"We too are children of this age, weaned on strife and chaos."

Such are the sentiments of Saburo, the one loyal son of Lord Hidetora Ichimonji after learning of his father's ill-conceived plan to divide his kingdom up equally among Saburo and his brothers.

Saburo's prophetic words resonate throughout the ensuing civil war and endless stream of blood that ultimately engulfs the family.

If this story sounds at all familiar, that's because it is, indeed, William Shakespeare's King Lear set in feudal Japan.

Ran, a Japanese film from 1985, is the final masterpiece of director Akira Kurosawa, the auteur behind such classics as Rashomon, The Seven Samurai, The Hidden Fortress and several others. In the opinion of this reviewer it represents not only the apex of Kurosawa's career, but also the finest film dramatization of a Shakespeare play to date.

While the basic structure of the film is reminiscent of King Lear, it manages to deviate from and even transcend the play in some aspects. The basic "ungrateful heirs" scenario subsists, but the result of the children's selfishness in this film manifests itself in a much more frightening explosion of violence and war. The body count is staggering and the film is literally drenched in eerily bright-red blood.

Lear's three daughters have been replaced, in this version, with three sons: Taro, Jiro and Saburo. Realistically, this was the only way to make the story acceptable for the standards of a 16th-century patriarchal Japanese society.

Despite this inability to present women as rulers, Kurosawa still manages to find significant screen time for Jiro's wife, Lady Kaede, a calculating, sadistic dominatrix who is far more chilling than even the brutal elder brothers could ever aspire to be.

"Ran" is the Japanese word for "chaos" and this is an adequate description of the tone of the film. Throughout, Kurosawa juxtaposes vast, gorgeous landscapes that allude to the tranquility and beauty of nature with battle scenes so horrifically bloody, one can only assume they partially influenced the Saving Private Ryan battle scenes 13 years later.

The sequence, in particular, when Taro and Jiro storm Hidetora's castle presents probably the most haunting visions that Ran, or any film for that matter, has to offer.

Intertwined with the battles are quiet, sad scenes that explore Hidetora's gradual descent into madness. Despite the film's grand scale, these scenes are its true impetus. Tatsuya Nakadai, as the tragic monarch, undergoes an amazing transition from a cruel, powerful tyrant to a rambling, penniless wanderer.

Accompanying Hidetora for much of the film is his loyal servant, Tango, as well as the jester, Kyoami. This suggests another of the film's strong points: the way it defies cliché by making Kyoami, the fool, a fragile, intelligent human being rather than the comic relief sidekick we see in most conventional films.

But, then, there is really nothing conventional about Ran at all; it is the raw, sincere artistic vision of its director. Kurosawa had Ran stewing in his brain for 10 years before he was able to undertake the task of creating the enormous epic.

At the time of its release, Ran was considered the largest, most expensive production in Japanese cinema history, although by American standards the $11.5 million budget, even in 1985, was petty change.

Judging from the spectacular scope of the film, however, it is clear not a cent was wasted.

Never settling for the easy angle or the standard shot, Kurosawa used three cameras for every external frame, employed 1,400 extras, over 2,000 horses and a dazzling wardrobe of extravagant, historically accurate costumes and makeup. He was assuredly meticulous in creating what many, at the time, assumed would be his swan song.

Kurosawa did actually go on to direct a few more titles, though they paled in comparison — how could they not? Ran is that rare Sistine Chapel of a film that defines, yet creatively drains, an artist, similar to what Citizen Kane did to the young Orson Welles.

So, if you find yourself struggling over whether or not to see the latest filmed Shakespeare adaptation, I implore you instead to rent the masterful Ran.