The closeness of Toshiro Mifune and Akira Kurosawa's relationship – a closeness that would be their undoing – is well-exemplified in RED BEARD. Their final collaboration for a number of reasons (personal and financial clashes are both rumored), the movie isn't typical Kurosawa, either. The director said as much at the time, admitting that the movie represented a turning point toward the conservative for his production process. The result is a somewhat more ponderous movie with maybe a little bit less to say than his preceding epics. Don't worry, though – even as a teddy bear, Mifune still gets to kick a lot of ass. Audio excerpt from RED BEARD © 1965 Toho Co., Ltd. Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters.
