Ran

Kurosawa’s late masterpiece adapts Shakespeare’s King Lear as a thrilling tale set in feudal Japan.

Drawing heavily on Shakespeare's King Lear and legends surrounding the 16th-century feudal lord Môri Motonari, Kurosawa took inspiration from the success of Kagemusha to broaden his canvass. Like Throne of Blood, at its heart Ran is a tale of family strife. But in its execution, particularly the stunning exterior sequences and its use of colour - as audacious as Teinosuke Kinugasa's 1953 classic Gate of Hell - the film plays out on an epic scale.

Programme Type: Film

Director: Akira Kurosawa

Cast: Tatsuya Nakadao, Akira Terao, Jimpachi Nezu

Certificate: 15

Running Time: 160 minutes