Something Like an Autobiography

Something like an autobiography, and something much more like a memoir, which is no bad thing. Kurosawa explains that he'd rather his work speak for him, but that in his old age, he's been persuaded to write about himself.

The first half of the book beautifully evokes the pre-war Japan of his childhood, his adventures with his friends, his brother and parents. Then, his 'bohemian' period as a struggling painter and writer, then his almost accidental entry into the movie industry. The later chapters revolve around his film-making and studio politics, but always involve the personal, rather than dry history. He ends with the production of his classic film, Rashomon, on 1950, saying he'd now written enough and he was losing interest in the show more memoir project. An honest (though he questions his own honesty), fascinating, and conversational account of a major figure of 20th century culture. show less

I'm not a huge film buff, but I do like "The Seven Samurai" and I know the influence this man had on George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. This autobiography does not extend beyond the release of Rashomon in 1950, although there are brief glimpses of moments beyond that up to 1983. The first half of the book is devoted to Kurosawa's childhood and education. Japan's culture is entirely foreign to my own but I could easily relate to early lessons learned about parents, siblings, bullies, teachers good and bad, self-confidence, success and failure, and the odd role that chance plays in one's life. Aimless in his youth, all of his varied artistic interests conspired to make him a powerful film director, a line of work he almost accidentally show more stumbled into.

Kurosawa's writing is informal and easy, and the material is well organized. He's very honest in his self-assessment, presenting a three-dimensional self portrait that acknowledges weaknesses; he even proposes what his blind spots might be, urging the reader to take these into account. I wasn't as taken up by the second half which mentioned only highlights of his experiences while making his first several films, and centered more on the people he worked with and circumstances he faced than his personal development. Its best aspect was the insight into Japanese film industry and how that contrasts with the Hollywood experience. This portion would be of more interest to film buffs. It wasn't enough to make me start looking for his early works, but I'll keep this biography as a handy reference for trivia if I ever track them down in future. show less

Un texto excelente en el que Kurosawa hace un repaso a su vida y a su obra. Este libro nos deja un testimonio de la evolución de Japón entre 1910 y 1950 (Año que elige para finalizar el libro con el éxito de Rashomon) y a la vez habla de sus influencias tanto artísticas como vitales. Es una historia que fluye con rapidez y Kurosawa nos describe acontecimientos y personajes como el narrador nato que era. Por otra parte, no cuesta mucho darse cuenta de que muchos temas de sus películas están tomados de su propia vida (Por ejemplo, su choque con la burocracia censora no deja de recordar al comienzo de Vivir (Ikiru, 1952)

Muy recomendable.

Great self-portrait of the early days of one of my favorite movie directors, who made The Seven Samurai, my favorite film. Very interesting.

Kurosawa tells about his memories as child till his earliest years as a filmmaker.
The appendix "Some Random Notes on Filmmaking" was the cherry on top.

molto più di un libro di memorie di un regista cinematografico. Il racconto dell'infanzia e le osservazioni acute sulla storia e lo spirito del Giappone ne fanno una testimonianza storica preziosa, del periodo che ha visto il Giappone passare dal militarismo al conformismo "americanizzato" del secondo dopoguerra. La traduzione dall'inglese probabilmente non rende giustizia a molte sfumature di senso e di stile. Le parti aggiunte da Aldo Tassone aiutano a capire quanto sia ancora poco compreso, in Italia, questo "imperatore" del cinema.