Written and directed by Akira Kurosawa, co-written by Ishirô Honda, a collection of magical tales based upon the actual dreams of director Akira Kurosawa. Starring: Akira Terao, Mitsuko Baisho, Toshie Negishi, Mieko Harada, Mitsunori Isaki, Toshihiko Nakano, Yoshitaka Zushi and many more.

There are not many filmmakers these days that could simply set out to create a journey meets anthology style film to traverse through their own dreams but it would be no surprise to anyone that Akira Kurosawa could do just that. In that sense, a lot of viewers’ enjoyment of Dreams will purely be based on how much they enjoy the work of Kurosawa because the key to this film is simply letting yourself be carried away by his style.

Granted, some of the tales are stronger than others, particularly the opening dream which many viewers could probably happily follow for the entire feature. A curious child, mythical and magical themes and the backdrop of the forest, it’s incredibly enticing. While each of them have their own strange quality, they do also have themes in common, especially when it comes to mortality and good versus evil.

While not everything might work, the one things that never lets you down is the quality to the visual, enhanced further by the restoration work. It’s colourful and intensely imaginative, it also feels as though it was likely a strong influence on Takeshi Kitano’s Dolls. The way that it moves has the quality of a wandering soul, it leans into the curiosity and playfulness but there’s also an interesting depth lingering in the background of every scene.

Following that style, the characters all have a transient quality, there isn’t a permanence or continuation, they themselves take on a dreamlike feel. They appear as suddenly as they disappear, but they certainly have plenty to add. Kurosawa and Honda bring together a huge variety of personalities but at the same time they feel consistent, the tone flows so well to allow them to be different but never allow one to stand out more than the others.

Dreams is an exploration of imagination and creativity, going down an unusual path of storytelling that’s focused solely on the journey. Visually it’s both traditional and unusual but filled with colour and energy. Some dream sequences are stronger than others but you can feel how Kurosawa was creating an experience rather than a story with this film. It’s not going to be one for everyone but anyone who’s a fan of the iconic filmmaker, should see it.

Verdict: ✯✯✯ | 6/10

Releasing as part of the Criterion Collection on 4K UHD & Blu-ray from 22 April

AVAILABLE TO BUY FROM HMV, AMAZON and RAREWAVES

Special Features Include:
– 4K digital restoration, supervised by cinematographer Shoji Ueda, with 2.0 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
– One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
– Audio commentary featuring film scholar Stephen Prince
– Feature-length documentary from 1990 shot on set and directed by Nobuhiko Obayashi
– Interviews with production manager Teruyo Nogami and assistant director Takashi Koizumi
– Documentary from 2011 by director Akira Kurosawa’s longtime translator Catherine Cadou, featuring interviews with filmmakers Bernardo Bertolucci, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Hayao Miyazaki, Martin Scorsese, and others
– Trailer
PLUS: An essay by film critic Bilge Ebiri and Kurosawa’s script for a never-filmed ninth dream, introduced by Nogami