This week at Geek Girl Soup we’re discussing the Rashomon Effect—that is, when a story is told from different perspectives by different people with different details.

We start with the original, “Rashomon” (HBO Max), by legendary Japanese director Akira Kurosawa. In this film, the only known facts are that a man is dead and that a bandit has sex with the wife. Who killed the man? Was the wife raped or seduced? We hear four different stories, including from the man himself through a medium, all with significantly different details. Who is the most reliable narrator? Is there really an answer at the end, or are we supposed to make up our minds for ourselves?

“Hoodwinked” (YouTube—free) is an animated film from 2005 that features Anne Hathaway and Glenn Close. It’s a retelling of Red-Riding Hood, Granny, and the Big Bad Wolf, with some changes. As in “Rashomon,” we get different stories from the different characters. Since we already know the original story of Little Red-Riding Hood, we have preconceived notions of who the Bad Guy is. Since this is a family film, we are given a definitive answer as to what the “real” story is at the end. This is a wonderful introduction to the Rashomon Effect for kids—without actually using that phrase.

Cort tells us about s3 e20 of “Dawson’s Creek,” “The Longest Day.” In this episode, the day’s activities are are replayed from the perspectives of three different characters. This is an unusual episode for the series and a great example of the Rashomon Effect.

Finally, we discuss “Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai” (Criterion). Directed by Jim Jarmusch and starring Forest Whitaker, this film features a physical copy of the book Rashomon being passed around between several characters. But the film is not an example of the Rashomon Effect. We were duped by a website that listed the film as an example of such. We still enjoyed the film. Whitaker and Camille Winbush as Pearline are excellent.

Amongst our discussions of the Rashomon Effect, we talk about how memory is fickle and fungible and how older memories are the strongest as you age. We can’t remember what we ate for breakfast, but we remember how our first loves broke our hearts. Yay, neuroscience! But what would happen if we got the heartbreak story from the perspective of our first love? Ooh. We probably don’t want to go there!

Next week we’ll be giving you a preview into the most prestigious awards of the season: The Soupies, Geek Girl Soup’s very own awards! Watch what you will, as we catch up on films and shows nominated for the Film Independent Spirit Awards.

Follow Cort’s podcast with Brad at PureFandom.com

Check out Susan’s movie stats on Letterboxd https://letterboxd.com/barbisu/stats/

Listen to Kelly’s podcast at Brand + Design Scoop

Original music by Garrett Thompson

Join us for live tweets of our favorite shows, and Follow us on Twitter & Instagram @GeekGirlSoup

Continue the conversation on facebook.com/groups/GeekGirlSoup

Email your questions and comments to GeekGirlSoup@gmail.com

Geek on!