Thrown of Blood

The film Throne of Blood was the Japanese version of Shakespeares Macbeth. After doing some research, I have learned that the story is almost an exact match to Shakespeares original.
The movie is shot in black and white which makes the whole film feel darker and more downtrodden. The major theme of this movie is betrayal, with emphasis on its consequences. The affects spawned by these betrayals are'nt as much directly related, such as being caught in the act and punished, but more along the lines of “The Butterfly Effect” (The essence of chaos, “Sensitive dependence on initial conditions”, The flap of a butterfly's wing can cause a tsunami on the other side of the world .) For example, by betraying Snuggles the bear AKA Lord Tsuzuki, Washizu sets in motion his downward decent to first madness, then finally defeat.
Another theme is mysticism, as portrayed by the multiple cases of foreshadowing. These cases of foreshadowing are used to cast a sense of foreboding in the characters. The most notable case of this is the fortunes told by the which on two occasions, that sound in one way preposterous, but as the movie progresses are cleared up and slowly explained to make perfect sense. This aspect of the film is directly taken from the original story of Macbeth.
The black and white allowed the movie makers to do very interesting shots with fog and mist. It also made Spiders web Forest seem even more hopeless to navigate then mentioned. The ending scene in which Lord Washizu was killed, although rather long and repetitive, was good symbolism to how he was trapped with no escape. This was made visible by every escape route he attempted being blocked by a plethora of arrows. In the shot where Washizu sees the trees marching towards the castle, it is worth noting that the film is slowed down, making the trees sway slower, which gives them more life like movement as if they were really alive and walking.
Since almost all of the references are taken directly from Macbeth, the differences from the two pieces are scarce. The obvious difference is the cultural setting which switches from medevil Scotland to an Oriental structure with the necessary emphasis on honor. Kurosawa puts more meaning behind all of the symbols and events located in the story. The ghost for example, represented Washizu’s regret and guilt for sending the order to have Noriyasu and his son killed.
The film was created to share a masterpiece of Shakespeares with a different culture. The movie does a very nice job at it’s goal, and the major question of, “fate.” If you know your fate can you change it? Or does it only become your fate because you have already discovered it.