of his emotions bottled up despite having played very extrovert characters before. I would say if you like Kurosawa to give this a chance. It isn't one of his best, but the plot is intriguing, the acting is convincing, and the films looks great as well. It may be a little long, but that is small potatoes to what is going on here.
As the story opens, we know very little and through the first ten minutes or so we know even less as we see all the events happen through the media's point of view. Then, we follow Nishi, a hardworking secretary who married his boss' daughter in the opening credits. As the story unfolds, we learn Nishi's father was forced to commit suicide and he is after revenge on the men responsible. Kurosawa masterfully keeps us in the dark for practically the entire time so that the only time everything really comes together is at the end. Toshiro Mifune does a good job of playing someone who keeps most of his emotions bottled up despite having played very extrovert characters before. I would say if you like Kurosawa to give this a chance. It isn't one of his best, but the plot is intriguing, the acting is convincing, and the films looks great as well. It may be a little long, but that is small potatoes to what is going on here.