Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		3.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		3.5

Ran Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov April 30, 2016

Akira Kurosawa's legendary "Ran" (1985) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal. The supplemental features on the release include new restoration featurette; new interview with cinematographer Shoji Ueda; the documentary film "Akira Kurosawa: The Epic and the Intimate"; Chris Marker's documentary film "AK"; and more. In Japanese, with optional English, French, or German subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

The great Lord Hidetora (Tatsuya Nakadai, Kagemusha) announces that he has decided to step down and let his three sons -- Taro (Akira TeraoDreams), Jiro (Jinpachi Nezu, Farewell to the Land and Saburo (Daisuke Ryu, Lake of Illusions) -- take over his land. Taro, the eldest one, would inherit Lord Hidetora's biggest castle and become the leader of the Ichimonji clan, while Jiro and Saburo would support him. In return, Lord Hidetora asks that his sons allow him to spend the rest of his days with them.

Saburo openly criticizes his father’s decision and urges him to reconsider it. He believes that it is unfair, and that eventually it will force his brothers to confront each other. Angered by Saburo’s criticism, Lord Hidetora banishes his youngest son and vows to never see him again. Taro and Jiro reluctantly accept his decision.

Lord Hidetora arrives at Taro's castle hoping to forget about his altercation with Saburo, but is soon faced with a new dilemma -- after he foolishly kills one of Taro's guards, he is asked to renounce his title. Enraged, Lord Hidetora heads to Jiro's castle, where Jiro and his most trusted man, Kurogane (Hisashi Igawa, Rhapsody in August), are plotting to kill Taro and take over the Ichimonji clan. When Lord Hidetora learns about Jiro's plan, he loses his mind.

Ran is not a perfect film, though it is often regarded as such. It is beautifully made and incredibly well acted but also notably episodic, resembling a giant panorama of moving pictures united by a common theme. It is also a uniquely personal film -- Kurosawa shot it at the age of 75, after years of preparation -- one that many film scholars believe reflects a variety of issues the Japanese director struggled with during the course of his life.

It is based on William Shakespeare's King Lear, but also incorporates elements of traditional Japanese samurai stories. Unsurprisingly, large portions of it feel like an elaborate theater play with an emphasis on detail that is often mind-bogging. The film also has an exceptionally complex narrative structure that demands utmost concentration from its viewers.

In one of the supplemental features offered on this Blu-ray disc, Vittorio Dalleore, trainee assistant on Ran and Kurosawa's assistant on Dreams, recalls how incredibly demanding and specific the Japanese director was in terms of how he wanted certain parts of Ran to look like. Quite a few of the massive battles, for example, were shot at locations that were hundreds of kilometers apart from each other (Kurosawa was also one of the first directors to use several cameras at once).

An integral component of Ran is Toru Takemitsu's music score. In a way, the music is very much like a real character -- it has a pulse of its own and its harmonic identity constantly. Some of the most memorable scenes in Ran, for example, would have not been as effective as they are without those soaring, incredibly moving flute solos.

In 1986, Ran won an Academy Award for Best Costume Design (Emi Wada) as well as Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Picture.

Note: I would like to encourage those of you who are about to see Ran for the first time to pay close attention to the dialog. While the film's visuals are indeed mesmerizing, the poetic beauty of the dialog is far more fulfilling.

Ran Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Akira Kurosawa's Ran arrives on Blu- ray courtesy of StudioCanal.

The release is sourced from a new 4K restoration of the film carried out by French laboratory Éclair, under StudioCanal's supervision. The majority of the restoration work was done manually, frame by frame, with the film's Director of Photography, Mr. Shoji Ueda, approving the color grading.

Density is dramatically improved and as a result fluidity is much better. The harshness and artificial sharpness that plague StudioCanal's previous release of Ran have been eliminated as well. The high-quality scan has also ensured that the grain is evenly distributed and appears much better resolved. Unfortunately, the new color grading has produced various anomalies. For example, there are many sequences where the blacks appear unnaturally elevated and actually introduce very awkward flatness that creates the impression that some sort of a filter has been applied. (Exactly the same anomalies are present on the equally underwhelming 4K restoration of King Hu's Dragon Inn). Shadow definition, in particular, can be quite problematic, and in some cases background depth is completely eliminated (see the effect in screencaptures #16, 17, and 20). The same anomalies can be observed even during the daylight footage (see screencaptures #7 and 18). There is an obvious shift towards warmer primary colors, with light blues, greens, and grays basically overwhelming entire ranges of nuances. As a result, even though there are some improvements in terms of color saturation and vividness, balance is quite unconvincing and parts of the film that used to look cold and gloomy now appear suspiciously warm and desaturated. (See the comparisons provided by StudioCanal in the restoration featurette in screencaotures #24, 25, 26, 27, and 28). Overall image stability is outstanding. Debris, damage marks, scratches, and other age-related imperfections have been removed as best as possible.

The disc's main menu can be set in English, French, or German. Therefore, I assume that StudioCanal's British and German releases of Ran are identical.

Ran Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are five standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, and German DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English, French, and German subtitles are provided for the main feature.

I viewed the new restoration with the Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. Depth and clarity are excellent. I assume that some specific optimizations have been performed because the mid- and high-frequencies are much better defined now. This becomes quite obvious before and during the mass action sequences, as well as during sequences where the minimalistic period score has an important role. The dialog is clear, stable, and always easy to follow. There are no pops, audio dropouts, or digital distortions to report.

Ran Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

NOTE: The main menu of the second disc can be set in English, French, or German. Once the main menu is set in the preferred language, different subtitling options are available.

BLU-RAY DISC ONE

• Ran: The Restoration - this new featurette highlights some of the unique challenges the restoration team was presented with during the initial digitization of Ran and later during the actual restoration work. Included in it are clips from interviews with restoration specialists Charlotte Quemy, Ronald Boullet, Christian Dutac, and cinematographer Shoji Ueda. In French, with optional English subtitles. (9 min).

BLU-RAY DISC TWO

• AK - a French documentary feature by director Chris Marker focusing on the production history of Ran. In French and Japanese, with imposed English subtitles. (72 min).

• Akira Kurosawa: The Epic and the Intimate - a French documentary feature exploring the Japanese director's rich legacy. In French and Japanese, with imposed English subtitles.(42 min).

• Akira Kurosawa by Catherine Cadou - Japanese cinema expert and translator Catherine Cadou recalls her encounter with Akira Kurosawa at the premiere of Ran at the Cannes Film Festival. In French, with imposed English subtitles. (15 min).

• Art of the Samurai - renowned French specialist on Japan's ancient warfare art Jean-Christophe Charbonnier talks about the weapons and costumes used in Ran, samurai art and rituals, etc. In French, with imposed English subtitles. (42 min).

• Interview with the Director of Photography -- Mr. Ueda - Mr. Ueda discusses Akira Kurosawa's working methods and some of his specific shooting/stylistic preferences. The interview was conducted after the recent restoration of Ran. In Japanese, with imposed English subtitles. (11 min).

• Interview with Ms. Mieko Harada - actress Mieko Harada recalls how she was approached to play Lady Kaede and discusses her work during the shooting of Ran. In Japanese, with imposed English subtitles. (21 min).

• Michael Brooke - critic Michael Brooke discusses Akira Kurosawa's career and Ran and its production history. In English, not subtitled. (17 min).

• Festival Footage - presented here is footage from the Q&A session with actors Tatsuya Nakadai and Mieko Harada, costume designer Emi Wada, production manager Teruyo Nogami, and assistant director Vittorio Dalle Ore, which was held after the premiere of the 4K restoration of Ran at the Tokyo International Film Festival in 2015. In Japanese, with imposed English subtitles. (15 min).

• Art of the Samurai - a fascinating documentary on Samurai art, Samurai rituals, and the history of Samurai culture. In English. (53 min).

Ran Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There is a very interesting new featurette on the Blu-ray release with comments from cinematographer Shoji Ueda and various specialists that worked on the new 4K restoration of Ran that make it quite clear that they all wanted to preserve the film's original period look. Oddly, the final result is very perplexing. The film now has a distinctive modern appearance that does not support the rich and vivid colors Akira Kurosawa favored, and I personally find it quite unconvincing. On the other hand, the old Blu-ray release is even more frustrating because there are all sorts of serious digital anomalies on the master that was used to produce it.