Dreams

Movie Information

Classic Cinema From Around the World will present Dreams at 8 p.m. Friday, June 25, at Courtyard Gallery at their new location, Phil Mechanic Studios, 109 Roberts St., River Arts District. Info: 273-3332.
Score:

Genre: Fantasy/Drama
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Starring: Akira Terao, Mitsumori Isaki, Mitsuko Baisho, Yoshikata Zuchi, Martin Scorsese
Rated: PG

Undeniably beautiful to look at, Akira Kurosawa’s Dreams (1990) suffers from the usual problems that plague films made up of unconnected episodes: uneven tone and level of interest. The film purports to be more or less literal depictions of eight of the filmmaker’s actual dreams. I’m a little skeptical of that notion, except perhaps in matters of tone, since the films tend to have a much better dramatic structure than actual dreams. Individual tastes will determine which of the eight dreams resonate with viewers. A few of them bore me stiff, but the overall look of the film is sufficient compensation for most of its shortcomings.

While I’ve never been completely sold on the film, I’d never deny its importance—especially to admirers of Kurosawa. Even when it doesn’t work (a subjective call), it has an identity all its own. No one ever made anything else quite like it. It’s hard to deny—even for the most enthusiastic—that Kurosawa tends to become pretty heavy-handed in the “Mount Fuji in Red,” “Weeping Demon” and “Village of the Watermills” segments, but even in these moments there are flashes of genius, and the boldness of it all is constantly admirable. The real selling point of the film—the thing that makes it something of an essential—always has been and always will be its almost unbearable beauty. On that score, Dreams never fails to deliver.

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About Ken Hanke
Head film critic for Mountain Xpress from December 2000 until his death in June 2016. Author of books "Ken Russell's Films," "Charlie Chan at the Movies," "A Critical Guide to Horror Film Series," "Tim Burton: An Unauthorized Biography of the Filmmaker."

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2 thoughts on “Dreams

  1. Ken Hanke

    Isnt this the one Scorsese has something to do with?

    He plays Vincent Van Gogh in the “Crows” segment.

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