Ugetsu: Difference between revisions
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{{nihongo|'''''Ugetsu''''' or '''''Ugetsu Monogatari'''''|雨月物語}} is a 1953 [[black-and-white]] Japanese film directed by [[Kenji Mizoguchi]] and based on stories in [[Ueda Akinari]]'s [[Ugetsu Monogatari|book of the same name]]. It is a [[ghost story]] and an example of the ''[[jidaigeki]]'' (period drama) genre. Set in [[Azuchi–Momoyama period]] [[Japan]], it stars [[Masayuki Mori (actor)|Masayuki Mori]] and [[Machiko Kyō]]. |
{{nihongo|'''''Ugetsu''''' or '''''Ugetsu Monogatari'''''|雨月物語}} is a 1953 [[black-and-white]] Japanese film directed by [[Kenji Mizoguchi]] and based on stories in [[Ueda Akinari]]'s [[Ugetsu Monogatari|book of the same name]]. It is a [[ghost story]] and an example of the ''[[jidaigeki]]'' (period drama) genre, particularly based on the stories "The House in the Thicket" and "The Lust of the White Serpent". Set in [[Azuchi–Momoyama period]] [[Japan]], it stars [[Masayuki Mori (actor)|Masayuki Mori]] and [[Machiko Kyō]]. |
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Major themes in the film include the ethics of war, in light of [[World War II]], and neglect of family duty. The film won the [[Silver Lion]] Award for Best Direction at the [[14th Venice International Film Festival|1953 Venice Film Festival]]. It is one of Mizoguchi's most celebrated films, regarded by critics as a masterwork of [[Japanese cinema]]. It is credited with simultaneously helping popularize Japanese cinema in the West and influencing later Japanese film. |
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==Plot== |
==Plot== |
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Genjurō is visited by a noblewoman and her female servant, who order several pieces of pottery and tell him to take them to the Kutsuki mansion. Genjurō learns that [[Oda Nobunaga|Nobunaga's]] soldiers have attacked the manor and killed all who lived there, except Lady Wakasa and her servant. He also learns that Lady Wakasa's father haunts the manor. Genjurō is seduced by Lady Wakasa, and she convinces him to marry her. Meanwhile, Nakanogō is under attack. Miyagi and her son hide from soldiers and are found by an elderly woman who hurries them to safety. In the woods, several soldiers desperately search her for food. She fights with the soldiers and is stabbed. She collapses with her son still clutching her back. |
Genjurō is visited by a noblewoman and her female servant, who order several pieces of pottery and tell him to take them to the Kutsuki mansion. Genjurō learns that [[Oda Nobunaga|Nobunaga's]] soldiers have attacked the manor and killed all who lived there, except Lady Wakasa and her servant. He also learns that Lady Wakasa's father haunts the manor. Genjurō is seduced by Lady Wakasa, and she convinces him to marry her. Meanwhile, Nakanogō is under attack. Miyagi and her son hide from soldiers and are found by an elderly woman who hurries them to safety. In the woods, several soldiers desperately search her for food. She fights with the soldiers and is stabbed. She collapses with her son still clutching her back. |
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Tōbei steals the severed head of a general, which he presents to the commander of the victorious side. He is rewarded with armor, a mount, and a retinue. Tōbei later rides into the marketplace on his new horse, eager to return home to show his wife. However, he visits a brothel and finds her working there as a prostitute. Tōbei promises to buy back her honor. Later, the two return to Nakanogō, Tōbei throwing his armor into a river along the way. |
Tōbei steals the severed head of a general, which he presents to the commander of the victorious side. He is rewarded with armor, a mount, and a retinue. Tōbei later rides into the marketplace on his new horse, eager to return home to show his wife. However, he visits a brothel and finds her working there as a prostitute. Tōbei promises to buy back her honor. Later, the two return to Nakanogō, Tōbei throwing his armor into a river along the way. |
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==Cast== |
==Cast== |
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{{multiple image |
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| footer = [[Masayuki Mori (actor)|Masayuki Mori]], [[Machiko Kyō]] and [[Kinuyo Tanaka]] star. |
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{{div col}} |
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* [[Machiko Kyō]] as Lady Wakasa |
* [[Machiko Kyō]] as Lady Wakasa |
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* [[Mitsuko Mito]] as Ohama |
* [[Mitsuko Mito]] as Ohama |
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* Koji Murata |
* Koji Murata |
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* Fumihiko Yokoyama |
* Fumihiko Yokoyama |
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{{div col end}} |
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==Production== |
==Production== |
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[[File:Kenji Mizoguchi 2.jpg|200px|thumb|Director [[Kenji Mizoguchi]] made the affects of war a major theme of his film.]] |
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After the success of his previous film ''[[The Life of Oharu]]'', Mizoguchi was offered to make a film at [[Daiei Film]] studios by his old friend [[Masaichi Nagata]]. The deal promised Mizoguchi complete artistic control and a large budget. Despite this, Mizoguchi was eventually pressured to make a less pessimistic ending for the film.<ref name=wakeman798>{{harvnb|Wakeman|1987|p=798}}</ref> The film's title ''Ugetsu'' is a truncation of ''Ugetsu Monogatari'', the Japanese title, from Akinari's ''[[Ugetsu Monogatari]]''.<ref>{{harvnb|McDonald|1984|pages=103–104}}</ref> Mizoguchi based his film on two stories from the book, "The House in the Thicket" (Asaji ga Yado) and "The Lust of the White Serpent" (Jasei no In).<ref name=mcdonald/><ref name=mac116>{{harvnb|McDonald|1984|p=116}}</ref> Other inspirations for the film's script include [[Guy de Maupassant]]'s ''Décoré!'' (''How He Got the Legion of Honor'').<ref name=mcdonald/><ref name=wakeman798/> While writing the script, Mizoguchi told his screenwriter and long-time collaborator [[Yoshikata Yoda]] "Whether war originates in the ruler's personal motives, or in some public concern, how violence, disguised as war, oppresses and torments the populace both physically and spiritually... I want to emphasize this as the main theme of the film."<ref name=mac116/> During the shooting Yoda was constantly rewriting and revising scenes due to Mizoguchi's perfectionism.<ref name=mac104>{{harvnb|McDonald|1984|p=104}}</ref> |
After the success of his previous film ''[[The Life of Oharu]]'', Mizoguchi was offered to make a film at [[Daiei Film]] studios by his old friend [[Masaichi Nagata]]. The deal promised Mizoguchi complete artistic control and a large budget. Despite this, Mizoguchi was eventually pressured to make a less pessimistic ending for the film.<ref name=wakeman798>{{harvnb|Wakeman|1987|p=798}}</ref> The film's title ''Ugetsu'' is a truncation of ''Ugetsu Monogatari'', the Japanese title, from Akinari's ''[[Ugetsu Monogatari]]''.<ref>{{harvnb|McDonald|1984|pages=103–104}}</ref> Mizoguchi based his film on two stories from the book, "The House in the Thicket" (Asaji ga Yado) and "The Lust of the White Serpent" (Jasei no In).<ref name=mcdonald/><ref name=mac116>{{harvnb|McDonald|1984|p=116}}</ref> Other inspirations for the film's script include [[Guy de Maupassant]]'s ''Décoré!'' (''How He Got the Legion of Honor'').<ref name=mcdonald/><ref name=wakeman798/> While writing the script, Mizoguchi told his screenwriter and long-time collaborator [[Yoshikata Yoda]] "Whether war originates in the ruler's personal motives, or in some public concern, how violence, disguised as war, oppresses and torments the populace both physically and spiritually... I want to emphasize this as the main theme of the film."<ref name=mac116/> During the shooting Yoda was constantly rewriting and revising scenes due to Mizoguchi's perfectionism.<ref name=mac104>{{harvnb|McDonald|1984|p=104}}</ref> |
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Mizoguchi told his cinematographer [[Kazuo Miyagawa]] that he wanted the film "to unroll seamlessly like a scroll-painting."<ref name=wakeman798/> The film has been praised for its cinematography, such as the opening shot and the scene where Genjurō and Lady Wakasa make love by a stream and the camera follows the flow of the water instead of lingering on the two lovers.<ref name=wakeman799/> Miyagawa stated that this film was the only occasion in which Mizoguchi complimented him for his camera work.<ref name=wakeman799>{{harvnb|Wakeman|1987|p=799}}</ref> |
Mizoguchi told his cinematographer [[Kazuo Miyagawa]] that he wanted the film "to unroll seamlessly like a scroll-painting."<ref name=wakeman798/> The film has been praised for its cinematography, such as the opening shot and the scene where Genjurō and Lady Wakasa make love by a stream and the camera follows the flow of the water instead of lingering on the two lovers.<ref name=wakeman799/> Miyagawa stated that this film was the only occasion in which Mizoguchi complimented him for his camera work.<ref name=wakeman799>{{harvnb|Wakeman|1987|p=799}}</ref> |
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==Themes== |
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[[File:Captured comfort women in Myitkyina on August 14 in 1944.jpg|200px|thumb|[[Comfort women]] are referenced in Ohama's subplot.]] |
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A common interpretation of the film is that Mizoguchi refashioned the stories of ''Ugetsu Monogatari'' to express regret about the pro-war sentiments leading to [[World War II]], with Mizoguchi personally having made the pro-war [[propaganda film]] ''[[The 47 Ronin (1941 film)|The 47 Ronin]]'' in 1941.<ref>Martha P. Nochimson, ''World on Film: An Introduction'', Wiley-Blackwell, 2011, p. 213.</ref> British filmmaker [[Tony Rayns]] argued the film's presentation of the vanity of a man, neglecting his family, is a critique of historic men in feudal Japanese culture.<ref>Nochimson, ''World on Film'', p. 214.</ref> |
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The subplot of Tobei and Ohama particularly reflects the [[comfort women]], who were made into prostitutes by the [[Imperial Japanese Army]]. Mizoguchi struggled with Daiei in giving the subplot an unhappier ending than what appears in the film, in line with real comfort women's experiences after the war.<ref>Nochimson, ''World on Film'', pp. 213-214.</ref> |
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Genjuro's pottery is also a major theme in the film. Professor Robin Wood argues his pottery evolves in three phases, reflecting Mizoguchi's changing approach to filmmaking. Genjuro begins making the pottery for commercial reasons, shifts to pure aesthetics while isolated with Wakasa, and finally moves on to a style that reflects life and strives to understand it.<ref>Robin Wood, ''Personal Views: Explorations in Film'', Wayne State University Press, 2006, p. 288.</ref> |
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==Release== |
==Release== |
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''Ugetsu'' was released in Japan on March 26, 1953.<ref>{{harvnb|McDonald|1984|pages=181}}</ref> |
''Ugetsu'' was released in Japan on March 26, 1953.<ref>{{harvnb|McDonald|1984|pages=181}}</ref> |
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It was shown at the 1953 [[Venice Film Festival]]. Accompanied by Yoda and [[Kinuyo Tanaka]],<ref name=wakeman799/> Mizoguchi made his first trip outside Japan to attend the festival. He spent most of his time in [[Italy]] inside his hotel room praying to a scroll with a portrait of [[Nichiren]]. While in Venice he met director [[William Wyler]], whose film ''[[Roman Holiday]]'' was also screening in competition at the festival and was rumored to be the winner of the Silver Lion for best director.<ref name=mac104/> |
It was shown at the 1953 [[Venice Film Festival]]. Accompanied by Yoda and [[Kinuyo Tanaka]],<ref name=wakeman799/> Mizoguchi made his first trip outside Japan to attend the festival. He spent most of his time in [[Italy]] inside his hotel room praying to a scroll with a portrait of [[Nichiren]]. While in Venice he met director [[William Wyler]], whose film ''[[Roman Holiday]]'' was also screening in competition at the festival and was rumored to be the winner of the Silver Lion for best director.<ref name=mac104/> |
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The film opened in [[New York City]] on 7 September 1954.<ref name=Crowther">* {{cite web |
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⚫ | title=The Screen in Review; Ugetsu, From Japan, Offered at Plaza|accessdate=1 January 2013}}</ref> It was selected for screening as part of the Cannes Classics section at the [[2016 Cannes Film Festival]].<ref name="Classics">{{cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.fr/en/article/62136.html |title=Cannes Classics 2016 |accessdate=21 April 2016 |date=20 April 2016 |work=Cannes Film Festival}}</ref> |
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===Home media=== |
===Home media=== |
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===Critical reception=== |
===Critical reception=== |
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''Ugetsu'' is one of a number of films that is arguably more popular in western countries than it is in Japan. Japanese film historian [[Tadao Satō]] pointed out that while this film, along with Mizoguchi's other works of the period ''[[The Crucified Lovers]]'' and ''[[Sansho the Bailiff]]'', was probably not meant specifically to be sold to westerners as an "exotic" piece, it was perceived by studio executives as the kind of film that would not necessarily make a profit in Japanese theaters but would win awards at international film festivals.<ref name=Sato>{{cite book |last=Satō |first=Tadao |authorlink=Tadao Sato |title=Nihon Eiga-shi 2: 1941–1959 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ebpNAQAAIAAJ&q=%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E6%98%A0%E7%94%BB%E5%8F%B2+-+Volume+2&dq=%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E6%98%A0%E7%94%BB%E5%8F%B2+-+Volume+2&hl=en&sa=X&ei=0A3-UN-IM8rqkAXxtYGYDQ&redir_esc=y |accessdate=22 January 2013 |year=2006 |publisher=Iwanami Shoten |location=Tokyo |isbn=4-00-026578-4 |page=236}}</ref> |
''Ugetsu'' is often regarded as a masterwork of [[Japanese cinema]]<ref>{{cite web|first=Phillip|last=Lopate|url=http://www.criterion.com/current/posts/401-ugetsu-from-the-other-shore|title= Ugetsu: From the Other Shore|publisher=The Criterion Collection|accessdate=December 31, 2012}}</ref> and a definitive piece during Japan's Golden Age of Film.<ref name=mcdonald>{{cite web|first=Keiko|last=McDonald | url=http://www.criterion.com/current/posts/966-ugetsu |title=Ugetsu|publisher=The Criterion Collection|accessdate=December 31, 2012}}</ref> It is one of a number of films that is arguably more popular in western countries than it is in Japan. Japanese film historian [[Tadao Satō]] pointed out that while this film, along with Mizoguchi's other works of the period ''[[The Crucified Lovers]]'' and ''[[Sansho the Bailiff]]'', was probably not meant specifically to be sold to westerners as an "exotic" piece, it was perceived by studio executives as the kind of film that would not necessarily make a profit in Japanese theaters but would win awards at international film festivals.<ref name=Sato>{{cite book |last=Satō |first=Tadao |authorlink=Tadao Sato |title=Nihon Eiga-shi 2: 1941–1959 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ebpNAQAAIAAJ&q=%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E6%98%A0%E7%94%BB%E5%8F%B2+-+Volume+2&dq=%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E6%98%A0%E7%94%BB%E5%8F%B2+-+Volume+2&hl=en&sa=X&ei=0A3-UN-IM8rqkAXxtYGYDQ&redir_esc=y |accessdate=22 January 2013 |year=2006 |publisher=Iwanami Shoten |location=Tokyo |isbn=4-00-026578-4 |page=236}}</ref> |
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The film was immediately popular in western countries and praised by such film critics as [[Lindsay Anderson]] and [[Donald Richie]]. Richie called it "one of the most perfect movies in the history of Japanese cinema" and especially praised the beauty and morality of the film's opening and closing shots. Richie stated that "''Ugetsu'' opens with a long panorama around a lake, a shot which begins on the far shore and then tilts down to reveal the village at the conclusion. It closes with the child and the father offering a bowl of rice at the mother's grave...with the camera moving off into an upward tilting panorama which describes the movement of the opening."<ref name=wakeman799/> |
The film was immediately popular in western countries and praised by such film critics as [[Lindsay Anderson]] and [[Donald Richie]]. Richie called it "one of the most perfect movies in the history of Japanese cinema" and especially praised the beauty and morality of the film's opening and closing shots. Richie stated that "''Ugetsu'' opens with a long panorama around a lake, a shot which begins on the far shore and then tilts down to reveal the village at the conclusion. It closes with the child and the father offering a bowl of rice at the mother's grave...with the camera moving off into an upward tilting panorama which describes the movement of the opening."<ref name=wakeman799/> |
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[[Bosley Crowther]] wrote that the film had "a strangely obscure, inferential, almost studiedly perplexing quality".<ref> |
[[Bosley Crowther]] wrote that the film had "a strangely obscure, inferential, almost studiedly perplexing quality".<ref name=Crowther"/> ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' staff praised the film's visuals for reminiscence to Japanese prints, costumes and set design, and the performances of [[Masayuki Mori (actor)|Masayuki Mori]], [[Machiko Kyō]].<ref>{{cite web|first=|last=Staff |url=http://variety.com/1952/film/reviews/ugetsu-monogatari-1117795983/ |title=Review: 'Ugetsu Monogatari' |publisher=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=31 December 1952 |accessdate=12 December 2016}}</ref> |
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title=The Screen in Review; Ugetsu, From Japan, Offered at Plaza|accessdate=1 January 2013}}</ref> |
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[[Roger Ebert]] added ''Ugetsu'' to his [[The Great Movies|Great Movies]] list in 2004, calling it "one of the [[List of films considered the best|greatest of all films]]", and that "At the end of ''Ugetsu'', aware we have seen a fable, we also feel curiously as if we have witnessed true lives and fates."<ref name=ebert>{{cite web|first=Roger|last=Ebert|authorlink=Roger Ebert|url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040509/REVIEWS08/405090301/1023|title=Ugetsu (1953)|publisher=rogerebert.com|date=May 9, 2004|accessdate=December 31, 2012}}</ref> Director [[Martin Scorsese]] has also listed it as one of his favourite films of all time.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.miramax.com/subscript/scorseses-favorite-films|title=Scorsese's 12 favorite films|publisher=Miramax.com|accessdate=25 December 2013}}</ref> In ''[[5001 Nights at the Movies]]'', [[Pauline Kael]] called it "subtle, violent yet magical," and "one of the most amazing of the Japanese movies that played American art houses."<ref>[[Pauline Kael]], ''[[5001 Nights at the Movies]]'', Henry Holt and Company, 1991, p. 802.</ref> ''Ugetsu'' has a 100% approval rating on [[Rotten Tomatoes]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/Ugetsu/ |title=Ugetsu monogatari (1953) |work=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |accessdate=25 December 2013}}</ref> |
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===Accolades=== |
===Accolades=== |
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''Ugetsu'' won the Silver Lion Award for Best Direction at the [[Venice]] Film Festival in 1953.<ref name=mac104/> The night before, Mizoguchi, believing that if the film did not win an award the shame would prevent him from returning to Japan, stayed in his hotel room and prayed.<ref name=Sato/> In Japan it was named No. 3 in [[Kinema Junpo]]'s Best Ten for Japanese films of 1953.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nhk.or.jp/bs-blog/200/88289.html|title=''Watanabe Shihai-jin no oshaberi shinema: "Mizoguchi Kenji: Ugetsu Monogatari"''|accessdate=14 January 2013}}</ref> and won awards for Art Direction and for Sound at the 8th [[Mainichi Film Award]]s.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://db.eiren.org/contents/04110038501.html |title=Ugetsu Monogatari |work=Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan website |publisher= Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan |accessdate=19 January 2013}}</ref> It also won an award for Cinematography from the ministry of Education.<ref name=wakeman799/> The film appeared in ''[[Sight and Sound]]'' magazine's top ten critics poll of the greatest movies ever made, which is held once every decade, in 1962 and 1972.<ref>{{cite web|title=Sight and Sound Poll 1962: Critics|publisher=[[California Institute of Technology]]|url=http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~ejohnson/sight/1962.html|accessdate=2009-05-29}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Sight and Sound Poll 1972: Critics|publisher=[[California Institute of Technology]]|url=http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~ejohnson/sight/1972.html|accessdate=2009-05-29}}</ref> In 2000, ''[[The Village Voice]]'' newspaper ranked ''Ugetsu'' at No. 29 on their list of the 100 best films of the 20th century.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.filmsite.org/villvoice.html|accessdate=20 January 2013|title=100 Best Films of the 20th Century Village Voice Critics' Poll|publisher=filmsite}}</ref> |
''Ugetsu'' won the Silver Lion Award for Best Direction at the [[Venice]] Film Festival in 1953.<ref name=mac104/> The night before, Mizoguchi, believing that if the film did not win an award the shame would prevent him from returning to Japan, stayed in his hotel room and prayed.<ref name=Sato/> In Japan it was named No. 3 in [[Kinema Junpo]]'s Best Ten for Japanese films of 1953.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nhk.or.jp/bs-blog/200/88289.html|title=''Watanabe Shihai-jin no oshaberi shinema: "Mizoguchi Kenji: Ugetsu Monogatari"''|accessdate=14 January 2013}}</ref> and won awards for Art Direction and for Sound at the 8th [[Mainichi Film Award]]s.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://db.eiren.org/contents/04110038501.html |title=Ugetsu Monogatari |work=Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan website |publisher= Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan |accessdate=19 January 2013}}</ref> It also won an award for Cinematography from the ministry of Education.<ref name=wakeman799/> The film appeared in ''[[Sight and Sound]]'' magazine's top ten critics poll of the greatest movies ever made, which is held once every decade, in 1962 and 1972.<ref>{{cite web|title=Sight and Sound Poll 1962: Critics|publisher=[[California Institute of Technology]]|url=http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~ejohnson/sight/1962.html|accessdate=2009-05-29}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Sight and Sound Poll 1972: Critics|publisher=[[California Institute of Technology]]|url=http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~ejohnson/sight/1972.html|accessdate=2009-05-29}}</ref> In 2000, ''[[The Village Voice]]'' newspaper ranked ''Ugetsu'' at No. 29 on their list of the 100 best films of the 20th century.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.filmsite.org/villvoice.html|accessdate=20 January 2013|title=100 Best Films of the 20th Century Village Voice Critics' Poll|publisher=filmsite}}</ref> |
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==Legacy== |
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Along with [[Akira Kurosawa]]'s 1950 film ''[[Rashomon]]'', ''Ugetsu'' is credited with having popularized Japanese cinema in the West.<ref name=mcdonald/><ref name=ebert/> |
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In Japan, the film also influenced many horror films throughout the 1950s and 1960s. In these ghost story films, greed commonly leads to murder and extramarital affairs, many involving former Samurai characters.<ref>Colette Balmain, ''Introduction to Japanese Horror Film'', Edinburgh University Press, 2008, p. 50.</ref> Examples in this genre include ''[[Tokaido Yotsuya kaidan]]''.<ref>Balmain, ''Introduction to Japanese Horror Film'', p. 57.</ref> |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
Revision as of 05:40, 13 December 2016
Ugetsu | |
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Directed by | Kenji Mizoguchi |
Written by | Matsutarō Kawaguchi Yoshikata Yoda |
Produced by | Masaichi Nagata |
Starring | Masayuki Mori Machiko Kyō Kinuyo Tanaka |
Cinematography | Kazuo Miyagawa |
Edited by | Mitsuzō Miyata |
Music by | Fumio Hayasaka Ichiro Saito Tamekichi Mochizuki |
Distributed by | Daiei Film |
Release dates |
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Running time | 94 minutes |
Country | Japan |
Language | Japanese |
Ugetsu or Ugetsu Monogatari (雨月物語) is a 1953 black-and-white Japanese film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi and based on stories in Ueda Akinari's book of the same name. It is a ghost story and an example of the jidaigeki (period drama) genre, particularly based on the stories "The House in the Thicket" and "The Lust of the White Serpent". Set in Azuchi–Momoyama period Japan, it stars Masayuki Mori and Machiko Kyō.
Major themes in the film include the ethics of war, in light of World War II, and neglect of family duty. The film won the Silver Lion Award for Best Direction at the 1953 Venice Film Festival. It is one of Mizoguchi's most celebrated films, regarded by critics as a masterwork of Japanese cinema. It is credited with simultaneously helping popularize Japanese cinema in the West and influencing later Japanese film.
Plot
Ugetsu is set in villages which line the shore of Lake Biwa in Ōmi Province in the late 16th century. It revolves around two peasant couples – Genjurō and Miyagi, Tōbei and Ohama – who are uprooted as Shibata Katsuie's army sweeps through their farming village, Nakanogō. Genjurō, a potter, takes his wares to nearby Ōmizo. He is accompanied by Tōbei, who dreams of becoming a samurai. A respected sage tells Miyagi to warn her husband about seeking profit in times of upheaval, and to prepare for a probable attack on the village. Genjurō arrives with wide profits, but she asks him to stop. Genjurō nevertheless works long hours to finish his pottery. That night Nakanogō is attacked by soldiers, and the four main characters hide out in the woods.
Whilst the attack continues, Genjurō collects his pottery from the kiln, and decides to take the pots to a different marketplace. As the two couples travel across a lake, a boat appears from thick fog. The sole passenger tells them he was attacked by pirates, warns them back to their homes, then dies. The two men decide to return their wives to the shore. Tōbei's wife refuses to go; Miyagi begs Genjurō not to leave her, but is left on the shore with their young son, Gen'ichi, clasped to her back. At market, Genjurō's pottery sells well. After taking his promised share of the profits, Tōbei runs off to buy samurai armor, and sneaks into the ranks of a clan of samurai. Lost from her companions, Ohama has wandered beyond Nagahama in her desperate search for Tōbei. She is raped by a group of soldiers.
Genjurō is visited by a noblewoman and her female servant, who order several pieces of pottery and tell him to take them to the Kutsuki mansion. Genjurō learns that Nobunaga's soldiers have attacked the manor and killed all who lived there, except Lady Wakasa and her servant. He also learns that Lady Wakasa's father haunts the manor. Genjurō is seduced by Lady Wakasa, and she convinces him to marry her. Meanwhile, Nakanogō is under attack. Miyagi and her son hide from soldiers and are found by an elderly woman who hurries them to safety. In the woods, several soldiers desperately search her for food. She fights with the soldiers and is stabbed. She collapses with her son still clutching her back.
Tōbei steals the severed head of a general, which he presents to the commander of the victorious side. He is rewarded with armor, a mount, and a retinue. Tōbei later rides into the marketplace on his new horse, eager to return home to show his wife. However, he visits a brothel and finds her working there as a prostitute. Tōbei promises to buy back her honor. Later, the two return to Nakanogō, Tōbei throwing his armor into a river along the way.
Genjurō meets a priest, who tells him to return to his loved ones or certain death awaits him. When Genjurō mentions the noblewoman, the priest reveals that the noblewoman is dead and must be exorcised, and then invites Genjurō to his home where he paints Buddhist prayers on his body. Genjurō returns to the Kutsuki mansion. He admits that he is married, has a child and wishes to return home. Lady Wakasa will not let him go. They admit they are spirits, returned to this world so that Lady Wakasa, who was slain before she knew love, could experience its joys. She tells him to wash away the Buddhist symbols. Genjurō reaches for a sword, throws himself out of the manor, and passes out. The next day, he is awakened by soldiers. They accuse him of stealing the sword, but he denies it, saying it is from the Kutsuki mansion. The soldiers laugh at him, saying the Kutsuki mansion was burned down over a month ago. Genjurō arises and finds the mansion he has lived in is nothing more than a pile of burnt wood. The soldiers confiscate his money; but because Shibata's army burned down the prison, they leave Genjurō in the rubble. He returns home by foot, searching for his wife.
Miyagi, delighted to see him, will not let him tell of his terrible mistake. Genjurō holds his sleeping son in his arms, and eventually lies down to sleep. The next morning, Genjurō wakes to the village chief knocking on his door. He is surprised to see Genjurō home, and expresses concern. He explains that he has been caring for Genjurō's son, and that the boy must have come to his old home in the middle of the night. Genjurō calls for Miyagi. The neighbor asks if Genjurō is dreaming, as his wife is dead. Miyagi's spirit tells Genjurō: "I am always with you", while he continues on pottery, and their son offers food to her. As with others, the film closes with 終 (owari, the end), in handwritten cursive.
Cast
- Machiko Kyō as Lady Wakasa
- Mitsuko Mito as Ohama
- Kinuyo Tanaka as Miyagi
- Masayuki Mori as Genjurō
- Eitaro Ozawa as Tōbei (as Sakae Ozawa)
- Ikio Sawamura as Genichi
- Kikue Mōri as Ukon, Lady Wakasa's Nurse
- Ryōsuke Kagawa as Village Master
- Eigoro Onoe as Knight
- Saburo Date as Vassal
- Sugisaku Aoyama as Old Priest
- Reiko Kongo as an Old Woman in Brothel
- Shozo Nanbu as Shinto Priest
- Ichirō Amano as Boatsman
- Kichijirō Ueda as Shop Owner
- Teruko Omi as Prostitute
- Keiko Koyanagi as Prostitute
- Mitsusaburō Ramon as Captain of Tamba Soldiers
- Jun Fujikawa as Lost Soldier
- Ryuuji Fukui as Lost Soldier
- Masayoshi Kikuno as Soldier
- Hajime Koshikawa
- Sugisaka Koyama as High Priest
- Ryuzaburo Mitsuoka as Soldier
- Koji Murata
- Fumihiko Yokoyama
Production
After the success of his previous film The Life of Oharu, Mizoguchi was offered to make a film at Daiei Film studios by his old friend Masaichi Nagata. The deal promised Mizoguchi complete artistic control and a large budget. Despite this, Mizoguchi was eventually pressured to make a less pessimistic ending for the film.[1] The film's title Ugetsu is a truncation of Ugetsu Monogatari, the Japanese title, from Akinari's Ugetsu Monogatari.[2] Mizoguchi based his film on two stories from the book, "The House in the Thicket" (Asaji ga Yado) and "The Lust of the White Serpent" (Jasei no In).[3][4] Other inspirations for the film's script include Guy de Maupassant's Décoré! (How He Got the Legion of Honor).[3][1] While writing the script, Mizoguchi told his screenwriter and long-time collaborator Yoshikata Yoda "Whether war originates in the ruler's personal motives, or in some public concern, how violence, disguised as war, oppresses and torments the populace both physically and spiritually... I want to emphasize this as the main theme of the film."[4] During the shooting Yoda was constantly rewriting and revising scenes due to Mizoguchi's perfectionism.[5]
Mizoguchi told his cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa that he wanted the film "to unroll seamlessly like a scroll-painting."[1] The film has been praised for its cinematography, such as the opening shot and the scene where Genjurō and Lady Wakasa make love by a stream and the camera follows the flow of the water instead of lingering on the two lovers.[6] Miyagawa stated that this film was the only occasion in which Mizoguchi complimented him for his camera work.[6]
Themes
A common interpretation of the film is that Mizoguchi refashioned the stories of Ugetsu Monogatari to express regret about the pro-war sentiments leading to World War II, with Mizoguchi personally having made the pro-war propaganda film The 47 Ronin in 1941.[7] British filmmaker Tony Rayns argued the film's presentation of the vanity of a man, neglecting his family, is a critique of historic men in feudal Japanese culture.[8]
The subplot of Tobei and Ohama particularly reflects the comfort women, who were made into prostitutes by the Imperial Japanese Army. Mizoguchi struggled with Daiei in giving the subplot an unhappier ending than what appears in the film, in line with real comfort women's experiences after the war.[9]
Genjuro's pottery is also a major theme in the film. Professor Robin Wood argues his pottery evolves in three phases, reflecting Mizoguchi's changing approach to filmmaking. Genjuro begins making the pottery for commercial reasons, shifts to pure aesthetics while isolated with Wakasa, and finally moves on to a style that reflects life and strives to understand it.[10]
Release
Ugetsu was released in Japan on March 26, 1953.[11] It was shown at the 1953 Venice Film Festival. Accompanied by Yoda and Kinuyo Tanaka,[6] Mizoguchi made his first trip outside Japan to attend the festival. He spent most of his time in Italy inside his hotel room praying to a scroll with a portrait of Nichiren. While in Venice he met director William Wyler, whose film Roman Holiday was also screening in competition at the festival and was rumored to be the winner of the Silver Lion for best director.[5]
The film opened in New York City on 7 September 1954.[12] It was selected for screening as part of the Cannes Classics section at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival.[13]
Home media
In Japan, the film is in the public domain and is sold in low-price DVD box-sets.[14]
On November 8, 2005, Ugetsu became available for the first time on Region 1 DVD when The Criterion Collection released a 2-disc edition of the film, which includes numerous special features such as a 150-minute documentary on Mizoguchi, Kenji Mizoguchi: The Life of a Film Director, directed by Kaneto Shindo.[15] The boxset also includes a booklet with an essay by Keiko I. McDonald (author of Mizoguchi and editor of Ugetsu) and the three short stories from which the film draws inspiration.
On April 21, 2008 Ugetsu Monogatari was released in the UK on Region 2 DVD released by Eureka Entertainment as part of their Masters of Cinema series. The 2 x disc special edition containing new transfers is released in a double pack which twins it with Miss Oyu. This UK set was released on Blu-ray on April 23, 2012 in a Dual Format combo (the DVDs being the same discs as the 2008 release). However, due to the booklet size limitations, it does not include Keiko I. McDonald's essay, but only retains the translations of Ueda Akinari's short stories.
Reception
Critical reception
Ugetsu is often regarded as a masterwork of Japanese cinema[16] and a definitive piece during Japan's Golden Age of Film.[3] It is one of a number of films that is arguably more popular in western countries than it is in Japan. Japanese film historian Tadao Satō pointed out that while this film, along with Mizoguchi's other works of the period The Crucified Lovers and Sansho the Bailiff, was probably not meant specifically to be sold to westerners as an "exotic" piece, it was perceived by studio executives as the kind of film that would not necessarily make a profit in Japanese theaters but would win awards at international film festivals.[17]
The film was immediately popular in western countries and praised by such film critics as Lindsay Anderson and Donald Richie. Richie called it "one of the most perfect movies in the history of Japanese cinema" and especially praised the beauty and morality of the film's opening and closing shots. Richie stated that "Ugetsu opens with a long panorama around a lake, a shot which begins on the far shore and then tilts down to reveal the village at the conclusion. It closes with the child and the father offering a bowl of rice at the mother's grave...with the camera moving off into an upward tilting panorama which describes the movement of the opening."[6]
Bosley Crowther wrote that the film had "a strangely obscure, inferential, almost studiedly perplexing quality".[12] Variety staff praised the film's visuals for reminiscence to Japanese prints, costumes and set design, and the performances of Masayuki Mori, Machiko Kyō.[18]
Roger Ebert added Ugetsu to his Great Movies list in 2004, calling it "one of the greatest of all films", and that "At the end of Ugetsu, aware we have seen a fable, we also feel curiously as if we have witnessed true lives and fates."[19] Director Martin Scorsese has also listed it as one of his favourite films of all time.[20] In 5001 Nights at the Movies, Pauline Kael called it "subtle, violent yet magical," and "one of the most amazing of the Japanese movies that played American art houses."[21] Ugetsu has a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[22]
Accolades
Ugetsu won the Silver Lion Award for Best Direction at the Venice Film Festival in 1953.[5] The night before, Mizoguchi, believing that if the film did not win an award the shame would prevent him from returning to Japan, stayed in his hotel room and prayed.[17] In Japan it was named No. 3 in Kinema Junpo's Best Ten for Japanese films of 1953.[23] and won awards for Art Direction and for Sound at the 8th Mainichi Film Awards.[24] It also won an award for Cinematography from the ministry of Education.[6] The film appeared in Sight and Sound magazine's top ten critics poll of the greatest movies ever made, which is held once every decade, in 1962 and 1972.[25][26] In 2000, The Village Voice newspaper ranked Ugetsu at No. 29 on their list of the 100 best films of the 20th century.[27]
Legacy
Along with Akira Kurosawa's 1950 film Rashomon, Ugetsu is credited with having popularized Japanese cinema in the West.[3][19]
In Japan, the film also influenced many horror films throughout the 1950s and 1960s. In these ghost story films, greed commonly leads to murder and extramarital affairs, many involving former Samurai characters.[28] Examples in this genre include Tokaido Yotsuya kaidan.[29]
See also
References
- ^ a b c Wakeman 1987, p. 798
- ^ McDonald 1984, pp. 103–104
- ^ a b c d McDonald, Keiko. "Ugetsu". The Criterion Collection. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
- ^ a b McDonald 1984, p. 116
- ^ a b c McDonald 1984, p. 104
- ^ a b c d e Wakeman 1987, p. 799
- ^ Martha P. Nochimson, World on Film: An Introduction, Wiley-Blackwell, 2011, p. 213.
- ^ Nochimson, World on Film, p. 214.
- ^ Nochimson, World on Film, pp. 213-214.
- ^ Robin Wood, Personal Views: Explorations in Film, Wayne State University Press, 2006, p. 288.
- ^ McDonald 1984, pp. 181
- ^ a b * Crowther, Bosley (September 8, 1954). "The Screen in Review; Ugetsu, From Japan, Offered at Plaza". The New York Times. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
- ^ "Cannes Classics 2016". Cannes Film Festival. 20 April 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ "Nihon-eiga: Eien no meisakushū". Cosmic Pictures. 19 April 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
{{cite web}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ "The Criterion Collection: Ugetsu by Kenji Mizoguchi". Retrieved 1 January 2013.
- ^ Lopate, Phillip. "Ugetsu: From the Other Shore". The Criterion Collection. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
- ^ a b Satō, Tadao (2006). Nihon Eiga-shi 2: 1941–1959. Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten. p. 236. ISBN 4-00-026578-4. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
- ^ Staff (31 December 1952). "Review: 'Ugetsu Monogatari'". Variety. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
- ^ a b Ebert, Roger (May 9, 2004). "Ugetsu (1953)". rogerebert.com. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
- ^ "Scorsese's 12 favorite films". Miramax.com. Retrieved 25 December 2013.
- ^ Pauline Kael, 5001 Nights at the Movies, Henry Holt and Company, 1991, p. 802.
- ^ "Ugetsu monogatari (1953)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 25 December 2013.
- ^ "Watanabe Shihai-jin no oshaberi shinema: "Mizoguchi Kenji: Ugetsu Monogatari"". Retrieved 14 January 2013.
- ^ "Ugetsu Monogatari". Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan website. Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
- ^ "Sight and Sound Poll 1962: Critics". California Institute of Technology. Retrieved 2009-05-29.
- ^ "Sight and Sound Poll 1972: Critics". California Institute of Technology. Retrieved 2009-05-29.
- ^ "100 Best Films of the 20th Century Village Voice Critics' Poll". filmsite. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
- ^ Colette Balmain, Introduction to Japanese Horror Film, Edinburgh University Press, 2008, p. 50.
- ^ Balmain, Introduction to Japanese Horror Film, p. 57.
Bibliography
- McDonald, Keiko (1984). Mizoguchi. Boston: Twayne Publishers. ISBN 0-8057-9295-3.
{{cite book}}
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(help) - Wakeman, John (1987). World Film Directors. Vol. 1. New York: The H. W. Wilson Company. ISBN 0-8242-0757-2.
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External links
- Ugetsu at IMDb
- Ugetsu at AllMovie
- Ugetsu at Rotten Tomatoes
- Ugetsu at the Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese)
- 1953 films
- 1950s fantasy films
- Daiei Film films
- Films based on short fiction
- Films directed by Kenji Mizoguchi
- Films set in the 16th century
- Ghost films
- Japanese films
- Japanese-language films
- Japanese black-and-white films
- Jidaigeki films
- Romantic fantasy films
- Sengoku period in fiction
- Screenplays by Yoshikata Yoda
- Screenplays by Matsutarō Kawaguchi
- Film scores by Fumio Hayasaka
- Film scores by Ichirō Saitō
- Films produced by Masaichi Nagata