Kurosawa at FACT

Tom Grieve, Cinema Editor

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Kurosawa

FACT, City Centre
12-26 March 2023

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

FACT
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There’s a reason that Akira Kurosawa remains one of the best known Japanese filmmakers, some eighty years on from his debut feature. From bracing crime flicks, to socially-driven dramas and thrusting samurai epics, the director made over thirty films across fifty years, each one infused with a wit and visual style that was distinctively his.

Arguably Kurosawa’s most popular works were alongside star Toshiro Mifune – the pair made fifteen films together – and FACT’s season starts two of their collaborations. First up is 1952’s Venice prize-winning Rashomon (Sun 12 March), in which Mifune stars as a woodcutter who witnesses the ambush and rape of a noblewoman, and the murder of her samurai husband. Hugely praised for its influential structure, the film unfolds though a trial in which different accounts of events raise questions about the nature of objective truth.

Seven Samurai

Next is perhaps Mifune and Kurosawa’s most prominent work,1954’s iconic Seven Samurai (Sun 19 March), in which a village of farmers hire seven ronin (Mifune included) to defend them against a group of marauding bandits. This thrilling epic has reverberated through action cinema ever since, with Sergio Leone notably retooling the scenario for his own classic The Magnificent Seven in 1960.

Lastly, FACT have lined up Kurosawa’s Ran on Sunday 26 March. A singular reimagining of Shakespeare’s King Lear, rethought and relocated to sixteenth-century Japan, the 1985 film was over a decade in the making. This is one of several of Kurosawa’s dalliances with The Bard, but it is probably the most spectacular example, combining vast, ferocious battle sequences with mournful tragedy.

Where to go near Kurosawa at FACT

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FACT Liverpool gets back to its coffee-with-creativity roots thanks to a foliage-full new café.

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Next to Nowhere Café

Food From Nowhere is a weekly vegan cafe held in the basement space of much-loved radical bookshop News From Nowhere. It’s open every Saturday from midday to 5pm.

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News from Nowhere is a radical community bookshop selling texts on important current issues as well as leading social justice initiatives.

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BAM BOO

BAM BOO delivers a slice of paradise right in Liverpool city centre, with indulgent meals and delicious cocktails.

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A super cool cafe at the top of Bold Street, Bold Street Coffee in Liverpool serves a range of specialist coffee, cakes and sandwiches.

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Much-loved Liverpool restaurant, specialising in forward-thinking small plate dishes.

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Based in Liverpool’s old Royal Institute of Arts and Science building, Liverpool Arts Club is a great spot to catch small touring acts.

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Cafe Tabac is the longest running café bar in Liverpool, serving food and drinks to arty locals and curious newcomers.

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