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Released By: Paramount
Released On: 09/14/2010
Director: Jerry London
Cast: Richard Chamberlain, Toshiro Mifune, John Rhys-Davies
The Film:
When my Dad gets excited about a film that I get to review, I usually figure that I'm in some pretty serious trouble. Our disagreements on movies have been known to reach proportions of theatrical anger, with our respective opinions of what makes a film “good†sitting at extreme opposite ends. So when he told me that Shogun, which I was too young to see at the time that it aired as a 5-part miniseries in 1980 was “fantasticâ€, I was VERY worried. With a daunting running time and a cast that I was largely not a fan of (outside of Toshiro Mifune, of course), I wondered whether or not a bottle of whiskey and a few sedatives might required. Fortunately, this is one of the few times that my father and I have been in agreement; Shogun is brilliant.
Following the premise of a stranger in a strange land, Shogun opens in the year of 1598, with a Dutch trade/warship on the run. Adrift at sea for years, Pilot Major John Blackthorne (Richard Chamberlain) finally finds land in the form of a large reef, which he manages to run his ship, The Erasmus into. When he awakens, he is in the completely unfamiliar country of Japan. It's hard to picture a time when Japan was a secret, but it certainly was in the 17th century. Known only to a handful of the sea-worthy, Japan was only accessible through a “secret†route, mostly familiar to the Portuguese.
Unfortunately for Blackthorne, the Japanese are not impressed by this intruder, who has been described by the already established Jesuit priests as a pirate; a career choice that is punishable by death in Japan. Blackthorne and his crew are imprisoned by the local Samurai Omi-San and Lord Yabu, and Blackthorne is stripped of his given name and called Anjin, which means “Pilotâ€. Unfortunately, the only person available to translate for them is Father Sebastian, who is curiously eager to see Blackthorne and the others executed as soon as possible. Before that happens, English-speaking Captain Vasco Rodrigues, (Johnathan Rhys-Davies) arrives with orders from Lord Toranaga, ruler of the eight provinces, to release Blackthorne to his custody. While making a quick stopover at The Erasmus, Blackthorne realizes that somebody has stolen his rutters, the captain's maps that are required for him to return to Holland. Trapped in Japan, with the Jesuits and local samurai anxious to see him dead, Blackthorne must rely on Rodrigues to keep him out of harm's way.
As the story unfolds, the Dutch Pilot is brought to meet Toranaga (Toshiro Mifune), and slowly learns that there are multiple shady political dealings (now matters of historical record) going down in the land of the Rising Sun. The Spanish and the Jesuits are turning a pretty solid profit in the form of The Black Ship, which Blackthorne poses a threat to, and there is also a secretive battle for supremacy and the title of Shogun involving Toranaga and the ruling Lord Ishido. To keep things interesting, Blackthorne meets Lady Mariko, the married woman who becomes his translator and soon, love interest. As Blackthorne digs further into the mess surrounding him, he realizes that he must adapt to this strange new culture if he is to remain alive.
Adapted from James Clavell's book of the same name, Shogun is a complex story with many detailed characters and subplots. One of the greatest things about it is the point of view that the story is told from, that being of Pilot Major John Blackthorne, and the lack of subtitles to be found in the film. As it is explained in the extra features, Blackthorne's confusion is felt by the viewer as he's immersed in the strange culture and alien language. Essentially alone, he is fiercely defiant until he eventually learns the ancient traditions of the Japanese, and slowly comes to respect them. The benefit of filming the story as a miniseries instead of a feature-film length production is that the characters have a lot of chance to breathe and evolve, and the excellent performances from everyone down to the extras helps develop the story and make it more of a personal experience, especially in watching Blackthorne's transformation from Dutch pirate to honourary Samurai. John Rhys-Davies, whom I usually can't stand in any role, is very good in the film, and if you don't like Toshiro Mifune, well….nothing more needs to be said.
Shot entirely in Japan, the handmade sets, costumes, and beautiful scenery give the film an almost timeless look, that's only betrayed by some of the obviously 80's touches. The battle scenes are well choreographed and very convincing without being excessively bloody. Shogun may not be the first film to tackle the attempted religious takeover of a more “primitive†country, but it does handle the controversial theme very effectively. Although James Clavell is the author of the source material, Screenwriter Eric Bercovici and Director Jerry London have to be commended for keeping the pace so tight. Only in the latter part of the film when the love story subplot is introduced does the film get bogged down at times, but that can be forgiven.
All in all, Shogun is definitely a very worthwhile experience that still holds up well after 30 years.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Shogun is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.33:1, true to its original television broadcast. The picture is adequate for the most part with a good balance of colours, but some scenes are definitely better than others. There are two audio tracks provides; a restored mono track which is perfectly fine and will suit the purists well, and a new 5.1 Dolby Digital surround track that sounds a bit better and opens up the soundscape a bit more.
By far, the best extra feature on the set is the Making of Shogun documentary, a 13-part look at the series from start to finish that runs almost 80 minutes. Interviews with Jerry London, Screenwriter Eric Bercovici, Richard, Chamberlain, Johnathan Rhys-Davies and many others, the documentary covers everything from the adaptation of the novel, working conditions on the set in Japan, the intricacy of the sets and costumes, and the challenges of filming in Japan's then-outdated Toho Studios, as well as many other facets of the film; the final segment of the documentary is a retrospective look at the impact that Shogun has had on North American culture.
Three Historical Perspective Featurettes are also include, each running approximately 5 minutes, and documenting the origins and history of The Samurai, The Tea Ceremony, and The Geisha.
There is also Commentary by Directory Jerry London on 7 Select Scenes. Unfortunately, the scenes are only about a minute long for the most part, and London's commentary is largely limited to describing on-screen action.
Finally, a Trailer for the Indiana Jones Trilogy DVD set is included.
The Final Word:
The 30th Anniversary Edition of Shogun is not necessary if you have the previous DVD set, as it is essentially a repackaging. If you don't own the previous release, however, it is definitely worth picking up.
