Watch After the Rain For Free

Redundant and unnecessary.

Absolutely Brilliant!

a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

This film is remarkable for two reasons. It is a study of Japanese culture, and it is a parable about the human spirit.Although Kurosawa did not direct this, he wrote the screenplay, and his assistant of many years did direct it. It is, however, typical Kurosawa brilliance. As in the Seven Samurai, Kurosawa gently reveals life vignettes of both the common man, ronin, and samurai class people. The care for the common man that Kurosawa shows us has always reminded me of Chaucer. We do not often get to see accurate and non-judgmental portraits of the masses of people whose names never get recorded in history. He also accurately counterpoints, his depiction of the lower classes with vignettes from upper class life and decision-making.The story itself is simple, but highly enjoyable. The dueling scenes are excellently done, although they lack some of the clash and dash dramatics of typical sword fights from any genre - Western or Eastern. They do appear more realistic. But, the real story is in the people. This is a window to Japanese culture for outsiders, and a window to Japanese historical culture for the Japanese. There are many satisfying moments: the party at the inn, the bokken duels, the duel in the forest, the moment the lord achieves insight into our hero's motivation, and the moment our hero's wife speaks out; all stood out in my mind. As the characters develop, the conflict we see arise is because our hero is a man who is humble. He is a samurai/Buddhist ideal character, in both his ability, and his humility about it. But he is not a stereotype - he is a very real depiction of the kind of motivation and character you would expect from a person who was slightly outside the normal cultural system of Japan at the time. Kurosawa also examined similar characters and motivation in the Seven Samurai (especially the clown, Mifune's character).The ending is unresolved, probably to get one to think about the characters actions as the movie ends - the ideal, humble man finding internal happiness, opposed to the typical, driven-to-succeed type who is endlessly chasing his goal.

Ame Agaru was one of the most intricate films I have seen so far--not because it had a complicated plot or pieces that fit into a missing puzzle, but because the messages in it conveyed a wisdom that accompanied the life of the samurai. There was little majesty addressed to the fighting lifestyle and code of honour that encompasses the samurai way of living; instead, it focused on the simplicity of the day to day life behind the majesty of such mystic creatures. The film was beautifully directed, the aesthetic of the atmosphere was amazing, the acting had a humble approach that truly reflected the modesty of the wise samurai, and the film's length was just enough to convey the message accurately without going into extraneous details or without being too short. This film addressed the grandeur found even in the stagnant way of living for the samurai, and what I was even more pleased to see was that the film addressed the wisdom of releasing ego and the will to win. Those who sought to win seemed to be self-defeating, and only when the way of the warrior becomes that egoless path can the warrior cross the river after the rain and see where he is going.

I agree with Jose Guilherme, that many of Kurosawa's movies are a little bit tiring, and also that the characters of this movie,Ame agaru are very charismatic.This movie really made me a surprise,since it's very optimistic, and with a good message, about helping other people and to forget the bad side of the past, to turn into a better person in the future.:) Also shows the monster of envy, when other fighters are jealous about misawa's habilities and the fact that he is invited to be the Master of all the fighters and warriors of the landlord.I recommend it to everybody who wants a nice day!:)

Director Takashi Koizumi made a beautiful movie in the best Kurosawa tradition, about the relationship between a samurai and his surroundings. These surroundings are both in the personal sphere and in the natural sphere. The story quietly unfolds, about this particular samurai and his wife, temporarily staying in a tavern because of the ever falling rain. He teaches the folks in the tavern how to enjoy life. Then he gets an offer from a Lord to become a teacher at the court in swordfighting. But other swordteachers conspire against him and he doesn't get the job. The result is that his wife understands him better and after the rain has stopped, they travel on as a very happy couple through and in harmony with the beautiful countryside. This movie teaches us about simplicity and about being pleased with the things around oneself.