Subscribe to watch - 14-day free trial, then £6.99 a month

Throne of Blood
A master of period-drama, Kurosawa (Rashomon, Seven Samurai) recasts Macbeth as a Japanese warlord in one of the greatest Shakespearean adaptations
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Overview
Considered one of the finest screen presentations of Macbeth, despite not using a single line of Shakespeare’s play, this atmospheric samurai drama combines scenes of remarkable energy and brutality with elements of traditional Noh theatre. Kurosawa favourite Toshiro Mifune plays the ambitious warlord whose extraordinary death scene lingers in the memory long after the film is finished.
*To enable subtitles for this film, once playing select CC in the video playback bar (at the bottom of the screen) and select Closed Captions = On.*
Related

Fat City Fat City
Drama 1972 97 mins Director: John Huston
A washed-up boxer (Stacy Keach), and young hopeful (Jeff Bridges), navigate dreams and despair in John Huston’s gritty boxing drama.

To Sleep with Anger To Sleep with Anger
Comedy 1990 102 mins Director: Charles Burnett
Charles Burnett's brilliant drama about an African American family reeling from a a surprise visit from an old friend, played by Danny Glover.

Highway Patrolman Highway Patrolman
Drama 1991 105 mins Director: Alex Cox
Alex Cox’s Mexican film follows the journey of a highway patrolman whose idealism eventually gives way to inevitable corruption.

The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey
Period drama 1988 91 mins Director: Vincent Ward
A group of medieval English villagers find themselves transported to '80s New Zealand, in Vincent Ward's fusion of fantasy and time-travel.

Five Easy Pieces Five Easy Pieces
Drama 1970 98 mins Director: Bob Rafelson
Jack Nicholson excels in Bob Rafelson’s vivid study of a middle-class musician rebelling against his family – and himself.

There Is No Evil There Is No Evil
Drama 2020 151 mins Director: Mohammad Rasoulof
Mohammad Rasoulof’s critical anthology film tells the stories of four executioners in Iran and the profound psychological impact of the practice.

Audition Audition
Horror 1999 115 mins Director: Takashi Miike
Takashi Miike burst to prominence with this disturbing tale of a deadly young woman who turns the tables on her middle-aged suitor.

Good Morning Good Morning
Comedy 1959 94 mins Director: Yasujirō Ozu
Yasujiro Ozu's cheerful comedy about the silliness of everyday chatter.

Kwaidan Kwaidan
Horror 1964 183 mins Director: Masaki Kobayashi
This stunningly beautiful anthology of Japanese ghost stories is one of the most meticulously crafted supernatural films ever made.

Maborosi Maborosi
Drama 1995 109 mins Director: Hirokazu Koreeda
Koreeda’s first fiction feature is an exquisite meditation on loss, loneliness, uncertainty, and coming to terms with the past.

After Life After Life
Drama 1998 119 mins Director: Hirokazu Koreeda
Koreeda's lyrical fantasy challenges the viewer to reflect on the experiences that most make life worth living.

Sonatine Sonatine
Crime 1993 94 mins Director: Takeshi Kitano
Takeshi Kitano's masterful and meditative gangster film, about a yakuza sent to the beautiful beaches of Okinawa where he has time to ruminate on his fate.

Rashomon Rashomon
Crime 1950 88 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
Credited with bringing Japanese cinema to worldwide audiences, Akira Kurosawa’s breakthrough tells the story of a murder in the woods from four differing perspectives.

Drunken Angel Drunken Angel
Film noir 1948 98 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
Part gangster film, part melodrama and part social critique, Akira Kurosawa's first critical success follows the troubled friendship between a disillusioned doctor and a young yakuza.

Sanjuro Sanjuro
Crime 1962 96 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
In Akira Kurosawa's comedy, a ronin runs rings around nine young samurai while cleaning up a spot of corruption in local government.

I Live in Fear I Live in Fear
Drama 1955 103 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
Toshiro Mifune delivers an outstanding performance as a paranoid man striving to move his family to Brazil to escape the nuclear holocaust which he fears is imminent.

The Hidden Fortress The Hidden Fortress
Martial arts 1958 139 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
Akira Kurosawa’s thrilling mix of fairy story and samurai movie - a story of rival clans, hidden gold and a princess in distress - was famously a key inspiration for George Lucas’ Star Wars.

The Bad Sleep Well The Bad Sleep Well
Crime 1960 151 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
The first film made by Akira Kurosawa's own production company is a dark tale of greed, corporate corruption and revenge.

The Men Who Tread on the Tiger's Tail The Men Who Tread on the Tiger's Tail
Martial arts 1952 59 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
Adapted from Noh and Kabuki theatre, Kurosawa’s classic tale of deception sees a lord and his bodyguard disguise themselves as monks to bypass an enemy roadblock.

Rashomon Rashomon
Crime 1950 88 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
Credited with bringing Japanese cinema to worldwide audiences, Akira Kurosawa’s breakthrough tells the story of a murder in the woods from four differing perspectives.

Drunken Angel Drunken Angel
Film noir 1948 98 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
Part gangster film, part melodrama and part social critique, Akira Kurosawa's first critical success follows the troubled friendship between a disillusioned doctor and a young yakuza.

Sanjuro Sanjuro
Crime 1962 96 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
In Akira Kurosawa's comedy, a ronin runs rings around nine young samurai while cleaning up a spot of corruption in local government.

Sanshiro Sugata Sanshiro Sugata
Crime 1943 79 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
Kurosawa’s assured debut film about a young man’s spiritual journey through the study and practice of judo.

I Live in Fear I Live in Fear
Drama 1955 103 mins Director: Akira Kurosawa
Toshiro Mifune delivers an outstanding performance as a paranoid man striving to move his family to Brazil to escape the nuclear holocaust which he fears is imminent.

The Reckless Moment The Reckless Moment
Film noir 1949 82 mins Director: Max Ophuls
Joan Bennett and James Mason become entangled in a web of secrets and unexpected attraction Max Ophüls masterful domestic noir.

Fat City Fat City
Drama 1972 97 mins Director: John Huston
A washed-up boxer (Stacy Keach), and young hopeful (Jeff Bridges), navigate dreams and despair in John Huston’s gritty boxing drama.

To Sleep with Anger To Sleep with Anger
Comedy 1990 102 mins Director: Charles Burnett
Charles Burnett's brilliant drama about an African American family reeling from a a surprise visit from an old friend, played by Danny Glover.

Highway Patrolman Highway Patrolman
Drama 1991 105 mins Director: Alex Cox
Alex Cox’s Mexican film follows the journey of a highway patrolman whose idealism eventually gives way to inevitable corruption.

The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey
Period drama 1988 91 mins Director: Vincent Ward
A group of medieval English villagers find themselves transported to '80s New Zealand, in Vincent Ward's fusion of fantasy and time-travel.

Society Society
Horror 1989 99 mins Director: Brian Yuzna
A teenager uncovers an elite ritualistic society in Brian Yuzna's stomach-churning mix of body-horror and social commentary.