Ikiru (1952) Cultural Impact and Prevalence in Modern Culture

Akira Kurosawa’s Ikiru (1952) takes everything we know about classic Japanese “westerns” and flips it on it’s head. This film is brave enough to tackle big subjects such as the basic rights, terminal illness, and human nature. When we think of Kurosawa’s spectacular works Ikiru is overshadowed by his samurai films. The message that Ikiru delivers is what makes it a marvel that transcends time.

Ikiru is a contemporary film, taking place in Japan during the 1950s. The story follows the mundane life of government worker Kanji Watanabe (played by Takashi Shimura). Contrary to popular eastern films of the 50s, Watanabe isn’t a samurai, ninja, or karate master. The inciting incident that kicks off the drama is Watanabe discovering his stomach cancer. The doctor discloses that he has one year to live. From there he goes on a journey and rediscovers his will to live, or as they say in Japanese: ikiru. This film retains its status as a classic film despite its vast differences from other East Asain films.

Kurosawa on the set of Seven Samurai (1954)

Amanda Weiss once said that the most popular Japanese films are exclusively about “masculine combat.” (Weiss, 165) Contemporary japanese films make it to American theatres. Protagonists in combat films are the spitting image of “masculinity and nationalism,” contrary to Ikiru (Weiss, 172-173). Mitsuhiro Yoshimoto describes Watanabe as “feminine” (Yoshimoto, 201). The actor who plays Kanji Watanabe is famously known for portraying one of these masculine characters in Kurosawa’s Rashomon (1950). Both actor and director are able to work hand in hand to create a psychological film despite their action packed resumes.

Kurosawa was highly inspired by Sadao Yamanaka’s work. Yamanaka was known for inserting psychology into his films. He is best known for A Pot Worth a Million Ryo (1935) and Humanity and Paper Balloons (1937) (Tompson, 227). Kurosawa also had an affinity for French avant-garde and German expressionism (Kurosawa, 84). We see German influences the scenery of the film. Although Ikiru is not fantasy, the swing set scene crosses into surrealism. Watanabe begins swinging in the dead of winter as he sings “Life is Brief.” The white snow up against the black sky shares sharp color contrast similar to Nosferatu (1922). The use of snow alludes to nature’s death as Watanabe prepares for his “next season.” The scene starts on a shot of the jungle gym’s bars, which simulates his feeling of entrapment, like a jail cell. The camera then tracks away from the bars. As the frame carries on, so does Watanabe. He is free to swing to his heart's content and live out the rest of his life. Another amazingly directed scene is in the restaurant. In the foreground Watanabe and his friend Toyo talk about his cancer while a birthday party is taking place in the background. The ironic juxtaposition in this scene is brilliant. One group celebrates the continuation of life, while Watanabe mourns impending doom.

“We expect Watanabe to die toward the end of the film” but instead he passes away two thirds into the film (Yoshimoto, 204). The film carries on without the protagonist at his wake. Mitsuhiro Yoshimoto says it best: “death, in the end, comes unexpectedly for everyone,” (Yoshimoto, 204). Catching the audience off guard is the perfect way to portray this theme.

The film also presents a brilliant commentary on human nature. During his time working in government Watanabe and his coworkers meekly help citizens, if at all. As Watanabe begins shedding his shell, he decides to break the mold in secret and help a lower class community build a park. When Watanabe’s co-workers discover that he went out of his way to help, they all promise to change their ways. The next day at work a citizen comes in for help. Even though they all swore to help, none of them actually do. As cynical as this commentary is, it speaks volumes; tragic moments don’t instill change in a person and the government is cut from the same cloth. This film was made soon after World War II as Japan was rebuilding. Many people did not trust the Allied controlled government and this film is a reflection of that feeling. Citizen vs. government is an ongoing battle.

“The film presents this story in a complex narrative structure” to uncover human nature (Yoshimoto, 194). Ikiru is a timeless film that empowers us all to do the right thing despite dire circumstances. We can all learn how to live from this film.

Works Cited

Cowie, Peter. Akira Kurosawa: Master of Cinema. New York: Rizzoli, 2010. Print.

Ikiru. The Criterion Collection, 1952. DVD.

Kurosawa, Akira, and Bert Cardullo. Akira Kurosawa: Interviews. Jackson: U of Mississippi, 2008. Print.

Richie, Donald. The Films of Akira Kurosawa,. Berkeley: U of California, 1998. Print.

Thompson, Kristin, and David Bordwell. Film History: An Introduction. 3rd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010. Print.

Weiss, Amanda. "New Masculinities In Chinese And Japanese Combat Films." Asian Cinema 25.2 (2014): 165-182. Film & Television Literature Index with Full Text. Web. 11 Apr. 2015.

Yoshimoto, Mitsuhiro. Kurosawa: Film Studies and Japanese Cinema. Durham, NC: Duke UP, 2000. Print.