One of the parts of college I loved the most was the film society. My family didn't go to the movies all that often, so being able to catch up on "the classics" on the big screen -- for a ridiculously low price -- was a special treat. I remember seeing two Akira Kurosawa films (Throne of Blood and Ran) and I was hooked. I still haven't made it through all of Kurosawa's films, but the ones I've enjoyed the most have Toshiro Mifune in them. When I realized there was a book about both of them, I hoped to learn more about this director-actor relationship. Unfortunately, while the full title of the book is The Emperor and the Wolf: The Lives and Films of Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune, the book is only thorough on "The Films" part but quite terse on "The Lives" part.

The format of the book is pretty formulaic. Following a general year-to-year chronology, we learn about each film (or, at times, television episodes) by either Kurosawa or Mifune. The general storyline is detailed, so if you haven't seen these movies, be aware some major plot points are revealed. If there's some history of how the film came about -- how the story was conceived, how the movie was paid for -- that gets a few paragraphs. Then there's some discussion about how the movie fared, with box office totals and contemporary reviews.

Adding to these descriptions, there are some brief interludes. We learn about Japanese cinema in general, including the up-and-down fortunes of Toho, where both Kurosawa and Mifune got their starts. Each movie summary usually profiles a supporting actor or actress, or sometimes a member of the film crew (including script writers, camera operators, and music scorers).

If that all seems a little dry -- well, it is. We get tiny little bits about the lives of Kurosawa and Mifune (the bits get slightly longer for the most recent anecdotes), but they are all too brief and don't give a full characterization of the principals. We see them working together for an amazing sixteen films, but there's almost nothing about the incredible chemistry between them. Then when they go their separate ways, there's very little analysis about the famous "feud."

The lack of real analysis is what prevents this from being a five-star book. The author is a Kurosawa fan, and can't quite bring himself to criticize any of the director's wrong turns. He brushes off the Kurosawa/Mifune rift as a scheduling problem. He never really questions Kurosawa's attempted suicide. In an effort to provide a comprehensive retrospective of this impressive filmography, the author lets too many quotations speak for him.

It's still an impressive book. The history of Japanese cinema is fascinating, starting with the studio system, and cumulating with the battle between producing mindless hits and producing meaningful films that lose money. This title covers a lot of ground; it's a treasure trove for anyone studying film. But it falls a little flat as it never provides the two main characters with any personality (with nicknames like "The Emperor" and "The Wolf" there are bound to be better stories to share!). With that caveat, this is a book worth reading and studying. ( )