1. Directed by Akira Kurosawa (A Quick Summary)
Rashomon
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
(A Quick Summary)

2. Akira Kurosawa (director) – 1910-1998
Trained as a painter before becoming a filmmaker (note carefully his compositions)
Had worked at Toho studios for 10 years before directing Rashomon
It was a critical and commercial success
Established Kurosawa as one of the great international filmmakers – and put Japanese cinema “on the map”
He went on to direct dozens of critically acclaimed films, including Seven Samurai, Hidden Fortress (a major inspiration for Star Wars), Throne of Blood (an adaptation of Macbeth) and Ran (an adaptation of King Lear)

3. Overview A man is murdered and his wife raped
Eyewitness testimonies are inconsistent and incompatible
Who is to blame?
What is the truth?
Is there a truth?
Can anyone be trusted?

4. Backdrop Set in the 11th Century, Feudal Japan
This was the end of the Heian era ( )
The evident breakdown of a centralized government, meant feudal lords ran things locally, with loyal Samurai as retainers
Jobless Samurai were known as Ronin, who became mercenaries or bandits

5. Main Characters Buddhist priest Woodcutter Commoner
The Bandit (Tajomaru)
The Policeman
The Samurai (Takehiro Kanazawa)
The Samurai’s Wife (Masako Kanazawa)
The Medium

6. Under the Gate
A priest and a woodcutter take shelter under an abandoned gate
They are confused
An arriving commoner asks why
They tell him of a horrendous crime they witnessed and whose trial they attended

7. Woodcutter’s First Tale
Out cutting wood
He finds a woman’s hat, a samurai’s cap, and some rope
He nearly trips over the body as he walks towards an amulet case
He runs to tell the authorities

8. The Priest’s Testimony
He passed the Samurai and his wife walking
The Samurai was heavily armed and the woman was veiled
“A human life is truly as frail and fleeting as the morning dew.”

9. The Policeman He found Tajomaru, the bandit, thrown from his horse
He “captured him” single-handedly
Tajomaru denies this account
He had drunk from a stream that made him sick, and he dismounted the horse to recover
Only then was he captured

10. Tajomaru’s story
As he rested beneath a tree, a cool wind woke him – the same breeze reveals the woman’s face
“If it hadn’t been for that wind, I would never have killed that man.”
He was entranced by the woman and meant to take her – but never intended to kill the man

11. Tajomaru – clever and honorable
He tricks the man, and ties him up
After putting up a fight, the woman yields to him willingly
He wants to take her with him, and promises to “go clean”
She insists that she must be won by the sword
He fights honorably with the samurai and wins
The woman runs away

12. Back to the gate
The commoner immediately accepts that Tajomaru’s story is accurate (a likely story)
But there is another story, that of the woman who was found
Woodcutter insists that both of their stories were lies
Commoner: “It’s human to lie, we can’t even be honest with ourselves”
Priest: “It’s only because we are weak that we lie to ourselves.”
Commoner: “I don’t care if it’s a lie, as long as it’s entertaining”

13. The wife’s story
After her husband was tied up, and she had been raped, they were left alone
She looked to her husband for sympathy, but saw in his eyes disgust and contempt
In shock and out of control, she threw herself upon him with an outstretched dagger that she had intended for him to take her life because of her shame. She accidentally killed him instead.

14. Back to the gate
Commoner is now confused, but thinks the woman’s story can be discounted
Women tell lies and use tears to deceive
In general, we prefer the comforting lie to the truth
Priest: I can’t believe man could be so sinful. If that is true it is horrible.

15. The dead samurai’s story
He tells his own story through a medium
After the bandit had raped his wife, he asked her to come with him
She agreed, but insisted he kill the samurai first
The bandit is disgusted by this challenge and offers the samurai to kill her
She escapes, and the bandit frees the samurai
The samurai throws himself upon his own dagger

16. Back to the gate
The woodcutter insists that the story that he killed himself with his dagger is a lie
The commoner divines that there is more to the story, that the woodcutter has not revealed
He insists that the woodcutter tell everything he knows

17. The Woodcutter’s Second Story
He had arrived to find the bandit begging forgiveness of the wife – he asks her to marry him
She refuses to give an answer, and insists that they fight for her
They are initially reluctant but she shames them into a life and death struggle
The bandit wins, and she runs away

18. Final discussion at the gate
Commoner laughs and insists that the woodcutter still has not told the truth
Priest: “If men can’t trust one another, this world is hell.”
They hear a baby crying – and the commoner steals the kimono off the abandoned child
When the woodcutter accuses him of selfishness he reveals what he inferred from the stories: that the woodcutter had stolen the dagger from the crime scene and distorted the truth to hide that fact

19. An act of compassion
As the baby cries, the woodcutter reaches to take her
The priest refuses, thinking he means to steal something else from the child
He explains: he already has several mouths to feed and one more wouldn’t make a difference
The priest: thanks to this simple act of compassion, I think I can keep my faith in man
The rain stops, and the woodcutter walks away with the child

20. Quick Story Comparison
Bandit (Tajomaru)
He tricked samurai
He tied him up
Wife yielded to him
She insisted they fight as a matter of honor
He accepted
He released samurai
They fought
He won in an honorable fight – killing him with the sword
The wife ran away
He left with the horse and bow

21. Quick Story Comparison
Bandit (Tajomaru)
He tricked samurai
He tied him up
Wife yielded to him
She insisted they fight as a matter of honor
He accepted
He released samurai
They fought
He won in an honorable fight – killing him with the sword
The wife ran away
He left with the horse and bow
Wife
Husband tied up
She was raped
Bandit mocked samurai and ran off
She felt pity for husband
Samurai was disgusted by his wife, and rejected her coldly
She untied him and offered him the dagger to kill her
Confused by his refusal to speak, she killed him instead with dagger

22. Quick Story Comparison
Bandit (Tajomaru)
He tricked samurai
He tied him up
Wife yielded to him
She insisted they fight as a matter of honor
He accepted
He released samurai
They fought
He won in an honorable fight – killing him with the sword
The wife ran away
He left with the horse and bow
Wife
Husband tied up
She was raped
Bandit mocked samurai and ran off
She felt pity for husband
Samurai was disgusted by his wife, and rejected her coldly
She untied him and offered him the dagger to kill her
Confused by his refusal to speak, she killed him instead with dagger
Dead man
Then she agreed to leave with the bandit
She insisted he kill her husband first
The bandit was disgusted by her words, and offered to kill her, but she fled
Bandit freed him
He wept
He killed himself with the dagger

23. Quick Story Comparison
Bandit (Tajomaru)
He tricked samurai
He tied him up
Wife yielded to him
She insisted they fight as a matter of honor
He accepted
He released samurai
They fought
He won in an honorable fight – killing him with the sword
The wife ran away
He left with the horse and bow
Wife
Husband tied up
She was raped
Bandit mocked samurai and ran off
She felt pity for husband
Samurai was disgusted by his wife, and rejected her coldly
She untied him and offered him the dagger to kill her
Confused by his refusal to speak, she killed him instead with dagger
Dead man
Then she agreed to leave with the bandit
She insisted he kill her husband first
The bandit was disgusted by her words, and offered to kill her, but she fled
Bandit freed him
He wept
He killed himself with the dagger
Woodcutter
Rape is implied
Bandit begs forgiveness of the wife and promises to change his ways if she’ll have him
She shames them into battle
They fight, but both are terrified, it is not an honorable fight
The bandit kills the samurai with his sword and then flees

24. Which Story is True? Are all of them lying?
Is only one telling the truth?
Or are they all telling what they believe to be the truth?
Can we explain the differences in terms of different assumptions and biases? Or is it selfishness and viciousness?
Is there any way to decide between these possibilities? Is there a way to decide between the different stories?

25. Similarities and Differences (Samurai and his Wife)
Samurai and Wife agree: she was raped, he was killed by a dagger
Samurai and Wife disagree: he killed himself, she killed him
Why do neither of them tell a story that involves the husband fighting Tajomaru and dying?
Why does he insist that he committed suicide and she insist that she killed him (but by accident)?

26. Similarities and Differences (Bandit and Woodcutter)
What do they have in common, that might account for their fundamental agreement on broad details? (there was a duel, Bandit won with his sword)
Why might they disagree on specifics? (not an honorable fight, they were both cowards, they fought only because they had been shamed and ridiculed by the wife)
What accounts for the fundamental differences between the stories of the two groups?