Up today is a series of films from lesser-known Japanese director Koreyoshi Kurahara. I say lesser known because many here in the states probably haven’t seen anything by him, but he was popular in Japan; in fact his 1983 film Antarctica held the box office record there for nearly 15 years. I’ll be looking at his earlier stuff, starting with his first film up into the 1960s.
I Am Waiting was released in 1957, and is a noir-ish movie about two separate adults, both running from something. Saeko is about to throw herself off a dock late one night when Joji walks by. He talks her down and invites her to his nearby restaurant, providing her with a warm meal and a change of clothes. As her story unfolds, we see that she fled her boss, who was forcing her to sing in his nightclub, where one of his henchmen was making unwanted advances. Joji tells her she can stay for a few days until she plans what to do next, but that he himself won’t be around long either. Joji is waiting for news any day from his brother, who moved to Brazil a year ago to start a farm, and Joji plans to join him there. Once a promising boxer, Joji got into a bar fight and killed a man. When news doesn’t come though, Joji suspects something happened to his brother, and starts digging around town. Clues lead him to none other than Saeto’s caberet owner, who may have been involved in Joji’s brother’s disappearance. The film is decent, though it sometimes lacks cohesion. I felt like some elements that were introduced late would have been better coming in earlier, tying plot points together. Instead, it gets the feeling of rambling on with a lack of direction. Not to mention Joji pretty much completely forgets Saeto when he gets wrapped up in his own vendetta. ★★½
Kurahara pumped out films for a couple years, so that his 10th film, Intimidation, came out in 1960. This is a quick, tidy film (just about an hour in length), and is about an assistant bank manager, Takita, who gets blackmailed by a man named Kumaki. Kumaki has evidence that Takita has been cooking the books so he can buy gifts for his mistress. Takita has just received a big promotion (he’s married to the bank manager’s daughter), so he’ll do anything to keep the blackmail under wraps, and that includes robbing his own bank. But he shouldn’t discount his longtime buddy Nakaike, who is a quiet type and seems to be a pushover, but it always the quiet ones that seem to notice everything. For a short film, it did seem a bit long, because honestly not much happens outside of what I’ve described, but the ending is nice. ★★★
The Warped Ones is an interesting film. I loved the look and feel of the film. It is fast paced and frantic, with a bebop jazz soundtrack that feels an awful lot like 60s Godard and the French New Wave (this film came out the same year as Breathless, 1960). However, despite its outstanding feel, the film content turned me off. The characters, focusing on a trio of thieves and ne’er-do-wells, do nothing but rob, rape, and basically treat everything and everyone with total disregard. The movie starts with Akira and Yuki getting arrested, and when they come out of jail with a new buddy (Masaru, who is arguably even worse than he), the three team up for a time about town. Stealing a car, running down the man who fingered them for their crimes in the beginning (and then raping his girlfriend), they eventually settle in a rundown shack. Yuki and Masaru begin an affair, leaving Akira to wander around town alone. He finds himself tracking down his rape victim, who tells him she is now pregnant. Think Akira cares? Even when she and her boyfriend try to get their revenge on Akira, his slippery skin keeps him safe. No one to root for in this film, it’s just an overly depressing movie with a lot of window dressing. ★★
I Hate But Love takes that frantic energy and delivers a much better film, one that doesn’t leave you feeling like you need to take a shower. It follows a TV star named Daisaku, a man whose meteoric rise to fame came quickly. His girlfriend/manager Noriko has been with him for the last 2 years, when he started with nothing and is now wealthy and famous. She runs a tight ship, keeping his schedule packed with meetings, photo ops, and TV and radio guest spots. It is all too much for Daisaku; he’s been burning the candle at both ends and is near a breaking point. He’s also feeling that he’s lost his love for Noriko, and feels lost in life. One of the segments on Daisaku’s TV show involves looking through classifieds in the paper for something interesting, and for this week, Noriko picked a girl who was wanting someone to drive a jeep for her from Tokyo to Kyushu. She needs it to get it there to her boyfriend, who is working a charity for people in need. Daisaku is moved that the girl has been away from her boyfriend for 2 years, yet their love seems as strong as it’s ever been. Seeing his own frayed relationship, Daisaku drops everything, leaves behind his busy schedule, and jumps in the jeep to drive it cross country. Beside herself, Noriko jumps in Daisaku’s luxury car to follow. At first, she only wants to rope him into getting back to the schedule, but as the trip progresses, she begins to see why she fell in love in the first place, and only wants to be with him as he completes his journey. Daisaku too will change his opinion on what constitutes love. Great movie, part road film, part romantic drama, and even some comedy in there. This movie doesn’t get a lot of attention (I challenge you to try to find a decent review anywhere), but it’s a good one. ★★★★
How can a great film like I Hate But Love have nothing out there about it, whereas total trash like Black Sun at least has its own Wiki page? This film is a mess, with only 1 redeeming element (the very ending, which I won’t give away). Bring over much of the cast from The Warped Ones (strike one) as the same characters, Akira is back and still up to no good. He’s been sleeping in the attic of an old church, a building due to be bulldozed, but which can’t be torn down because Akira refuses to leave. One night while returning home, he is confronted by an African-American soldier named Gil, who’s been hiding out after killing a fellow GI. The Americans are on the hunt for him, so Gil is looking for a way out of town. He was shot in his run though, so his options are limited. Akira takes an instant liking to Gil, mostly because Gil is black and Akira (racistly so) thinks that all black men like jazz music, and Akira obviously loves jazz. Though they can’t understand each other, the slowly, over time, develop a kinship. This movie is flat out awful; bad acting, and chuck full of racist stereotypes, not to mention no real plot of note. It just meanders along with no goal and nothing to enjoy. ½
Thirst for Love is last today, and I’m torn on this one. It’s much different in feel from any other film from this director that I’ve seen, and that’s not a bad thing. Removed from the hustle and bustle of the city, the movie takes place on the quiet estate of a wealthy patriarch. As he narrates in the beginning of the film, “Father” (if it gave his name somewhere, I missed it) tells the viewer there are about 10 people in his household: his son, his son’s wife, his deceased son’s widow, and various servants. What he doesn’t tell us, but we learn soon, is that the widow, Etsuko, has become the old man’s mistress, an open secret which everyone tiptoes around. Father’s son, Kensuke, isn’t exactly happy with the situation, but as he has proven to be sterile, he’s hoping that Etsuko can provide the family with an heir. Unfortunately for all, Etsuko is not happy with the relationship. She’s been the old man’s prey, but her heart really rests with the gardener, Saburo. But when Saburo gets the maid pregnant, Etsuko has to decide how far she’ll go to attain his love. Lot’s of intrigue, and the quiet, introspective moments were a nice reprieve after the earlier films, but it’s not this director’s forte. This film was based on a book, and I think with a director with better experience in a slower drama, this could have been a really great picture. ★★★
- TV series currently watching: Only Murders in the Building (season 2)
- Book currently reading: Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
Jons Movie Takes 