Akira Kurosawa’s Shakespearean masterpiece Ran (1985) shows how even the most universal stories must find purchase and meaning in particular times and places. Art that accesses deep human truths through the particular is indispensable for understanding and defining—and preserving—the character of one’s nation.
Kurosawa's influence permeates American film. The Magnificent Seven is a retelling of Kurosawa’s The Seven Samurai. George Lucas borrowed the basic structure of Star Wars: A New Hope from The Hidden Fortress. The so-called “screen wipe” transition that Kurosawa developed is used extensively in Star Wars and countless other movies.
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