Akira Kurosawa used many techniques ahead of his time. In his movie The Hidden Fortress (Kurosawa, 1958, Japan), he uses wipes during transitions between scenes. His use of widescreen shots are also interesting as he allows the audience to see the barren and rocky landscape which isolates the characters.
Kurosawa uses wipes to transition between scenes. The wipe that he uses is usually in the direction of action which helps the audience follow along. The use of wipes in movies can be seen in Star Wars which George Lucas based off of this movie.By wiping in certain directions, we can get an understanding of where places are in relation to each other.
His use of wide shots is also revolutionary. By placing the camera high and back, he can show an entire fight between characters without cutting every second like so many movies do today. His careful choreography allows for his characters to fight each other with the surroundings by placing them in a way that they can be seen by the camera. He allows them to spin and circle each other without moving the camera which is steady and far away.
He also does plenty of landscape shots. For example, he placed the character Princess Yuki (Misa Uehara) on top of a mountain where we could see the barren landscape that she ruled over. With the addition of her tears and the superimposed Akizuki flag over her face, we understand that she is privately crying for her lost country. The broken landscape accurately matches her broken emotions.
Akira Kurosawa was a film genius ahead of his time. His wide sweeping landscapes and his wipes influenced the film industry forevermore. His stories are compelling and he is able to relate to everyone of us with his wide shots that give us a feeling of insignificance.
Junior Year Film Studies 