NOT A THING TO DO WITH POTTERY

When I am looking at, thinking about or making pottery, I am constantly trying to get at what it is that makes something good. What are the attributes or components that make the whole cohesive, understandable and superior? Though this has little to do with pottery, what springs to mind is the 1961 Japanese film; YOJIMBO. For those that have seen YOJIMBO, what is immediately apparent is that the movie is nearly flawless, perfect if you will, nothing superfluous and seemingly simple in construction and plot, after all, even Clint Eastwood and Bruce Willis tried their hand at the story line. That being said, the story line crafted by Akira Kurosawa and Kikushima Ryuzo is exceptional, the cinematography by Miyagawa Kazuo and direction by Kurosawa is both innovative and truthful, the musical score by Sato Masaru adds subtle depth to the narrative of the film and the clash of protagonist played by Mifune Toshiro and antagonist, Nakadai Tatsuya will likely go down in history as sheer character perfection. As I think of this film, it reminds me of all the "things" that need to go together perfectly to create a masterpiece and the more thought I give this, the more impossible it seems. I guess 1961 must have been a great year for assembling just the right pieces/parts in the form of a simple and highly enjoyable little film.