Rating: 
Summary: DVD Review
Review: Rhapsody in August is not a Kurosawa masterpiece, but still provides several stunning scenes that hold up to the best of the director's career. In the 15 Kurosawa films I've seen he hasn't ever made a bad film. Rhapsody is weak Kurosawa, but even in this (his second to last film) he still managed to create images that only he could make. An image and a colony of ants crawling on the flower and the final shot of an old woman struggling against windswept rain stand among the best of Kurosawa. The film's single most powerful sequence comes in stunning scene when children of ww2 visit a school yard to pay respects to their dead classmates. Kurosawa has them enter in the distance as today's children play and slowly approach a melted jungle gym monument, accompanied only by the sounds of the children at play. The moment is pure Kurosawa and intensely moving. The film is uneven and oddly structured in scenes that shift the focus of the film in awkward ways. Really what hurts the film the most is the biazzare inclusion of Richard Gere. His prescence ruined the mood for the film. The film tends to shift tone too often from playful to satrical to emotional to commentating.
Rhapsody just doesn't stand up as strong in comparison to other works in the Kurosawa canon.
Film: 3 out of 5. The MGM dvd is very sparse. Picture is very good in color and contrast. Sharpness is a little weak and some cuts seemed like the picture was a bit shakey. Twice I saw small dirt specks. Presented in 1:85:1 the picture is very good in keeping detail in dark scenes. Sound was extraordinary. I was very surprised to find a vivid and strong soundtrack. Just listen to the locus sounds and the music cues, the Japanese soundtrack packs a good punch. Subtitles are avaible, but most annoyingly Gere's English dialogue is subtitled. There aren't any extras other then an unsubitled Japanese Trailer. No booklet or insert!
DVD 3 out of 5.
Rating: 
Summary: A wonderful, thought provoking film about family.
Review: Take the time to view this film, you won't be sorry
Rating: 
Summary: Precious and Respectful
Review: Thank you, Akira. You have looked into the hearts and souls of those affected by war - and all are. Your approach has been objective, clear and without a need to strive for shining, polished work. Thank you Sachiko Murase (Kana), this was probably the most important film that you ever did. You characterized a person that is able in her old age to accept the truth to understand her own mistakes - to change and to move on. What a great role! Thank you, Richard Gere, this is probably your most important film as well. After this film the girls of all ages did not only want to be your girl-friend but also your granny ;))
Rating:
Summary: thoughtful treatment of the effects of war
Review: This may be a minor film by Kurosawa, but anyone else would be thrilled to have made something so beautiful and thought-provoking. The film follows four children (the oldest is about to start college) who are visiting their grandmother in Nagasaki for the summer. They learn that their grandfather was killed (forty-five summers before) in the 1945 bombing of Nagasaki, and try to understand what that means for them now. Slowly, they come to understand both their grandmother and themselves better. This is a thoughtful treatment of the use of the atomic bomb, in large part because it manages to be profoundly anti-war without being hostile toward America. You will never forget the grandmother.
Rating:
Summary: Points of view about Nagasaki
Review: This movie shows you several points of view about Nagasaki, that is, the use of the atomic bomb. These points of view are as of 1990, at 45 years from that day. It starts with children's feelings and thoughts about that day. These children are grandsons of a teacher dead by the bomb, and live in Nagasaki. The parents' attitude follows. They try to live better and not to suffer, even more, not to remember or make people remember that day. Next is the story of the survivors of the bomb. The grandmother, who lost her husband, and the classmates of children killed by the bomb. Finally, the mind and heart of the Nikkei (descendant of Japanese). This is a double situation: He is not only a descendant of Japanese, but also of USA nationality. The story is directed well. The characters are defined clearly.
However, please note that this is not a documentary film. You could make your opinion about Nagasaki and the bomb based on the arguments (most of them true) of the movie, but it wouldn't be enough. Also because this is a movie, you'll enjoy some funny or artistic parts it offers to you. Besides, you would learn about some Japanese costumes and tales. A final note: If you try to study Japanese watching this work, beware: The grandmother talks with namari (local accent).
Rating:
Summary: Far from slow and minor
Review: To those hollywood goers not used to seeing masterpieces by directors who go for intellectual and emotional punch over visual punch, this movie would be "slow" and "minor." Kurosawa did a magnificent job of conveying the emotional, socio-polotical and historical impacts of the WWII bombings in Japan. In an industry often saturated with directors who appeal to those who crave visual candy (Jurassic Park, for example), this movie is a standout of what directors CAN achieve using few special effects, other than their heart, their soul, their mastery of the camera and dialogue. A beautiful film which portrays an intricate interweaving of new and old that so characterises modern-day Japanese society, even in a universally tragic topic such as war. Not a typical Kurosawa "epic film," as in Seven Samurai, but definately huge, and important, in many other ways.
Rating:
Summary: Akira Kurosawa vs. Richard Gere
Review: What happens when a truly great film-maker meets a truly bad actor? In this case, it is still watchable, but not nearly as good as it could have been.
Gere's performance is wooden and lifeless. The Japanese actors manage to convey more emotions and more feeling despite speaking entirely in Japanese.
It's still a good movie, and if you're a big fan of Kurosawa you will definitely want this movie, but Gere definitely hurts it.
Rating:
Summary: wonderful movie
Review: Wonderful Kurosawa, great plot and scenes. Kurosawa makes us remember the humanity and sensibility we lost to today's high-tech and individualistic life. The movie's score is also beautiful, especially the vocal music (a requiem I guess) at the scene where children visit the memorial . It would be lovely if somebody can comment to which composer this requiem belongs to.
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