Jason Morehead

PopMatters spotlights Akira Kurosawa

Over the next couple of weeks, PopMatters will be focusing on the life and work of Akira Kurosawa, including essays on every one of his films. And here’s how they’re kicking things off, with “A Giant Shadow: The Continuing Influence of Akira Kurosawa on World Cinema”: To most outside of Japan, Kurosawa is synonymous with Japanese […]

Jason Morehead

The Film Noir Roots of "Cowboy Bebop"

PopMatters explores some of the themes lurking in of my favorite anime series: The animated series Cowboy Bebop is a blend of classic film noir motifs mixed into a futuristic setting that reverses the roles of gender and character. Consisting of a concise 26 episodes and one movie that doesn’t drag out the story, the […]