Akira Kurosawa: A Retrospective (New 4K Restorations)
July 25–August 14, 2025
Widely considered one of the most influential filmmakers of the 20th century, Akira Kurosawa created transcendent works of art that challenged cinematic limitations, illuminating the universal truths of the human condition, adapting Shakespeare, and inspiring the world of Star Wars.
SIFF is thrilled to present this retrospective of new 2K and 4K restorations courtesy of Janus Films. From contemporary masterpieces such as Stray Dog, High and Low, and Ikiru to period pieces reimagining genre like Yojimbo, Sanjuro, The Hidden Fortress, and Throne of Blood, Kurosawa’s art is as timely as ever. This series will also include the 4K restorations of Seven Samurai and Ran (Rialto Pictures), and 2K restorations of Rashomon and Red Beard.
Akira Kurosawa: The Hidden Fortress (New 4K Restoration)
Japan | 1958 | 139 min. | Akira Kurosawa
Opens July 31, 2025
Kurosawa’s first widescreen film is a delightfully comedic Samurai saga starring Toshiro Mifune as a general charged with guarding his defeated clan’s princess as the two smuggle royal treasure across hostile territory. New 4K restoration.
Akira Kurosawa: High and Low (New 4K Restoration)
Japan | 1963 | 143 min. | Akira Kurosawa
Opens July 25, 2025
Toshiro Mifune is unforgettable as Kingo Gondo, a wealthy industrialist whose family becomes the target of a cold-blooded kidnapper in this highly influential domestic drama and police procedural. New 4K restoration.
Akira Kurosawa: Ikiru (New 4K Restoration)
Japan | 1952 | 143 min. | Akira Kurosawa
Opens August 1, 2025
One of the greatest achievements by Akira Kurosawa, Ikiru shows the director at his most compassionate—affirming life through an exploration of death. New 4K restoration.
Akira Kurosawa: Ran (New 4K Restoration)
France | 1985 | 162 min. | Akira Kurosawa
Opens August 6, 2025
Akira Kurosawa’s favorite of his films, this innovative, epic adaptation of “King Lear”—nominated for four Academy Awards including Best Director—returns to the giant screen. New 4K restoration.
Akira Kurosawa: Rashomon (New 2K Restoration)
Japan | 1950 | 88 min. | Akira Kurosawa
Opens August 5, 2025
A horrible crime is told and retold from multiple—and vastly divergent perspectives—in the classic film that brought Japanese auteur Akira Kurosawa to the global stage. New 2K restoration.
Akira Kurosawa: Red Beard (New 2K Restoration)
Japan | 1965 | 185 min. | Akira Kurosawa
Opens July 30, 2025
Perfectly capturing the look and feel of 19th-century Japan, this testament to the goodness of humankind stars powerhouse Toshiro Mifune in his last role for Kurosawa. New 2K restoration.
Akira Kurosawa: Sanjuro (New 4K Restoration)
Japan | 1962 | 95 min. | Akira Kurosawa
Opens July 28, 2025
Toshiro Mifune swaggers and snarls to brilliant comic effect in Akira Kurosawa's tightly paced, beautifully composed companion piece to Yojimbo. New 4K restoration.
Akira Kurosawa: Seven Samurai (4K Restoration)
Japan | 1954 | 207 min. | Akira Kurosawa
Opens July 29, 2025
A 16th-century farming village requests protection from seven samurai against a horde of bandits who have warned they will return when the crops are ripe. A gripping three-hour ride from master filmmaker Akira Kurosawa. 4K restoration.
Akira Kurosawa: Stray Dog (New 4K Restoration)
Japan | 1949 | 122 min. | Akira Kurosawa
Opens July 31, 2025
A bad day gets worse for young detective Murakami when a pickpocket steals his gun on a hot, crowded bus. This early classic goes beyond a crime thriller, probing the squalid world of postwar Japan and the nature of the criminal mind. New 4K restoration.
Akira Kurosawa: Throne of Blood (New 4K Restoration)
Japan | 1957 | 109 min. | Akira Kurosawa
Opens July 25, 2025
A vivid, visceral Macbeth adaptation sets Shakespeare’s definitive tale of ambition and duplicity in a ghostly, fog-enshrouded landscape in feudal Japan. New 4K restoration.
Akira Kurosawa: Yojimbo (New 4K Restoration)
Japan | 1961 | 110 min. | Akira Kurosawa
Opens July 28, 2025
The incomparable Toshiro Mifune stars in this visually stunning and darkly comic genre-twister. New 4K restoration.