Two days ago, Shinobu Hashimoto passed away at the age of 100. His name might not register with some film fans at first glance but every modern film fan owes him a bit of gratitude and remembrance. You see, Hashimoto contributed to a large number of the screenplays that master director Akira Kurosawa used for his timeless films. Shinobu gave inspiration to the greatest director who ever lived and in turn, inspired countless other filmmakers.
Hashimoto first became interested in film and writing while recovering from tuberculosis in a veterans hospital at the end of World War II. Over time, he turned that interest into a profession and began working as a screenwriter for Kurosawa. He ended up writing 8 screenplays for him and more than seventy overall. Here are just a few examples of their amazing collaborations:
RASHOMON - This tale of a murder told from alternating witness perspectives (adapted from two short stories) is the film that not only began popularizing Asian cinema in the West but it also introduced the concept of multiple unreliable narrators in a film, leaving the audience to determine the truth of the events depicted. This storytelling concept has been used in countless TV shows and films. Speaking of which...
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SEVEN SAMURAI - credited as being the first "action" film. The story of seven warriors called together to help defend a small village from ruthless bandits. Much like RASHOMON, SEVEN SAMURAI is a beautiful film but its structure is so perfect that even its direct remake, THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN has been remade frequently. It is a timeless story that will be enjoyed and retold in different ways for as long as visual mediums exist. The last film I'm going to mention though was only a major influence on one filmmaker but that man created something with that influence that changed modern filmmaking...
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THE HIDDEN FORTRESS - Released in 1958, THE HIDDEN FORTRESS is a wonderful adventure story of two bickering peasants and a disguised general working to save a princess. From the very first moment of the film, it is clear that George Lucas borrowed a lot from the film for his own classic STAR WARS EPISODE IV: A NEW HOPE. Yes, Hashimoto and Kurosawa directly influenced the creation of not only the most influential film franchise of all time but also the film that ushered in the era of blockbuster, franchise filmmaking that we are now so heavily steeped in as a movie-going public.
It's amazing to me that one filmmaking team could have such a profound and long-lasting effect on pop culture. Those films changed film for everything that came after them and did this while being wildly entertaining movies.
...And everyone knows a good movie starts with a great screenplay and there will probably never be screenplays that loom as large as these crafted by Shinobu Hashimoto.
Hashimoto was once quoted as saying of screenwriting, “It is like being a farmer who plants seeds and constantly cares about the weather and water or worries if there are insects. It is work that requires persistent patience.”
Well, I believe you can rest now Shinobu. Your fields have grown and nourished us all more than you could have possibly imagined.
-Wheels
