Play of the Week: Rashomon

Brimming with action while incisively examining the nature of truth, "Rashomon" is perhaps the finest film ever to investigate the philosophy of justice. Through an ingenious use of camera and flashbacks, Kurosawa reveals the complexities of human nature as four people recount different versions of the story of a man's murder and the rape of his wife.

Perception explores the breach of experience that divides us all by glancing into the lives of three individuals: Clarissa, a young idealistic photographer who chooses to live as a homeless person on the streets of New York, supporting herself meal by meal by selling her photography from a blanket in Central Park; Ralph, a successful real estate salesman who struggles for balance against the cut-throat nature of his business; and Tobias, a perpetual student who gets fired a lot. Perception journeys through the same season of time from each character's point of view, detailing how presumption and mistaken intention leads to great misunderstanding. A moment, revisited from another point of view, takes new dimension--and the line between protagonist and antagonist blurs.

A young man finds himself unexpectedly taking an audiovisual odyssey into a world of surreality, slowly recounting his memories, revealing the puzzle pieces that led him to where he is, and maybe how he can get out.

An ambitious businessman knocks up his mistress with fraternal twins. He keeps the boy but sends his bodyguard to dispose of the mother and the girl. Years later…

Documentarians Andre Heller and Othmar Schmiderer turn their camera on 81-year-old Traudl Junge, who served as Adolf Hitler's secretary from 1942 to 1945, and allow her to speak about her experiences. Junge sheds light on life in the Third Reich and the days leading up to Hitler's death in the famed bunker, where Junge recorded Hitler's last will and testament. Her gripping account is nothing short of mesmerizing.

A glimpse into a visual representation of memory; A Christmas-time series of meals, coffees, and movies, with friends, lovers, and housemates. Faced with the compounding of faces and places, each moment begins to collide with one another: voices are muddled, and faces are broken. How is memory created? How are they separated from one another?

A reflection on the fate of humanity in the Anthropocene epoch, White Noise is a roller-coaster of a film, a whirlwind of sounds and images. The fourth feature-length work by Simon Beaulieu, this film essay plunges viewers into a subjective sensory adventure—a direct physical encounter with the information overload of daily life. White Noise transforms the imminent collapse of our civilization into a visceral aesthetic experience.

Forced to run from Texas Rangers after a heated misunderstanding leads to the death of a lawman, Mexican American farmer Gregorio Cortez sets off in desperate flight, evading a massive manhunt on horseback for days. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts in 2016.

Frustrated at his failed romance, Saravanan decides to steal from his landlady’s house. Even as he comes up with clever ways to outsmart the cops, he realises that his actions are echoes from the past.

Lord Shiva accuses Yama for saving the life of a criminal-politician when the latter tries to stop a little girl from dying. Yama is given a few days' time to rectify his action.

To support her younger sisters, Polly Vance finds work as a live-in companion to the aging Johanna Webb. Johanna's nephew, Chester Creigg, quarrels with his aunt and severs relations with her, because of her cruel treatment of her new employee, after which Polly returns to her old home. Then, when a fire breaks out at Polly's house, Chester rushes over to save her sisters, but loses his eyesight during the rescue. Convalescing from his burns, Chester learns that Johanna has died and marvels at the similarity between her and the old housemaid who is now taking care of him.

Two cowboys, Jim and Johnny Little Bear, discover a rich mine and decide to spend some of their money traveling. Their travels lead them to the kingdom of Queen Sylvia, who is being warred upon by the neighboring monarch Ferdinand because she will not marry him. Sympathetic to the Queen's plight, the cowboys wire to America for the rest of the gang, who arrive just in time to rout Ferdinand's attack.

William Newman, a notorious shyster lawyer, in return for a cut of the jewels, agrees to take the case of Morris, a man convicted of stealing diamonds. After gaining possession of the gems, Newman appropriates all of them and then refuses to carry out his share of the deal. Subsequently, Newman, who is attracted to Georgianna, a maid at his boardinghouse, frames the girl on charges of theft and then arranges for her freedom, thus appearing to be her savior.

Hartley, fascinated by the vampish Leonie, steals and serves a term in prison. Not satisfied with this downfall, Leonie again works her womanly charms upon Dr. Gerald, who is engaged to Johanna, the adopted daughter of Dr. McLean. Learning of the woman's designs on the young doctor, Hartley denounces her in Gerald's presence. In response, Gerald foolishly renounces Johanna and his friendship with Dr. McLean. However, when Leonie discovers that Johanna is her own daughter whom she had deserted as a child, she becomes conscience-stricken, gives up the young man and begs forgiveness.

Jack Calvert bets four friends that he can travel from New York to Constantinople without a cent.

Priscilla Worth, an innocent country girl, goes to the city to visit her aunt, who has sent for her, thinking that her childlike simplicity will afford a welcome relief to Vincent Morgan, a wealthy bachelor and man-about-town. The plan works, but soon after Vincent and Priscilla's marriage, Vincent, besieged by his friends to return to his gay life and suspicious of his wife's relationship with Durant--an artist who has painted her portrait--yields to temptation.

Gunman Chuck Connelly is hired to silence the new district attorney who has been pounding the graft organizations. Chuck goes to the D. A.'s home to threaten him, but is taken off guard when his victim's little daughter leans trustfully on his knee and looks up at him with a smile. The D. A. ignores Chuck's warning, and the gang orders the gunman to execute him. Chuck breaks into the house, but sees the little girl again and is unable to complete his task. Instead, he seeks out his girl friend, Annie Mangan, a Salvation Army reformer, and swears to end his life of crime.

Lieut. Governor Oliver Barnitz accedes to the governorship when his predecessor, failing to call out the militia during a riot at the Wilmot plant, is shot and killed by terrorist Oliver Poole. Faced with the dilemma of whether or not to commute the assassin's death sentence, Barnitz falls into a troubled sleep and dreams of being forced to cast judgment on his father in a similar position.

Indore, an Indian woman married to the English Captain Terence Unger is imprisoned by the prince after she gives birth to a baby daughter named Agatha. On his deathbed, Unger beseeches his friend Francis Duane to care for Agatha which Duane does, returning to England with the infant.

A by-the-book police officer is assigned to secretly investigate a team leader who believes that the rules shouldn't stop an investigation. As the officer investigates further, his own attitudes begin to mirror the team leader's.