Throne of Blood

Throne of Blood (1957) starring Toshiro Mifune, Isuzu Yamada. Directed by Akira Kurosawa. Shakespeare's Macbeth in a samurai setting. In medieval Japan, two generals are traveling through a forest by horseback when a spirit appears to them and prophesies their futures. The prophesy comes true, but of course there's a catch. This is a well mounted movie, with good production values and atmospherics. The acting at times is a bit over the top, and it has the feel of a filmed stage play, but in a Japanese film these things seem par for the course. The movie is in Japanese, with English subtitles. Grade: B+