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Although perhaps less engaging and "ultimate" than some of his best works (Bluebeard, Ikiru, Seven Samuraï, Ran...), Akira Kurosawa's Palme d'Or recipient still is quite a movie to behold. By showing almost none of the war elements in-frame, Kurosawa probably made one of the more troubling war tragedies in his filmography with Kagemusha, a collection of majorly still paintings rimmed with stunning and expressionnist backdrops that transform mere sunlight (both real and obviously artificial) into pools of blood, in-between his usual mastering of ensemble framing and picturesque composition in regards to the political drama that is the crux of the movie's narrative.

The visual and dramatic device of doubles, shadows and ghosts are reminiscent of Hitchcock's formalist work on figural re-incarnation such as it can be seen in Vertigo (1958) or Rebecca (1948), although merged with Kurosawa's more oriental sensibilities as far as the mise en scène of relationships and the use of movement and nature (the wind is especially integral to some of the shots and/or scenes).

I definitely prefer the more memorable and magnificently shakespearian Ran amongst Kurosawa's later works, but Kagemusha's sort of off kilter approaches, its restraint, its use of both atmospheric, minimalistic and orchestral music and its slow, light yet somewhat pessimistic ambiance that drive sparks of humour towards a most dire and bitter ending give it a bizarre spot in the man's filmography, in a majorly positive mannor

A great piece of psychological warfare, Anatomy Of A Murder is methodologically told and yet never repeats itself, it always stays engaging throughout its 3 hour runtime and its almost singular location. Great use of frame distribution and camera movement throughout give this movie a very intensive and enthralling momentum. Duke Ellington's soundtrack is also put to good use as though to alleviate us from the main and fantastic courtroom set-pieces, which are mostly set in silence. The film has some audacious and satirical elements to it but they're done in a more subtle fashion than in say Lady From Shanghai by Orson Welles (which isn't a bad thing at all in Welles' film) ; all in all, it really serves the captivating realism of Otto Preminger's film. One of the greatest courtroom films ever made.