|
Haruko Sugimura
was a Japanese stage and film actress, best known for her appearances in the films of Yasujirō Ozu and Mikio Naruse from the late 1940s to the early 1960s. Biography Sugimura was born in Nishi-ku, Hiroshima. After the death of her parents, she was adopted at an early age by affluent lumber dealers, only learning much later that they were not her biological parents. (Sugimura reputedly claimed that she was the illegitimate child of a geisha.) Her adoptive parents took her to performances of both classical Japanese stage arts like kabuki and bunraku, and western ballet and opera. They also encouraged her to enroll at the Tokyo Ongaku Gakko (now Tokyo University of the Arts), where she failed the exams. She then joined the Tsukiji Shōgekijō (Tsukiji Little Theatre), Tokyo, in 1927, and later the Bungakuza theatre company, which she remained affiliated with from 1937 until her retirement in 1996. She gave her film debut in 1932 in Eizo Tanaka's ''Namiko'' (1932). Between 193 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hiroshima
is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has been the city's mayor since April 2011. Hiroshima was founded in 1589 as a castle town on the Ōta River delta. Following the Meiji Restoration in 1868, Hiroshima rapidly transformed into a major urban center and industrial hub. In 1889, Hiroshima officially gained city status. The city was a center of military activities during the imperial era, playing significant roles such as in the First Sino-Japanese War, the Russo-Japanese War, and the two world wars. Hiroshima was the first military target of a nuclear weapon in human history. This occurred on August 6, 1945, at 8:15 a.m., when the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) dropped the atomic bomb " Little Boy" on the city. Most of Hiroshima was destroyed, and by the end o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shirō Toyoda
was a Japanese film director and screenwriter who directed over 60 films during his career spanning 50 years. Career Born in Kyoto, Toyoda moved to Tokyo after finishing high school and studied scriptwriting under the pioneering film director Eizō Tanaka. He joined the Kamata section of the Shōchiku film studios and worked as an assistant director under Yasujirō Shimazu, before giving his directorial debut in 1929. After his move to the independent Tokyo Hassei Eiga Shisaku studio (later Toho), he directed the successful ''Young People'' (1937) and gained a reputation for directing literary adaptations with a humanistic touch, in particular ''Uguisu'' (1938) and ''Spring on Leper's Island'' (1940). After World War II, he achieved fame for his adaptations of writers like Yasunari Kawabata, Kafū Nagai, Naoya Shiga, Jun'ichirō Tanizaki, Masuji Ibuse, and Ango Sakaguchi, distinguished by their visual imagination and superb acting. Noted works of this era include ''The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yukio Mishima
, born , was a Japanese author, poet, playwright, actor, model, Shintoist, nationalist, and founder of the , an unarmed civilian militia. Mishima is considered one of the most important Japanese authors of the 20th century. He was considered for the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1968, but the award went to his countryman and benefactor Yasunari Kawabata. His works include the novels and , and the autobiographical essay . Mishima's work is characterized by "its luxurious vocabulary and decadent metaphors, its fusion of traditional Japanese and modern Western literary styles, and its obsessive assertions of the unity of beauty, eroticism and death", according to author Andrew Rankin. Mishima's political activities made him a controversial figure, which he remains in modern Japan. From his mid-30s, Mishima's right-wing ideology was increasingly revealed. He was proud of the traditional culture and spirit of Japan, and opposed what he saw as western-style materialism, along with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts Prince Hamlet and his attempts to exact revenge against his uncle, Claudius, who has murdered Hamlet's father in order to seize his throne and marry Hamlet's mother. ''Hamlet'' is considered among the "most powerful and influential tragedies in the English language", with a story capable of "seemingly endless retelling and adaptation by others". There are many works that have been pointed to as possible sources for Shakespeare's play—from ancient Greek tragedies to Elizabethan plays. The editors of the Arden Shakespeare question the idea of "source hunting", pointing out that it presupposes that authors always require ideas from other works for their own, and suggests that no author can have an original idea or be an originator. When S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Streetcar Named Desire
''A Streetcar Named Desire'' is a play written by Tennessee Williams and first performed on Broadway on December 3, 1947. The play dramatizes the experiences of Blanche DuBois, a former Southern belle who, after encountering a series of personal losses, leaves her once-prosperous situation to move into a shabby apartment in New Orleans rented by her younger sister and brother-in-law. Williams' most popular work, ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' is one of the most critically acclaimed plays of the twentieth century.Williams, Tennessee (1995). ''A Streetcar Named Desire''. Introduction and text. Oxford: Heinemann Educational Publishers. It still ranks among his most performed plays, and has inspired many adaptations in other forms, notably a critically acclaimed film that was released in 1951.Production notesDecember 3, 1947—December 17, 1949IBDb.com Plot After the loss of her family home to creditors, Blanche DuBois travels from Laurel, Mississippi, to the New Orleans Frenc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mainichi Film Award
The are a series of annual film awards, sponsored by Mainichi Shinbun (毎日新聞), one of the largest newspaper companies in Japan, since 1946. It is the first film festival in Japan. History The origins of the contest date back to 1935, when the ''Mainichi Shinbun'' organized a festival then called ''Zen Nihon eiga konkūru'' (全日本映画コンク ー ル? ). It was interrupted during World War 2. The current form of the Mainichi Film Awards officially came into being in 1946. Awards * Mainichi Film Award for Best Film * Mainichi Film Award for Excellence Film * Mainichi Film Award for Best Director * Mainichi Film Award for Best Cinematography * Mainichi Film Award for Best Art Direction * Mainichi Film Award for Best Animation Film * Mainichi Film Award for Best Actor * Mainichi Film Award for Best Supporting Actor * Mainichi Film Award for Best Actress * Mainichi Film Award for Best Supporting Actress * Mainichi Film Award for Best Film Score * Mainichi Film A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kinema Junpo
, commonly called , is Japan's oldest film magazine and began publication in July 1919. It was first published three times a month, using the Japanese ''Jun'' (旬) system of dividing months into three parts, but the postwar ''Kinema Junpō'' has been published twice a month. The magazine was founded by a group of four students, including Saburō Tanaka, at the Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Technical High School at the time). In that first month, it was published three times on days with a "1" in them. These first three issues were printed on art paper and had four pages each. ''Kinejun'' initially specialized in covering foreign films, in part because its writers sided with the principles of the Pure Film Movement and strongly criticized Japanese cinema. It later expanded coverage to films released in Japan. While long emphasizing film criticism, it has also served as a trade journal, reporting on the film industry in Japan and announcing new films and trends.加藤幹� ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blue Ribbon Awards
The are film-specific prizes awarded solely by movie critics and writers in Tokyo, Japan. The awards were established in 1950 by which is composed of film correspondents from seven Tokyo-based sports newspapers. In 1961, the six major Japanese newspapers (Yomiuri Shimbun, Asahi Shimbun, Mainichi Shimbun, Sankei Shimbun, Tokyo Shimbun and Nihon Keizai Shinbun) as well as the Japanese Associated Press withdrew their support for the Blue Ribbon Awards and established the , (which were held a mere six times). In 1967, the awards were cancelled following a series of demoralizing national political scandals that became known as "The Black Mist" and eventually enveloped Japan's baseball industry.Johnston, Michael. "Influence Markets", ''Syndromes of Corruption: Wealth, Power, and Democracy'' (Cambridge University Press, 2005), , p. 79. In 1975, the awards were revived, and have continued until the present day. The annual award ceremony is held in a variety of places in Tokyo every ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
An Inlet Of Muddy Water
''An Inlet of Muddy Water'' ( ja, にごりえ, Nigorie) is a 1953 Japanese drama film based on short stories by Ichiyō Higuchi and directed by Tadashi Imai. It was entered into the 1954 Cannes Film Festival and awarded numerous national film prizes. Plot In three episodes, the film portrays the fate of women during the Meiji era: 1. ''The Thirteenth Night:'' Young wife Seki turns up at her parents' house, announcing that she wants to divorce her abusive husband. Her father talks her into returning to her marital home, as her parents' welfare and the career of her brother depend on the marriage, also reminding her that she will have to leave her young son behind. On her way back home in a rickshaw, she discovers that the driver is Rokunosuke, a childhood friend who never got over their separation. They reminisce their once mutual affection, but part ways without an outlook to meeting again. 2. ''On The Last Day Of The Year:'' Mine works as a maid in the strict household of M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tadashi Imai
was a Japanese film director known for social realist filmmaking informed by a left-wing perspective. His most noted films include ''An Inlet of Muddy Water'' (1953) and ''Bushido, Samurai Saga'' (1963). Life Although leaning towards left-wing politics already at Tokyo University, where he joined a Communist student group, Imai's directing career, after serving as continuity writer at J.O. studios (later Toho), started in 1939 with a series of films promoting the war efforts of the militarist regime. Later calling these films "the biggest mistake of my life", he soon turned to socially conscious themes after the war. ''Aoi sanmyaku'' (1949), although a light comedy, observed the educational system, and was successful both with moviegoers and critics. While his 1950 drama '' Until We Meet Again'' portrayed a young couple's doomed love against the backdrop of the Pacific War, the 1953 anti-war film ''Tower of Lilies'' was a stark account of untrained female students forced into ai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Late Chrysanthemums
is a 1954 Japanese drama film directed by Mikio Naruse. It follows four retired geisha and their struggles to make ends meet in post World War II Japan. The film is based on three short stories by female author Fumiko Hayashi. Plot ''Late Chrysanthemums'' interweaves the lives of four retired geisha in Tokyo over a period of four successive days. Kin, the first of the geisha, is a moneylender and a merciless businesswoman, who is insistent upon being repaid by her former geisha sisters Tamae, Tomi and Nobu. Her financial advisor Itaya tries to convince her to buy land in the countryside, as prices are constantly rising. Tamae and Tomi, both former geisha and widows, live together. Tamae is plagued by migraines, and as a result, unable to work as frequently as she would like to as a maid in a hotel. She is also unhappy with her son Kiyoshi's relationship with an older mistress, who pays him for being at her service. Tomi is unable to repay her debts as a result of her addiction to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tokyo Story
is a 1953 Japanese drama film directed by Yasujirō Ozu and starring Chishū Ryū and Chieko Higashiyama about an aging couple who travel to Tokyo to visit their grown children. Upon release, it did not immediately gain international recognition and was considered "too Japanese" to be marketable by Japanese film exporters. It was screened in 1957 in London, where it won the inaugural Sutherland Trophy the following year, and received praise from U.S. film critics after a 1972 screening in New York City. ''Tokyo Story'' is widely regarded as Ozu's masterpiece and one of the greatest films in history of cinema. It was voted the greatest film of all time in the 2012 edition of a widely-respected poll of film directors by '' Sight & Sound'' magazine. Plot Retired couple Shūkichi and Tomi Hirayama live in Onomichi in western Japan with their daughter Kyōko, a primary school teacher. They have five adult children, four of whom are living. The couple travel to Tokyo to visit th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
