Throne of Blood story
Throne of Blood (蜘蛛巣城, Kumonosu-jō, "Spider Web Castle") is a 1957 Japanese historical drama film co-written and directed by Akira Kurosawa. The film transposes the plot of William Shakespeare's play Macbeth from Medieval Scotland to feudal Japan, with stylistic elements drawn from Noh drama. The film stars Toshiro Mifune and Isuzu Yamada in the lead roles, modelled on the characters Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.
14 total · 6 choice · 4 major · 4 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| betrayal | choice | Washizu, largely at the behest of his wife, betrayed both his lord and his closest friend |
| loyalty to a friend | choice | Washizu betrayed his closest friend Miki |
| loyalty to a leader | choice | especially with regard to Lord Tsuzuki, but later to Washizu who replaced Tsuzuki after a bloody betrayal |
| mistrust | choice | Washizu and his wife Asaji suspected various people of plotting their destruction so sought to strike first. |
| the dangers of unchecked ambition | choice | during the second encounter with the spirit woman in the forest, we heard that Tsuzuki's ambitions lead to corpses piling up - presumably the title implies the same theme as well |
| the lust for power | choice | Washizu and, especially, his wife Asaji sought to rise in power by skulduggery and assassination |
| destiny | major | Miki and Washizu had their destinies foretold by a spirit in the forest. Miki acted confidently in support of it but, through some caveats and ironic twists of fate, it turned out to be not all that he thought it would be. |
| dominicide | major | Washizu and Asaji murdered their liege, lord Tsuzuki. |
| husband and wife | major | Washizu and Asaji |
| power corrupts | major | as Washizu rose in rank we saw him become even more cruel, suspicious, and erratic |