Ran (StudioCanal Collection) [Blu-ray]
by Akira Kurosawa
![Ran (StudioCanal Collection) [Blu-ray]](/images/Ran-StudioCanal-Collection-Blu-ray-B002ZG4Q5W-L.jpg)
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Akira Terao, Daisuke Ry, Jinpachi Nezu, Mieko Harada, Tatsuya NakadaiDirector: Akira Kurosawa
Brand: Lions Gate
Writer: Akira Kurosawa
Writer: Hideo Oguni
Writer: Masato Ide
Writer: William Shakespeare
Blu-ray: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); German (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); Italian (Subtitled); Dutch (Subtitled); Danish (Subtitled); Norwegian (Subtitled); Finnish (Subtitled); Swedish (Subtitled); Japanese (Original Language); Spanish (Original Language); French (Original Language); English (Dubbed); French (Dubbed); Spanish (Dubbed)
Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 162 minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: 2010-02-16
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Lions Gate
Movie Reviews of Ran (StudioCanal Collection) [Blu-ray]
Movie Review: Watching Blu-Ray next to the Criterion and:
Summary: 5 Stars
To put all to rest:
I am viewing Ran from the Criterion collection on my laptop while watching the Blu-Ray on my Toshiba LCD 1080p through a PS3. I have seen the Criterion version at least 3 times on my TV prior to this viewing.
There is not much difference really. (Though my nod goes to the Criterion for the slightly ~ and I stress slightly ~ better subtitles and translations)
The picture is great on the Criterion version; but the movie is a little crisper and cleaner on the Blu-Ray (though not truly HD ~ it still retains the original look). For those purists, I don't think that the clarity of either version really changes the vision Kurosawa had when he created this masterpiece.
The subtitles work just fine on both, though there are a few slight differences in actual wording. For example Criterion: "Lady Kaede, forgive me for disrobing in front of you" ; Blu-Ray: "Lady Kaede, I'm going to be naked". (which is the more accurate translation!) The slight changes in dialogue don't really change the movie, the meanings are still the same. I have studied Japanese for a long time and it is one of those languages which doesn't translate exactly into English, so any translation will have to adjust accordingly. This doesn't happen very often, and is really only noticeable if you are playing the Criterion version right next to the Blu-Ray (as I did).
There were a few instances where the wording had to be changed (on both versions) to make sense in English but again, if it were translated exactly it would make little sense to English speakers. "This event which you refer to was not by me done" would be the literal translation for "I didn't do it". Or "there sit" is what Kaede says in Japanese but sounds better as "Please sit there". So I am a little forgiving with the Japanese translations (unlike French which translates very well into English yet is often butchered).
There were three instances where the subtitles did not appear when someone spoke, but these were all at times where the speaker was either upset or talking over someone so the actual meaning of the dialogue is not very important. They also tend to not post subtitles when someone is shouting a person's name: "Kurogane! Kurogane!" means the same either way. =)
Basically either version works. Since the Blu-ray is currently cheaper, that would be the route I recommend. Though you might find it useful to rent both from Netflix and watch them next to each other or at least one after the other. If you don't have a blu-ray player go Criterion; the Criterion is actually slightly better in my opinion, just shell out the extra money.
Just AVOID the Masterworks DVD edition. It is full of defects and mis-translations and the subtitles hit off screen quite often.
Summary of Ran (StudioCanal Collection) [Blu-ray]
Akira Kurosawa?s brilliantly conceived retelling of Shakespeare?s KING LEAR magically mixes Japanese history, Shakespeare?s plot and Kurosawa?s own feelings about loyalty in the epic masterpiece, RAN. Set in 16th century Japan, RAN relates the tale of how an aging ruler, Lord Hidetora (Tatsuya Nakadai), announces his intention to divide his land equally among his three sons. Hidetora?s decision to step down unleashes a power struggle among the three heirs when he falls prey to the false flattery bestowed upon him by the two older sons and banishes the youngest for speaking the truth. That ruthless betrayal ultimately drives Hidetora insane, destroying his entire family and kingdom. Deep human emotion and outstanding acting combine to create one of the most acclaimed foreign films of all time.As critic Roger Ebert observed in his original review of Ran, this epic tragedy might have been attempted by a younger director, but only the Japanese master Akira Kurosawa, who made the film at age 75, could bring the requisite experience and maturity to this stunning interpretation of Shakespeare's King Lear. It's a film for the ages--one of the few genuine screen masterpieces--and arguably serves as an artistic summation of the great director's career. In this version of the Shakespeare tragedy, the king is a 16th-century warlord (Tatsuya Nakadai as Lord Hidetora) who decides to retire and divide his kingdom evenly among his three sons. When one son defiantly objects out of loyalty to his father and warns of inevitable sibling rivalry, he is banished and the kingdom is awarded to his compliant siblings. The loyal son's fears are valid: a duplicitous power struggle ensues and the aging warlord witnesses a maelstrom of horrifying death and destruction. Although the film is slow to establish its story, it's clear that Kurosawa, who planned and painstakingly designed the production for 10 years before filming began, was charting a meticulous and tightly formalized dramatic strategy. As familial tensions rise and betrayal sends Lord Hidetora into the throes of escalating madness, Ran (the title is the Japanese character for "chaos" or "rebellion") reaches a fever pitch through epic battles and a fortress assault that is simply one of the most amazing sequences on film. --Jeff Shannon
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