The Rashomon Effect

Behavioral New World

August 1, 2026

The Rashomon Effect

I recently re-watched the movie Rashomon. I probably last saw it in college, at least a decade ago. It is a 1950 Japanese film, widely regarded as one of the greatest movies of all time. I can testify that it bears almost no resemblance to today’s movies—there is a fair amount of maniacal laughter, for example, that today would end up on the cutting room floor, I suspect.

Optional homework: Once you’ve seen the movie, compare its maniacal laughter with the “diabolical” laughter in Monty Python’s “Spanish Inquisition” sketch (link). Feel free to give examples of either maniacal or diabolical laughter from your life—comment below.

The movie consists of four narratives about a murder. The narratives differ, and only one of them, at most, can be correct (all the narratives may be wrong); the movie offers no resolution as to which narrative is true. The movie illustrates, rather dramatically I’d say, that people have different perspectives and memories of the same incident, and that getting to the truth of what actually occurred is decidedly difficult.

Although one of the characters might be lying, the others seem to be recounting what they saw—and in some cases, participated in—honestly. They perceive and remember the murder differently. This is the Rashomon Effect.

There are several lessons that we can take from the movie.

First, eyewitness testimony is unreliable. Derek Abbott (link) cites a study that shows that up to 48% of people pick the wrong person out of a lineup. And a Scientific American article (link) cites cases where people have been wrongly convicted based on eyewitness testimony, sometimes with as many as five eyewitnesses! Perhaps Rashomon should be a part of the law school curriculum?

Second, and closely related to the first, memory is fallible and malleable. Cited in the Scientific American article is the work of Elizabeth Loftus and others about the ability to create false memories. In the 1980s, preschool and daycare workers were accused of performing “Satanic rituals” with their charges (link to one case). The children were manipulated to report (obviously false) memories of such activities.

Third, given the fallibility of our perceptions and memories, we might consider occasionally exercising epistemic humility, the recognition that our knowledge is provisional, incomplete, and subject to revision. I first mentioned this phrase—a favorite of mine, I admit—in my March 2026 newsletter. (link)

Fourth, be aware that our perceptions of an event will depend on how we frame the event, consciously or unconsciously. For example, ego-centric bias refers to our tendency to interpret information in a way that makes us look good. At least one character in the movie felt the murder was justified.

Fifth, recognizing the Rashomon Effect could make us less critical of others who don’t see things the way we see them. Most of us can recognize that others have perspectives, thoughts, and memories that are different from ours, an ability called “theory of mind.” (link) Those differences may not be tantamount to lying but rather indicate how individuals process a given event differently, during and after the fact.

“I used to think that the brain was the most wonderful organ in my body. Then I realized who was telling me this.” -- Emo Philips