Ikimono no kiroku - Kurosawa, 1955

It's not hard to make an argument that Akira Kurosawa was Japan's greatest writer/director. He established an international reputation with Rashomon (10) and sustained it through many years with films like Ikiru (8), Yojimbo (8), Tsubaki Sanjuro (7), and Dersu Uzala (8). This film, whose English title is "I live in Fear" (although a closer English translation of the Japanese title would be "Record of a Living Being", is lesser known but quite interesting for a few reasons.

First off, this movie shows off a stunning performance by Toshiru Mifune, an actor whose best roles came under Kurosawa. Here, at age 35, he convincingly plays a stubborn old (using very little makeup!) man who has a somewhat paranoid fear of nuclear holocaust. And that subject is the next most interesting aspect here. After all, this is Japan in the 1950s, so everyone is at least a bit fearful of nuclear bombs. So when Mifune's character decides to build a bomb shelter and then move his embittered family to Brazil, it's not too hard to empathize with him.

The story revolves around his family's efforts to oppose his move, and is often shown through the point of view of one of the mediators of their legal dispute, a dentist played by another Kurosawa stalwart, Takashi Shimura. Shimura's character becomes increasingly drawn into the dispute. The idea here is that nuclear bombs are so horrific that the more you think about them, the more fearful you become of them, and that is what happens to both Mifune's and Shimura's characters. And as the film ultimately suggests, what if Mifune's character is correct in thinking that a bomb is right around the corner?

Aside from the nuclear fear theme, this is a story about family disputes. Mifune's character wants to bring not only his immediate family, but also his two mistresses and illegitimate children along to Brazil, but meets opposition from just about all. They legally block him from selling the family factory on grounds of insanity, thus necessitating the mediation. The film starkly shows this family's conflicts and greed.

A thought provoking 7 rating.