Her Brother

Her Brother
Her Brother
	Original Japanese poster.
Directed by	Kon Ichikawa
Written by	Yōko Mizuki
Based on	Otōto by Aya Koda
Produced by	Hiroaki Fujii; Masaichi Nagata;
Starring	Keiko Kishi
Cinematography	Kazuo Miyagawa
Edited by	Tatsuji Nakashizu
Music by	Yasushi Akutagawa
Production; company	Daiei Film
Distributed by	Daiei Film
Release date	1 November 1960 (Japan);
Running time	97 minutes
Country	Japan
Language	Japanese

Her Brother (おとうと, Otōto, lit. "Younger brother") is a 1960 Japanese drama film directed by Kon Ichikawa. The film is based on the novel Otōto by Aya Koda.^[1]^[2]^[3] It was entered into the 1961 Cannes Film Festival, where it won a prize for Special Distinction.^[4]

Plot

17-year-old Gen takes care of the household of her family due to her stepmother's rheumatism. Meanwhile, her younger brother Hekiro lives a carefree life, repeatedly getting into trouble and making gambling debts. Neither his stepmother interferes with his behaviour, nor does the detached father, a famous novelist. Only Gen scolds Hekiro from time to time, for which he ridicules her, although she is completely devoted to him. When Hekiro falls terminally ill with tuberculosis and is hospitalised, with his sister being the only regular visitor, he finally regrets his behaviour. After Hekiro's death, Gen is taken back home with anemia by the hospital personnel, but once she awakes, she returns to her role as the housekeeper without questioning.

Cast

Keiko Kishi as Gen
Hiroshi Kawaguchi as Hekiro
Kinuyo Tanaka as Mother
Masayuki Mori as Father
Kyōko Kishida as Mrs. Tanuma
Noboru Nakaya as Patrolman Rokoru Shimizu
Kyōko Enami as Nurse Miyata
Jun Hamamura as Doctor
Hikaru Hoshi as Owner of hiring horse
Juzo Itami as Son of Factory owner
Noriko Hodaka as Nurse

Background

In order to achieve a desaturated look, the film made use of a cinematographic technique known as bleach bypass.^[1] Ichikawa had been inspired by the photography for John Huston's 1956 adaptation of Moby-Dick.^{[citation needed]}

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "おとうと(1960)". Kinenote (in Japanese). Retrieved 27 August 2022.
^ "おとうと" (in Japanese). Kotobank. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
^ "おとうと" (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
^ "IN COMPETITION - FEATURE FILMS: OTOHTO". Festival de Cannes. Retrieved 21 February 2009.

External links

Her Brother at IMDb

[kinenote-1] "おとうと(1960)". Kinenote (in Japanese). Retrieved 27 August 2022.

[2] "おとうと" (in Japanese). Kotobank. Retrieved 27 December 2020.

[3] "おとうと" (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 27 December 2020.

[festival-cannes.com-4] "IN COMPETITION - FEATURE FILMS: OTOHTO". Festival de Cannes. Retrieved 21 February 2009.

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