Dreams
10
“A scene that looks like a painting doesn't make a painting. If you look closely, all of nature has its beauty.”
Dreams is a surreal transportation through mortality and nature staged methodically through 8 dreams, framing a journey of renewal and rebirth.
The film captures atmosphere in many tones, through vibrancy into gloominess into eeriness into liveliness, the film showcases many channels of life, death and perspective and surroundings. Discovery lies ahead in every dream and the movie carries an artistic brilliance that matches anywhere it goes.
It journeys through humanity's contrast and bond with nature, showcasing discovery, destruction, consequence and resurgence. It plays out like godlike punishment, religious penance and enlightenment through Japenese folklore. It moves with a mythological stride that connects its disjointed narrative, encompassing divine wrath and supernatural atonement.
The film showcases nature through an artistic, spiritual and malevolent lens, presenting beauty and appreciation contrasted with mistreatment and destruction. It takes a mythic perspective to look down on us for our waning grip with nature, and our greed which harms it and ultimately ourselves. We in ourselves must find the beauty in nature, the living art that surrounds us, and ensure our grip holds true. This grants favour with the gods and other spirits that be, and favour with ourselves and our future.
Kurosawa dreamt for us, and gave us what he saw. Dreams is a gorgeous masterpiece, treating us with every facet of mortality and spirit, however vibrant or dark.