DERSU UZALA
A film review by John S. Watson
Copyright 1990 John S. Watson
DERSU UZALA, 1975, Japan/Russia, a film by Akira Kurosawa,
Every once in a while you come across a great film.
It seems like I spend hours every week rummaging around videos stores and reading this newsgroup hoping to find that one movie that might change my life a little. Or at least touch my heart some. Alas, as the years roll by, movies like this seem harder to find.
DERSU UZALA is one of those movies.
DERSU UZALA is the third film I've seen from the legendary director Akira Kurosawa, who as you recall was honored last month by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The other two films of his I've seen, THE SEVEN SAMURAI and THE HIDDEN FORTRESS, are his best-known works (along with RAN which I've not seen yet). But DERSU UZALA is my favorite so far. (George Lucas is said to have borrowed elements from THE SEVEN SAMURAI and THE HIDDEN FORTRESS for his "Star Wars" movies, now I think maybe he derived the character "Yoda" from Dersu Uzala).
The story is of a Russian explorer/surveyor in 1903, who while on a mapping expedition of northeastern Siberia meets and becomes excellent friends with Dersu Uzala, a gnome of a man, wise in the ways of the forest. Dersu becomes the Russian's guide, and they quickly come to respect and love him: respect especially for his knowledge of nature on the taiga, which saves them many times from certain death. This living in harmony with nature is the ecological message in the film.
The characters seems very real, and down to earth. The action is slow and deliberate. Nothing is wasted. The Russians aren't the cardboard-cut-outs you'd find in a typical Hollywood movie. These people consistently "Do the Right Thing." The friendship that develops between the two major characters, the Russian captain and Dersu, was the best portrayal of "friendship" that I can remember in a movie. Two friends saying goodbye, knowing they may never see each other again, is to me, the saddest thing a movie can can have in it. This movie has a couple of poignant goodbye scenes. Which always makes me think of all the friends I've had in my life which I will never see again. But I digress ....
As with the other Kurosawa films I have seen, the cinematography was fabulous: beautiful and atmospheric. Sadly, the video I viewed was not letter- boxed, and there were many scenes that just cried for it; lots of times there was very noticeable "panning and scanning." I wish I could seen it on the big screen. The film is in Russian with subtitles, but you'd swear that you could understand without. Good luck in finding it at you local video store, though, in any format.
I highly recommend this movie.
A perfect way to celebrate glasnost, Earth Day and Akira Kurosawa. All at once.
John S. Watson, Civil Servant from Hell ARPA: watson@ames.arc.nasa.gov
UUCP: ...!ames!watson
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