TOKYO (AP) 鈥� Kiyoshi Kurosawa, the Japanese director known as 鈥渢he master of horror,鈥� was a bit nervous about how viewers might react to .
He needn鈥檛 have worried.
鈥淭he Samurai and the Prisoner,鈥� opening in New York and Los Angeles on July 31, followed by a rollout in major U.S. cities through August, received an enthusiastic response when it premiered at the in May.
It鈥檚 turning out to be Kurosawa鈥檚 most popular film to date, if its reception in , where it opened earlier this year, is any indication.
That鈥檚 saying a lot for a director who counts to his credit dozens of respected works, including the 2020 鈥檚 Silver Lion-winning 鈥淲ife of a Spy.鈥� His 2008 鈥淭okyo Sonata,鈥� about heartbreaking family conflict, won Un Certain Regard Jury Prize at Cannes.
鈥淔ilmmaking remains a mystery for me,鈥� Kurosawa said.
It鈥檚 a complex undertaking that requires bringing together the real world, or what鈥檚 being filmed, and what鈥檚 not real, the story that must be depicted, he said.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 understand it. And that鈥檚 why I keep making films,鈥� he told The Associated Press in a recent online interview from New York.
Why can鈥檛 I do what Yasujiro Ozu did? Why can鈥檛 I do what did? Those are the questions he keeps asking himself, he said.
Kurosawa鈥檚 past films, like his 1997 鈥淐ure,鈥� starring playing a detective chasing a serial killer, tend to be driven by a frightening creepiness that unfolds in a mundane world.
But the samurai genre already presupposes a fictitious otherworldly place, and everyday normalcy simply doesn鈥檛 exist there, Kurosawa said.
The story of 鈥淭he Samurai and the Prisoner鈥� centers around a rivalry between warlords, those familiar Shakespearean plot twists that characterize samurai films.
鈥淭here is, first of all, power. A feudalistic society is built on a hierarchical relationship of those at the top and those at the bottom. Then there鈥檚 betrayal,鈥� said Kurosawa.
鈥淧eople try to grab power, and in so doing get thrown into confusion. That exists in any society, historically and perhaps even today. And so this is also about what鈥檚 eternal.鈥�
Kurosawa acknowledged he didn鈥檛 know what to expect in tackling a samurai movie, starting with the basics like how to direct the actors. Unlike modern dramas, he felt there were no predefined parameters on how actors鈥� lines should be delivered, for instance.
It鈥檚 common wisdom that a director doing something new ends up disappointing fans, who tend to want more of the same. Adding to the challenge was the fact that, these days, even many Japanese find the old-style samurai genre alien as much as does the Westerner.
But everything fell in place, once things got started. It happened naturally. The set, costumes, props, wigs and makeup all worked together to transport the actors to that otherworldly spot. He was lucky to be able to shoot in old temples and castles in Kyoto.
Kurosawa kept his trademark long shots and almost claustrophobic dialogue scenes, in which nothing appears to be happening but chills shoot up the viewers鈥� spine in anticipation of what unimaginably horrific thing might happen next.
His latest has all the look of an orthodox samurai film, known here as 鈥渏idaigeki,鈥� staying true to its legacy of depicting the horrors and pathos of war.
There are even wide shots of warriors in armor lined up on a hilltop, evocative of 鈥淩an鈥� and 鈥淜agemusha鈥� by Akira Kurosawa, who is not related to Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Making 鈥淭he Samurai and the Prisoner鈥� was so fun, Kurosawa would like to make another samurai film, this time with more spectacular sword-fighting scenes a la 鈥淶atoichi,鈥� a popular film series of the 1960s and 1970s about a heroic blind swordsman.
He also wants to tackle new genres, perhaps a musical. And he promised to keep making horror films, if people aren鈥檛 bored with his style of having nothing happen for what feels like forever.
He鈥檚 worried that may appear dated.
The works popular these days, both in Japan and elsewhere, have one explosive thing happening after another, to keep the audience on the edge of their seats.
鈥淎 scary thing generally doesn鈥檛 happen every five minutes in my films,鈥� Kurosawa said.
鈥淏ut if that鈥檚 OK, then I鈥檇 like to make my film.鈥�
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Yuri Kageyama is on Threads:
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