is a Japanese film directed by

Shūji Terayama was a Japanese avant-garde poet, artist, dramatist, writer, film director, and photographer. His works range from radio drama, experimental television, underground (''Angura'') theatre, countercultural essays, to Japanese New Wave and "expande ...

which was released in France in 1979 and in Japan in 1983.

Plot

A surreal excursion into a young man's subconscious as he searches for the words to a tune that his mother may have sung to him as a child. The dreamlike images culminate in a scene of a girl's naked body covered with calligraphic characters.

Cast

Hiroshi Mikami is a Japanese actor. Early life and career Mikami grew up in the 1960s with a family that was closely related to the entertainment industry with his mother being an actress and his uncle being a film producer. Mikami was in high school where he ...

as Akira (as a boy) *

Takeshi Wakamatsu Takeshi ( in hiragana or in katakana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Written forms Forms in kanji can include: *武, "warrior" *毅, "strong" *猛, "fierce" *健, "healthy" *剛, "sturdy" *彪, "spotted" *威, "intimidate" *壮, "robust" * ...

as Akira (as a man) *

Keiko Niitaka Keiko may refer to: *Keiko (given name), a feminine Japanese given name *Emperor Keiko *Keiko (orca), a performing killer whale best known for the film ''Free Willy'' ** "Keiko" (song), a single by Lucerito dedicated to Keiko the orca *Keiko (music ...

as Mother *

Juzo Itami , born , was a Japanese actor, screenwriter and film director. He directed eleven films (one short and ten features), all of which he wrote himself. He is the namesake of the Juzo Itami Award, founded in 2009 to honor his legacy. Early life ...

as Principal / Priest / Old man * Miho Fukuya as Girl *

Masaharu Satō is a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator currently working for Aoni Production. He was born in Ōta, Tokyo. Satō is best known for the roles of Buffaloman, Sunshine (''Kinnikuman''), Miyamoto Musashi ('' Yaiba''), Adah ('' Mushiking: King ...

Release

''Grass Labyrinth'' was originally one of the installments in a French movie package called ''Private Collections'', the other two sections being directed by

Walerian Borowczyk Walerian Borowczyk (21 October 1923 – 3 February 2006) was a Polish film director described by film critics as a "genius who also happened to be a pornographer". He directed 40 films between 1946 and 1988. Borowczyk settled in Paris in 1959. A ...

and

Just Jaeckin Just Jaeckin (8 August 1940 – 6 September 2022) was a French film director, photographer and sculptor. He was known for directing several erotic films, starting with ''Emmanuelle'' in 1974 and continued making movies until he retired from fi ...

, both associated with avant-garde films with strong sexual content. ''Grass Labyrinth'' was the longest of the three and was later (1983) released as a separate film in Japan.

Awards and nominations

8th

Hochi Film Award The are film-specific prizes awarded by the '' Hochi Shimbun''. Categories *Best Picture *Best International Picture *Best Animated Picture (since 2017) *Best Actor *Best Actress *Best Supporting Actor *Best Supporting Actress *Best New Artist ...

* Won: Best Actor –

References

External links

* * 1979 films Films directed by Shūji Terayama 1970s Japanese-language films Toei Company films Japanese short films 1970s Japanese films {{1970s-Japan-film-stub