Rashomon

Another innovative Japanese movie from Akira Kurusawa, the first to introduce the concept of flashbacks from multiple points of view. This concept has subsequently been used in numerous movies, ranging from The Usual Suspects to the kids’ movie Hoodwinked. A nice touch is to use the effect of torrential rain to distinguish between the time in which the story is told and the time in which it actually takes place. I found the heightened aspect of the acting a bit off-putting, but otherwise it’s enjoyable and quite thought-provoking. Kurusawa wrote in his biography that: “ "Human beings are unable to be honest with themselves about themselves. They cannot talk about themselves without embellishing." That essentially is the central theme here.