The novel Shogun (based on true events around the year 1600, though the names have been changed) is one of the best stories ever about medieval Japan and the good news is that this mini-series remains faithful to the book. The bad news is that it is the quintessential 70's-style mini-series. Made-for-TV movies have always been handicapped regarding their budget compared to theatrical blockbusters, but a lot of progress has been made TV's shooting and editing techniques in the last 20 years. There are perhaps only 10 years between the mini-series versions of Shogun and Lonesome Dove, but the latter looks fairly modern while the former looks really dated. It almost looks as if every scene was shot with only one camera. Then there are the commercial breaks. Thankfully the commercials themselves aren't included on the DVD, but the breaks are so drastic you can see where they originally were. There is even some recapping going on after the break to remind everyone exactly where the story was. And the "special" effects for the sea storm and earthquake scenes are laughable. This really cries out to be remade, except that it would take an effort and budget like Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy to do the story justice. So much for the laments. Once you get past the dated TV techniques, you will be riveted by the story. It delves deeply into Japanese culture of the samurai period far beyond Tom Cruise's recent Last Samurai, and spends enough time with the characters to portray the contradictions in a meaningful way. It shows how horrifying some Japanese customs are to a European (a petty samurai lord beheads a peasant only for not bowing to him), and how disgusting the Europeans' hygiene (lack of) customs are to the Japanese. Then there is the pheasant episode! Showing how communication problems can lead to tragedy, it is horrifying, disgusting, ironically funny, and ultimately heart-breaking. But then, Shogun has all human emotions in abundance throughout its nine hours. The costumes (and hair-styles and makeup) are very authentic, as are the settings, apparently all shot on location in Japan. By all means, watch this mini-series if you are interested in this sort of subject. It's a little like listening to your favorite symphony, played by a provincial orchestra, and recorded on scratchy LP's, but it still remains one of the very best dramatizations of Samurai Japan ever made.
Review of Shogun
