Throne of Blood (蜘蛛巣城, Kumonosu-jō, literally "Spider Web Castle") is a 1957 film directed by Akira Kurosawa, which transposes the plot of William Shakespeare's play Macbeth to feudal Japan. It is regarded as one of Kurosawa's best films, and by many critics as one of the best film adaptations of Macbeth, despite having almost none of the play's script.
Kurosawa follows the events of Macbeth, although Kurosawa’s Washizu Taketoki (played by Toshir...
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Throne of Blood (蜘蛛巣城, Kumonosu-jō, literally "Spider Web Castle") is a 1957 film directed by Akira Kurosawa, which transposes the plot of William Shakespeare's play Macbeth to feudal Japan. It is regarded as one of Kurosawa's best films, and by many critics as one of the best film adaptations of Macbeth, despite having almost none of the play's script.
Kurosawa follows the events of Macbeth, although Kurosawa’s Washizu Taketoki (played by Toshirō Mifune) is arguably less evil than Macbeth. As with the play, the main character's comrade (General Miki, played by Minoru Chiaki) is killed when he is perceived as a threat to the throne, only to return as a ghost. There is no Macduff character in this picture; hence Washizu does not meet his end in a duel. Instead, he is shot by his own archers and stumbles forward like a porcupine before being shot in the neck. He slowly descends the stairs and dies, collapsing dramatically on the fog-soaked ground.
The castle exteriors were built and...
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