A Long Time Ago..In A Film Far, Far Away...

For those of you who are a fan of the Star Wars trilogy and all things George Lucas, prepare to digest some points in this coming review that will not go down smoothly. Lucas states that, "This film is the inspiration for the original Star Wars." If this film is the inspiration for his first "space opera", then I guess rap artists are just "sampling" other bits of music. Buckle your safety belts, kids, and prepare yourself for a long, warp filled drive to dissect these two films. I'm about to get medieval on Lucas' @ss, Japanese style.

But first, let's discuss the film, without tainting it by my Lucas bashing, which is most certainly on the way. "The Hidden Fortress", directed by renowned legend Akira Kurosawa, is a brilliantly sweeping epic set in the war torn states of feudal Japan. Filled with humor and dazzling action sequences, that make Kurosawa's style so appealing, prepare for a ride that actually has purpose.

The story begins as two lowly farm peasants wander through the desert in utter rags. The two had been digging graves for their fallen comrades, after a battle that saw their clan utterly annihilated. They're weak, distraught fortune hunters, who had the misfortune of backing the wrong horse and are now trudging their way back to the village they call home. The two are then quickly discovered by marauding enemy troops, whereupon they are captured and sent to a nearby prison camp for slave labor. After arriving at the camp, the two are found knee-deep in a violent prison riot and subsequent jailbreak. They cling to one another for support and eventually find freedom to set them back on their course.

After traveling for a bit, the two fumbling baboons find by happenstance, a gold bar hidden within a stick of kindling. Their joy is overwhelming, as they begin a frantic search for more gold to compensate the loss of the defeat and hopefully give them the fortune from which they had sought. Played by Minoru Chiaki and Katamari Fujiwara (both of whom were in Kurosawa's classic, "Seven Samurai"), the two give these peasants a befuddled angst and hapless rage that is unlike anything I've seen. Their humor and wit is bottled up in complete disgust for the other, yet they share a bond that seems strangely unbreakable (sound familiar?).

It is after searching for other sticks of gold, that the two bumbling peasants come across the lurking figure of a would-be bandit, played by Japan's finest, Toshiro Mifune. The stranger is a menacing figure, whose presence unsettles the two from the start, as they flee his advance in the hope that he will simply let them be. However, the stranger appears later in the night and much to the peasant's chagrin, is wise to their planned treasure hunting. The supposed bandit strikes up a partnership with the peasants, from which to smuggle the gold across the hostile border of enemy troops and into the hands of a neighboring ally.

From here, the ole' adventure ball is well and truly sent rolling. The men hike to a nearby mountain, where they are led to a hidden fortress (thus, the title) and find to their surprise, the stranger quite at home. It seems he has been there before, considering his knowledge of the various passageways that link the fortress to the outside world.

Upon arriving to the fortress, the viewer and the two peasants, are introduced to a mysterious girl perched atop a cliff in the distance. The girl in question, happens to be the exiled Princess Yuki of the vanquished clan Akizuki. Played by Misa Uehara, this princess is on the lamb and desperate to flee the Yamana clan's lurking clutches. We then learn that the strange bandit with the steely gaze and powerful stride, is none other than Gen. Rokurota Makabe. The General's job is to guard the princess and guide her across the border with the gold bearing wood in toe.

From here, the story begins pumping and churning, as the party eventually sets out to cross this border, all the while alluding their chomping adversaries. The story is enthralling and every bit as suspenseful as previous Kurosawa films up to this time. Akira has an intuitive sense of story telling and his cinematic style will enrapture even the most hardened American movie-goer. I've gone into great depth here, regarding the plot, because I'm not worried about giving away the ending. As you will learn later, if you've seen "Star Wars", you've pretty much seen "The Hidden Fortress". This doesn't mean, however, that you shouldn't view the film after reading this review. Trust me here, this is the original.."Star Wars" is the forge.

Credit should also be given to Kurosawa for his work in editing this film. There are points where he tends to drift a little long in his pandering and obsessive effort for detail. However, hanging in and not giving up, is very much worth it on the whole. When you find things lagging, just remember that there is plenty of action still to come.

The music, by Masaru Sato, is poignant and thundering, every bit the modern action score. The cinematography of this film, by Yamasaki and Yamazeki, is purposeful and incredibly beautiful, despite being in black and white. I say despite, because even though this film is wonderful in its' original Tohoscope format, you do get the sense that Kurosawa is so far ahead of his time, it seems tragic that he wasn't able to express himself in technicolor. How even more incredible his early work might have been, we'll never know.

Well, now that I've wrapped up the film review itself, its' time to start sharpening the knives and cutting our friend George up in little pieces. The other reviewers for this film here at Epinions have written the obvious similarities between this film and the original "Star Wars" vehicle. However, they did miss a few glaring points, that in my mind make this film more of a rip-off, than an inspiration.

First, we start with the peasants. Tahei and Matakishi are the original C3PO and R2D2. They observe the same splattering of discord that the two robots enjoy, but on a much more frantic and pathetic level.

General Rokurota Makabe is basically a younger, more virile Obi-Wan Kenobe, packing much more proverbial punch than Alec Guinness ever could. His presence is overwhelming and will literally effect you through the screen of whatever projector/television you might be viewing.

Princess Yuki is obviously Princess Leia. If you thought Leia had spunk and moxy, prepare yourself for this little fireball. She makes Carrie Fisher look like Zsa Zsa Gabor..darling.

Finally, we come to the hideous plot points. The brilliance and flair that Kurosawa brings to this piece, only helps stoke the fire of de-constructive criticism that I have for the man that is George Lucas.

To start, the beginning of the film is eerily reminiscent of "Star Wars". The two unlucky wandering servants are meandering through the desert, before eventually being captured by the enemy. When you're watching these opening sequences, note the single stroke musical chords that lay as a backdrop to each scene. They are almost identical to R2D2's early expedition through the rocky, Jawa-infested ravine.

Next, there is the pathetic parallels deduced from the actual voyages that ensue in each film. In the same way that Kurosawa's characters must cross the border to their allied party, so to does the Rebellious gang need to reach solace on Alderon. The fact that Lucas uses the same slide-cut scene change effect during the film, is also another example of style-stealing shamefulness.

There is also the fight scene parallel that is almost too mocking to be considered a simple inspiration. Gen. Makabe's duel with Gen. Tadokoro is very similar to the Darth Vader, Obi-Wan light sabre duel, though the outcomes are very different. They both have circumstances flowing all around them, yet are trapped inside their own little fighting spheres. Kurosawa's depiction is much more realistic, considering the traditions of feudal Japanese warfare. Lucas' take, just seems pawned and much too similar to be considered yet another "inspiration".

Finally, there is the closing scene. Minus the royal guard and Chewbacca, you have all the same players. Both sets of main characters are dressed to the nines and the lowly peasants are cleaned up and given a modest reward in a royal receiving area. What is more insulting, is the fact that the original representation of the scene by Kurosawa, is poorly construed by Mr. Lucas. If he was going to rip off vast chunks of Akira's work, he should have at least had the decency to follow through and not change too much!

Which brings us to the finale of this long and arduous review. George Lucas actually has the gall to come out and politically side-step the fact that he "draws" from this wonderfully cinematic achievement. He does so in a one-sided interview-like discussion on the Criterion Collection's DVD* release, that is as insulting as anything I've ever watched. He goes into some Freudian-like discussion regarding the theory that all derisive plots can be broken up into 32 stories. However, he then back-tracks by saying that he doesn't really agree with this stance and feels that all stories are intuitively different. What it really comes down to is sly double-talk, meant to mask the fact that he completely ripped off the entire story from this film, when making the original "Star Wars".

I understand that Lucas was a big supporter and friend of Kurosawa during Akira's dark days in the 1970's. It strikes me funny, however, that he only comes out and publicly talks about these similarities, three years after Kurosawa's death. My feeling is, he probably puckered Akira-san's rump for years, telling him how much he had remade this film, then turns around after his death to try and pull back from this private and true stance, in order to make himself seem all that more insightful and honest. The man is without credit and has made billions marketing a story that was never, ever his. The fact that every Star Wars film, since the original, has decreased in quality, only further enhances my feelings that Lucas has sucked every last drop of "inspiration" he can from Akira. Shameful stuff, indeed.

In closing, please watch this masterful and poetic action-adventure. Put simply, Akira Kurosawa has more intelligence and creativity in his eyelashes, than Lucas has in his entire flabby mold. Kurosawa is a cinematic genius. Lucas is a marketing genius. End of story.

(*Footnote: Aside from the wonderful restoration work that Criterion puts in, the DVD also allows you the added bonus of listening to this film in its' original Perspect-A-Sound format. Basically, Perspect-A-Sound is a three bass frequency set over a mono soundtrack, to give you the effect of movement through three separate front speakers. Just imagine an early surround sound for the 1950's.)

(Sidenote: For those of you have been reading my recent work and wondering where the movie reviews have gone, I'm happy to announce I'm back on the path. I figured since I've been away from my beloved film for so long, it was best to come back with six guns a blazin'. Hope you enjoyed reading this, as much as I enjoyed writing it. This is my first piece in a series of reviews I'll be writing, regarding "Under-rated Masterpieces". Do come again.)

"Ahh..", (wiping brow), "who's ready for some sake?"