Throne of Blood poster

Throne of Blood

7.9(1,032)19571h 48m8

Returning to their lord's castle, samurai warriors Washizu and Miki are waylaid by a spirit who predicts their futures. When the first part of the spirit's prophecy comes true, Washizu's scheming wife, Asaji, presses him to speed up the rest of the spirit's prophecy by murdering his lord and usurping his place. Director Akira Kurosawa's resetting of William Shakespeare's "Macbeth" in feudal Japan is one of his most acclaimed films.

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Status
Released
Budget
—
Box office
$13.4K
Language
Japanese
  • japan
  • samurai
  • based on novel or book
  • prophecy
  • castle
  • siege
  • ambition
  • betrayal
  • black and white
  • ghost
  • jidaigeki
  • sengoku period

Top billed cast

Behind the camera

Gallery

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Videos

Release dates

  • United StatesUS

    • TheatricalNR15 Jan 1957
  • United KingdomGB

    • Theatrical126 Jan 1958
  • AustraliaAU

    • Theatrical (limited)MRe-Release26 Oct 2024
  • CzechiaCZ

    • TVČT223 Nov 2008
  • DenmarkDK

    • Theatrical1 Oct 1965
  • FranceFR

    • Premiere1015 Jan 1957
    • Theatrical1027 Apr 1966
    • Physical8 Mar 2017
  • GermanyDE

    • Theatrical1615 Jan 1957
  • ItalyIT

    • PremiereVenice Film Festival5 Sept 1957
    • Theatrical9 Oct 1959
  • JapanJP

    • TheatricalG15 Jan 1957
  • NetherlandsNL

    • PhysicalALDVD15 Mar 2005
  • PhilippinesPH

    • TheatricalKurosawa Film Festival14 Sept 2010
  • South KoreaKR

    • Theatrical16 Apr 2004

Frequently asked questions

Throne of Blood was released on 15 January 1957.

Audience reviews

2
  • C

    CRCulver

    8/23/2018

    8/10

    One of a number of films that Akira Kurosawa made in the 1950s and which have become classics, <i>Throne of Blood</i> is the director's adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth, set in feudal Japan but showing that lust for power is a perennial feature of human society. Washizu (the Macbeth character, Toshiro Mifune) is a soldier serving the lord of Spiders-Web Castle. While riding through a forest with his comrade and ch…

  • C

    CinemaSerf

    4/20/2023

    7/10

    I think that this is a superb tragi-adventure story that stands out well amongst the numerous loose adaptations of Shakespeare that have been made over the years. Kurosawa takes the Scottish play and gives it the "Noh" treatment that delivers an enigmatic and tautly directed rendition of a story of betrayal, power and insanity. Toshirô Mifune is magnificent as "Washizu" who after getting lost with his colleague (Mino…

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