From Noir to Kurosawa: Allusion and Homage in Lawrence Kasdan’s Films

This chapter explores the major influences on Lawrence Kasdan’s creative output. Using both primary interviews and intertextual analysis, it suggests that Kasdan has a proclivity for homage, as he frequently references the work of George Cukor, John Ford, and David Lean. The chapter then demonstrates how one filmmaker has remained a constant inspiration throughout Kasdan’s career: Akira Kurosawa. It then examines four screenwriting elements – dialogue, plot, character and themes – in order to demonstrate how Kasdan’s work has been repeatedly informed by Kurosawa’s storytelling style. Moreover, the chapter explores the ways in which Kasdan’s noted versatility may have been inspired by Kurosawa’s career choices, with both filmmakers adapting and subverting genres to explore personal concerns within paradigms recognizable to contemporary audiences. Furthermore, it compares the progressive world views at the heart of both filmmakers’ work, even as both worked predominantly within very conservative periods in their countries’ respective histories.