Throne of Blood<\/i> (“Spider Web Castle”)\u00a0is a 1957 Japanese\u00a0historical drama film\u00a0co-written and directed by\u00a0Akira Kurosawa. The film transposes the plot of\u00a0William Shakespeare’s play\u00a0Macbeth<\/i>\u00a0from Medieval Scotland to feudal Japan, with stylistic elements drawn from\u00a0Noh\u00a0drama. The film stars\u00a0Toshiro Mifune\u00a0and\u00a0Isuzu Yamada\u00a0in the lead roles, modelled on the characters\u00a0Macbeth\u00a0and\u00a0Lady Macbeth.<\/p>\n
As with the play, the film tells the story of a warrior who assassinates his sovereign at the urging of his ambitious wife. Kurosawa was a fan of the play and intended to make his own adaptation for several years, delaying it after learning of\u00a0Orson Welles’\u00a0Macbeth<\/i>\u00a0(1948). Among his changes was the ending, which required archers to fire arrows around Mifune. The film was shot around\u00a0Mount Fuji\u00a0and\u00a0Izu Peninsula.<\/p>\n
Despite the change in setting and language and numerous creative liberties,\u00a0Throne of Blood<\/i>\u00a0often is considered one of the better\u00a0film adaptations of the play. It won two\u00a0Mainichi Film Awards, including\u00a0Best Actor\u00a0for Mifune.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Throne of Blood (“Spider Web Castle”)\u00a0is a 1957 Japanese\u00a0historical drama film\u00a0co-written and directed by\u00a0Akira Kurosawa. The film transposes the plot of\u00a0William Shakespeare’s play\u00a0Macbeth\u00a0from Medieval Scotland to feudal Japan, with stylistic elements drawn from\u00a0Noh\u00a0drama. The film stars\u00a0Toshiro Mifune\u00a0and\u00a0Isuzu Yamada\u00a0in the lead roles, modelled on the characters\u00a0Macbeth\u00a0and\u00a0Lady Macbeth. As with the play, the film tells the story …<\/p>\n