Monday, March 23, 2009

Dersu Uzala (1975)--3/5

"Man is very small before the face of nature."--Captain Vladimir Arseniev.

This quote--one that could define many movies--highlights the strongest scenes in Akira Kurosawa's Russian film, "Dersu Uzala." It's a relatively free-form journey into the tundra of Russia. But don't worry, Kurosawa's classical composition is still on display in scenes of static conversation. (It's his first color film, and the print quality is poor, so the compositions don't jump from the screen like usual.)

At the turn of the last century, Captain Arseniev is leading his men on what seems like a pointless exercise. Ostensibly, they're surveying the area, but little is seen in the way of work. Like "Aguirre, the Wrath of God," most of the runtime is spent on trudging through ice, mud, or over swelled rivers. I can think of only one scene in which any mapping of terrain is performed.

Dersu Uzala, Mongolian who lives in the wilderness, appears and guides to the men, saving lives on more than one occasion. With a hint of colonialism, Dersu acts almost as a magical servant "other." He has a connection to the forest and tundra, sensing things long before the urban Russians. However, his growing friendship with Arseniev counteracts the initial negative connotations.

In a terrific scene, Dersu and Arseniev are trapped on a frozen lake. As the sun rapidly sets, they realize they're stuck. Thinking quickly, Dersu commands Arseniev to start cutting down the tall grasses. The task doesn't make sense, and the situation seems hopeless, but they cut and cut. And cut some more, until they have a small mountain of grass to burrow into. The next day, Arseniev, surprised to be alive, wakes up to stand in awe of Dersu going about his business. He's tearing down the "tent" as if nothing extraordinary had happened. It's hard not to feel the same way about Kurosawa's films.


Would you think to make a tent out of this grass?

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