List of works by Akira Kurosawa

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The following is a list of works, both in film and other media, for which the Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa made some documented creative contribution. This includes a complete list of films with which he was involved (including the films on which he worked as assistant director before becoming a full director), as well as his little-known contributions to theater, television and literature.

Contents

Filmography

As director

All the following are Japanese productions unless otherwise specified.

YearEnglish titleJapanese titleRomanized title
1943 Sanshiro Sugata [lower-alpha 1] 姿三四郎Sugata Sanshirō
1944 The Most Beautiful 一番美しくIchiban utsukushiku
1945 Sanshiro Sugata Part II [lower-alpha 2] 續姿三四郎Zoku Sugata Sanshirō
The Men Who Tread on the Tiger's Tail 虎の尾を踏む男達Tora no o wo fumu otokotachi
1946 No Regrets for Our Youth わが青春に悔なしWaga seishun ni kuinashi
Those Who Make Tomorrow [lower-alpha 3] 明日を創る人々Asu o tsukuru hitobito
1947 One Wonderful Sunday 素晴らしき日曜日Subarashiki nichiyōbi
1948 Drunken Angel 酔いどれ天使Yoidore tenshi
1949 The Quiet Duel 静かなる決闘Shizukanaru kettō
Stray Dog 野良犬Nora inu
1950 Scandal 醜聞Sukyandaru (Shūbun)
Rashomon 羅生門Rashōmon
1951 The Idiot 白痴Hakuchi
1952 Ikiru 生きる [lower-alpha 4] Ikiru
1954 Seven Samurai 七人の侍Shichinin no samurai
1955 I Live in Fear 生きものの記録 [lower-alpha 5] Ikimono no kiroku
1957 Throne of Blood 蜘蛛巣城 [lower-alpha 6] Kumonosu-jō
The Lower Depths どん底Donzoko
1958 The Hidden Fortress 隠し砦の三悪人Kakushi toride no san akunin
1960 The Bad Sleep Well 悪い奴ほどよく眠る [lower-alpha 7] Warui yatsu hodo yoku nemuru
1961 Yojimbo 用心棒 [lower-alpha 8] Yōjinbō
1962 Sanjurō 椿三十郎Tsubaki Sanjūrō
1963 High and Low 天国と地獄 [lower-alpha 9] Tengoku to jigoku
1965 Red Beard 赤ひげAkahige
1970 Dodes'ka-den どですかでん [lower-alpha 10] Dodesukaden
1975 Dersu Uzala [lower-alpha 11] デルス・ウザーラDerusu Uzāra
1980 Kagemusha 影武者 [lower-alpha 12] Kagemusha
1985 Ran [lower-alpha 13] [lower-alpha 14] Ran
1990 Dreams [lower-alpha 15] Yume
1991 Rhapsody in August 八月の狂詩曲Hachigatsu no rapusodī (Hachigatsu no kyōshikyoku)
1993 Madadayo まあだだよ [lower-alpha 16] Mādadayo
  1. Alternatively known as Judo Saga.
  2. Alternatively known as Judo Saga 2.
  3. Co-directed with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajirō Yamamoto.
  4. Translated literally as To Live.
  5. Translated literally as Record of a Living Being.
  6. Translated literally as Spider Web Castle.
  7. Translated literally as The Worse a Person is, the Better They Sleep.
  8. Translated literally as Bodyguard.
  9. Translated literally as Heaven and Hell.
  10. Japanese onomatopoeia for "clickety-clack".
  11. Russian–Japanese co-production between Daiei Film and Mosfilm.
  12. Translated literally as Shadow Warrior.
  13. French–Japanese co-production.
  14. Translated literally as Chaos.
  15. Also known as Akira Kurosawa's Dreams.
  16. Translated literally as Not Yet.

A documentary film about the Noh theater, Gendai no No (Modern Noh), which was begun by the director during a break in the shooting of Ran, but was abandoned after about fifty minutes were filmed, is being completed according to Kurosawa's script and notes. [1] [2] [ needs update ]

As producer

Note: Data for the remainder of this filmography is derived primarily from the complete filmography created by Kurosawa's biographer, Stuart Galbraith IV, [3] supplemented by IMDb's Kurosawa page. [4]

For the following films that Kurosawa directed, he also received a production credit:

In addition, Kurosawa received a production credit on one film that he himself did not direct: Haru no tawamure (1949) (Spring Flirtation), written and directed by Kajiro Yamamoto, on which he served as an associate producer.

As screenwriter

Kurosawa wrote or co-wrote the screenplays for all the films he himself directed. However, to supplement his income, he also wrote scripts for other Japanese directors throughout the 1940s, and even through the 1950s and part of the 1960s, long after he had become world-famous. He also worked on the scripts for two Hollywood productions he was slated to direct, but which, for complex reasons, were completed by and credited to other directors (although he reportedly did shoot some scenes for Tora tora tora!, the footage from which has apparently not survived). Finally, near the end of his life, he completed scripts he intended to direct but did not live to make, which were then filmed by others. A table of all these screenplays is given below; all titles are Japanese productions unless otherwise noted.

YearOriginal TitleEnglish Title
(International Release Title)
Director(s)Screenplay Collaborator(s)
1941 Uma Horse Kajirō Yamamoto Kajirō Yamamoto
1942Seishun no kiryūWind Currents of YouthShū FushimizuNone
Tsubasa no gaikaThe Triumphant Song of the Wings Satsuo Yamamoto Bonhei Sotoyama
1944DohyōmatsuriWrestling-Ring FestivalSantaro MaruneNone
1945Tenbare Isshin tasukeBravo! Tenbare IsshinKiyoshi SaekiNone
1947Yotsu no koi no monogatari (dai ichi-wa Hatsukoi)Four Love Stories (segment First Love) Shirō Toyoda None
Ginrei no hate To the End of the Snow-Capped
Mountains
(Snow Trail)
Senkichi Taniguchi Senkichi Taniguchi
1948ShōzōThe Portrait Keisuke Kinoshita None
1949 Jigoku no kifujin Lady from Hell Motoyoshi Oda Motosake Nishikame
Jyakoman to TetsuJakoman and TetsuSenkichi TaniguchiSenkichi Taniguchi
1950 Akatsuki no dassō Escape at DawnSenkichi TaniguchiSenkichi Taniguchi
Jiruba no TetsuTetsu of Jilba Isamu Kosugi Goro Tanada
Tateshi danpeiFencing Master Masahiro Makino None
1951Ai to nikushimi no kanata eBeyond Love and HateSenkichi TaniguchiSenkichi Taniguchi
Kedamono no yadoThe Den of BeastsTatsuyasu OsoneNone
1952 Araki Mataemon: Kettô kagiya no tsuji Mataemon Araki – Duel at Keymakers' Corner
(Vendetta for a Samurai)
Kazuo Mori None
Sengoku burai Vagabonds in a Country at War
(Sword for Hire)
Hiroshi Inagaki Hiroshi Inagaki
1953Fukeyo harukazeBlow! Spring Wind
(My Wonderful Yellow Car)
Senkichi TaniguchiSenkichi Taniguchi
1955Kieta chūtaiVanished Enlisted ManAkira MimuraRyuzo Kikushima
Asunaro monogatariHiba Arborvitae Story
(Tomorrow I'll Be a Fire Tree)
Hiromichi HorikawaNone
1957Nichiro sensō shōno hishi -
Tekichū ōdan sanbyaku ri
Three Hundred Miles Through Enemy Lines
(Advance Patrol)
Kazuo MoriHideo Oguni [note 1]
1959Sengoku guntō-denThe Story of Robbers of the Civil Wars
(Saga of the Vagabonds)
Toshio Sugie None
1962Tateshi danpei [note 2] Fencing MasterHarumi MizuhoNone
1964Jyakoman to Tetsu [note 3] Jakoman and Tetsu Kinji Fukasaku Senkichi Taniguchi
1965Sugata Sanshirō [note 4] Sanshirō SugataSei-ichirō UchikawaNone
1970Tora tora tora! (USA) Tora! Tora! Tora!
(uncredited) [note 5] [5]
Richard Fleischer, Toshio Masuda and Kinji FukasakuJapanese sequences:
Hideo Oguni and Ryuzo Kikushima;
American sequences:
Larry Forrester
1985Runaway Train (USA) Runaway Train
(uncredited) [note 6] [6]
Andrei Konchalovsky Djordje Milicevic, Paul Zindel
and Edward Bunker
(based on the script by
AK, Hideo Oguni and Ryuzo Kikushima)
2000Ame Agaru [note 7] After the Rain Takashi Koizumi None
Dora-heita Alley Cat Kon Ichikawa Kon Ichikawa, Keisuke Kinoshita
and Masaki Kobayashi
("The Club of the Four Knights") [note 8] [7]
2002Umi wa miteita [note 9] The Sea Was Watching
(The Sea Is Watching)
Kei Kumai None

In addition, Kurosawa wrote the following unproduced scripts, composed during the pre-war period in the 1930s and also the wartime period in the 1940s, either when he was still an assistant director or had just graduated to full director. Some of these won prizes in screenwriting contests, establishing his reputation as a promising talent even though they were never filmed. [8]

As assistant director

YearRomanization of Japanese TitleEnglish TitleDirectorKurosawa's Credit
1936
Shojo HanazonoParadise of the Virgin FlowersShigeo YaguraThird Assistant Director
Enoken no senman chōjaEnoken's Ten Million (The Millionaire
or Enoken the Millionaire)
Kajirō Yamamoto Third Assistant Director
Zoku Enoken no senman chōjaEnoken's Ten Million SequelKajirō YamamotoThird Assistant Director
Tōkyō rapusodiTokyo RhapsodyShū FushimizuThird Assistant Director
1937
Sengoku guntō-den Dai ichibu Tora-ōkami
(Sengoku guntō-den Zenpen Tora-ōkami)
Saga of the Vagabonds Part One: Tiger-wolf Eisuke Takizawa Third Assistant Director
Sengoku guntō-den Dai nibu Akatsuki no zenhin
(Sengoku guntō-den Kōhen Akatsuki no zenhin)
Saga of the Vagabonds 
Part Two: Forward at Dawn
Eisuke TakizawaThird Assistant Director
Otto no teisō – Haru kureba
(Otto no teisō Zenpen Haru kureba)
A Husband's Chastity – If Spring ComesKajirō YamamotoThird Assistant Director
Otto no teisō – Aki futatabi
(Otto no teisō Kōhen Aki futatabi)
A Husband's Chastity – Fall AgainKajirō YamamotoThird Assistant Director
Nihon josei dokuhonJapanese Women's TextbookKajirō Yamamoto
(Volume I only)
Third Assistant Director
(Volume I only)
NadareAvalanche Mikio Naruse Assistant Director
Enoken no chakkiri Kinta Zenpen
Mamayo sandogasa: Ikiha yoiyoi
Enoken's Chikiri Kinta Part 1 
Momma, the Hat: The Nice Way
Kajirō YamamotoThird Assistant Director
Enoken no chakkiri Kinta Kōhen
kaeri wa Kowai mateba hiyori
Enoken's Chikiri Kinta Part 2 – Returning Is
Scary, but the Weather Will Clear If You Wait
Kajirō YamamotoThird Assistant Director
Utsukushiki takaThe Beautiful HawkKajirō YamamotoChief Assistant Director
1938
ChinetsuSubterranean HeatEisuke TakizawaChief Assistant Director
Tōjūrō no koiTojuro's LoveKajirō YamamotoChief Assistant Director
Tsuzurikata kyōshitsuComposition ClassKajirō YamamotoChief Assistant Director
Enoken no bikkuri jinseiEnoken's Surprising LifeKajirō YamamotoChief Assistant Director
1939
Enoken no gatchiri jidaiEnoken's Shrewd PeriodKajirō YamamotoChief Assistant Director
Chūshingura KōhenChushingura Part 2Kajirō YamamotoChief Assistant Director
Nonki YokochōEasy AlleyKajirō YamamotoChief Assistant Director
1940
Roppa no shinkon ryokōRoppa's HoneymoonKajirō YamamotoChief Assistant Director
Enoken no zangiri KintaEnoken's Cropped KintaKajirō YamamotoChief Assistant Director
Songokū ZenpenSongoku Part 1Kajirō YamamotoChief Assistant Director
Songokū KōhenSongoku Part 2Kajirō YamamotoChief Assistant Director
1941
UmaHorseKajirō YamamotoSecond Unit Director
(Also, editor,
co-screenwriter
and co-director (uncredited))

As editor

Kurosawa edited all his own films, though he only occasionally took screen credit for it. There are, however, only a few instances in which he edited the work of others, as listed below.

Theater work

During the mid-to-late 1940s, for the first and apparently the only time in his career, Akira Kurosawa involved himself in a number of theater-related projects.

Television work

A documentary about horses called Song of the Horse (or Uma no Uta), directed by Kurosawa, was broadcast in Japan, supposedly on August 31, 1970 (Kurosawa otherwise totally avoided working in television). Very little is known about the film, and its release date is even in question. For instance, though the film is often said to have aired in August 1970, it is thought that the film features footage of events that did not take place until the summer of 1971. It was considered a lost film for decades and was not available on home video in any form. [2] [16] At some point in the 2010s, the film was rediscovered. It was remastered and released on DVD by the American independent company SamuraiDVD in 2017, complete with English subtitles. [17]

Books

Prior to writing the screenplay to his film, Stray Dog (Nora Inu, 1949), Kurosawa created, in about six weeks, a novel based on the same story (presumably also called Stray Dog), which he never published. It was written in the style of one of his favorite writers, the French crime author Georges Simenon. Writing it was supposed to help him compose the script as quickly as possible, but he found that writing the screenplay took even longer than usual because of the complex differences between literature and film. [18] [19]

In 1980, inspired by the memoir of one of his heroes, Jean Renoir, he began to publish in serial form his autobiography, entitled Gama no abura (An Oily Toad). The book deals with the period from the director's birth to his winning the Golden Lion for Rashomon from the Venice Film Festival in 1951; the period from 1951 through 1980 is not covered. The title of the book is a reference to a legend according to which, if one places a deformed toad in a box full of mirrors, it will become so afraid of its own reflection that it will begin to sweat, and this sweat allegedly had medicinal properties. Kurosawa compared himself to the toad, nervous about having to contemplate, through the process of writing his life story, his own multiple "reflections." It was published as a book in Japan in 1981, and in English translation the following year under the title Something Like an Autobiography . The book's appearance coincided with the revival of interest in Kurosawa's work following the international release of Kagemusha. ( ISBN   0394509382) [20] [21]

In 1999, his book, Yume wa tensai de aru (A Dream Is a Genius) was published posthumously. It has not been translated into English, except for Chapter 3. This chapter consists of a selection of 100 of the director's favorite films, listed in chronological order, with detailed commentaries on each film, all given at the request of Kurosawa's daughter, Kazuko. (Since he deliberately limits himself to one film per director, however, the list emerges as more of a "favorite directors" list than a "greatest films" list.) This chapter, but not the remainder of the book, can be found in English on the Internet. ( ISBN   4163555706) [22]

Complete Drawings (with text in Japanese) was published by Shogakukan in 1999. ( ISBN   4096996114)

The screenplays of many of Kurosawa's films have been published in English. For further information, consult the Wikipedia articles relating to the individual films.

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References

Notes
  1. Oguni and AK based this script on an unproduced screenplay they had written near the end of World War II.
  2. Remake of the 1950 film of the same name.
  3. Remake of the 1949 film of the same name.
  4. Remake of Kurosawa's films Sanshiro Sugata and Sanshiro Sugata Part II .
  5. AK was hired as director of the Japanese sequences of this film, but left the project; his name was taken off the credits at his request, but the screenplay he co-wrote was still used.
  6. AK was originally slated to direct this project in 1966-67 but dropped out; AK received a "based on a screenplay by..." credit, but neither Oguni nor Kikushima were credited at all in the final film.
  7. Originally conceived as a project for AK to direct; filmed after his death by Koizumi.
  8. These three directors and AK wrote this script, allegedly for all four to direct together, around the time of Dodesukaden (1970), but due to the box-office failure of that film, the project was canceled; it was finally directed by the last surviving member of the club, Ichikawa.
  9. Originally conceived as a project for AK to direct; filmed after his death by Kumai.
  10. Mifune, directing his first film, was not confident of this suspense thriller's reception, so he hired Kurosawa to travel to the location and re-edit the footage. The latter agreed to do this more as a favor to his favorite actor than because of any belief in the project. The picture was a modest box-office success, but a critical disaster, and Mifune never directed another film.
References
  1. Jason Gray (2008-03-03). "Unfinished Kurosawa Film to be Unveiled in 2010" . Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  2. 1 2 Manula, Vili. "Other Films with Akira Kurosawa's Involvement". Akira Kurosawa info. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
  3. Galbraith , pp. 651–751
  4. Akira Kurosawa at IMDb
  5. Galbraith , pp. 448–471
  6. Galbraith , pp. 441–448
  7. Galbraith , p. 646
  8. Galbraith , p. 30
  9. Galbraith , pp. 364–370, 703
  10. Nogami , pp. 246–247
  11. Kurosawa 1982 , p. 144
  12. Galbraith , p. 63
  13. Seven Samurai , DVD featurette: My Life in Cinema (Waga Eiga Jinsei): Interview of Akira Kurosawa by Nagisa Oshima)
  14. 1 2 Galbraith , p. 98
  15. Drunken Angel , DVD featurette "It Is Wonderful to Create"
  16. Galbraith , pp. 486–487
  17. Maunula, Vili. "Review: Song of the Horse (Kurosawa 1971 / SamuraiDVD)". Akira Kurosawa info. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  18. Kurosawa 1982 , pp. 172–173
  19. Galbraith , p. 109
  20. Kurosawa 1982 , p. vi
  21. Galbraith , p. 561
  22. Kurosawa 1999 , Chapter 3, found at: http://ww.criterionforum.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=7192 ; translation: Noriyo Hoozawa-Arkenau
Sources