As part of the team behind the development of Cheltenham's Eclectic Cinema, I have chosen a recent favourite of mine for an upconing screening, more details to follow;
1990s Dreams is mesmeric, challenging, thought provoking and above all unique. One of the final films, and a departure from his archetypal Samurai epics, of the legendary Japanese director Akira Kurosawa. In a contemplative and extremely personal project, he presents this anthology of 8 wildly differing dreams he was plagued with throughout his life. The film is made utterly memorable through stunningly beautiful imagery, inescapable depth of meaning and an unrivaled tenacity of vision. Admirably, the film never feels like just a vanity project, instead a journey through the mind of an off-duty genius which is bound to have a profound effect on all who see it.
Covering a wide array of themes from death, guilt, spirituality and fear, to more niche examples like environmentalism, nuclear fallout and evolutionary pollution, for the most part, the vignettes come across as mystical folk tales from old, each with meanings to uncover.
Although the screenplay was penned entirely by Kurosawa, getting the film made was a collaborative effort. George Lucas and Steven Spielberg were instrumental in bringing the vision to life, and Martin Scorsese, who cites Kurosawa as 'my master', makes a cameo appearance.
Akira Kurosawa's legacy was secure long before Dreams, but this is more than deserving of a place on his highlight reel. Roger Ebert once wrote of Ron Fricke's medatative documentary, 'If man sends another Voyager to the distant stars and it can carry only one film on board, that film might be “Baraka.”' If a voyager from the distant stars were to arrive on Earth, and asked me to demonstrate the creativity and artistry of the human race through five films, this would be one of them.
Comments