The Rashomon TV show will be doing nothing new
Last month, with almost no fanfare, Akira Kurosawa’s seminal Rashomon turned 70.
Released in August 1950 to acclaim (originally more so in foreign markets than in Japan) it has influenced countless films and TV shows ever since.
It’s been referenced in The Simpsons and the title even serves as warning to the unreliability of eyewitnesses.
A rudimentary plot; a husband and wife in 8th century Japan are attacked by a bandit is expanded by a revolutionary story-telling device — telling the same story from four different points of view.
In doing so Rashomon pioneered the idea of the ‘unreliable narrator’ in film (it also becomes a damning indictment of humanity’s relationship with the truth).
It was reported yesterday that a TV series ‘based on’ Rashomon by Amblin Television was being developed by HBO Max.
Variety reports the series, in the works since late 2018, will not be a direct adaptation of the classic film but rather ‘retain the key plot device’.
Hisao Kurosawa, Akira Kurosawa’s son, is quoted in a press release: “I am delighted to work with Amblin Partners and HBO Max to reimagine Rashomon for today’s audience.
“I am excited to see my dad’s vision through this inspirational story kept alive and made accessible to a new generation.”
Amblin’s co-presidents of TV Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey said:
“Truth has become increasingly fractured in this age of cable news and social media’s “say it and it’s true” culture.
“Akira Kurosawa’s masterpiece was not just a murder mystery; it was a revolution in storytelling, as cinema’s most impactful and influential early exploration of subjective points of view and flawed narration.
“Seventy years after the film’s release, the legacy of ‘Rashomon’ is indisputable and its central themes more relevant than ever.
“Our series will honor the impact of the original work and explore the age-old concept of objective truth versus subjective perspective in our modern times.”
This might sound revolutionary but in reality the technique of unreliability has been on-trend for years — specifically since 2014 when True Detective S1 debuted on HBO.
The first 2/3s of True Detective, told mostly in flashback, are based the recollections of the unreliable Marty and Rust.
And later that same year The Affair began on Showtime with episodes frequently split into two parts with half being told from the point-of-view of a specific character.
The Affair co-creator Sarah Treem literally said the use of this dramatic device made The Affair ‘the Rashomon of relationship dramas’.
She said:
“I’m pretty sure we (Treem and partner Hagai Levi) first talked about a “Rashomon” structure first, where there were two perspectives, but it was always that they were telling the story to somebody sometime in the future. And the characters then came out of that.”
The Affair was acclaimed, scooping up Golden Globes and critical praise and, more importantly, it only came off air last year.
Sure, having one of Kurosawa’s offspring involved is smart PR (see also: Ghost of Tsushima), but will Rashomon actually offer anything new?
It is described as a drama revolving around a grisly sexual assault and murder, and the unraveling mystery seen through multiple characters’ competing narratives.
Probably not.
