Japanese Family Drama (yawn)

Tokyo Story – 1953, Yasujiro Ozu (136 min)
Memories of Matsuko – 2006, Tetsuya Nakashima (130min)
Tokyo Sonata – 2008, Kiyoshi Kurosawa (120 min)

The very dapper Yasujir Ozu was a prominent Japanese film maker who achieved recognition outside Japan only after his death. His films are placed on the shelf labelled ‘Masterpieces’ along with the work of Ingmar Bergman, Jean-Luc Godard et all.

The biggest criticism that is ever made of Ozu is that no one can tell one of his movies from another, and this is never made scathingly, it seems more of an observation of the fact that all of his films are equally outstanding. There’s no doubting it, Ozu could frame a shot. Every shot in every scene of Tokyo Story is a perfect composition. When reproduced in greyscale, Jan Vermeer’s 17th century oil The Art Of Painting is very reminiscent of Ozu’s style.



(well La-Di-Da)

Equally remarkably, Ozu’s camera almost never moves (there is one tracking shot in Tokyo Story and no pans as far as I recall) and interior shots are almost always from waist height (because everyone’s sitting on the floor). This humble minimalism makes Ozu’s films seems alien and creates the impression that his films have an immense sense of ‘Japanesenes’ to them, when in fact, as far as Tokyo Story goes, the story and characters are completely universal.

This film is about an elderly couple who travel to Tokyo to visit their children and grandchildren. They spend their time trying not to inconvenience their children, who in turn make little effort to spend any time with their elderly parents who have made a long trip to see them. Lack of respect for one's elders and unconditional love for one's children are the themes.

Clearly sad and bleak by design, but I found it hard to tell if the elderly couple who are the central characters were supposed to be comical. They maintain the same puzzled expressions throughout, even during the gloomy conclusion. The other character of most prominence is their daughter in law who was widowed when her husband went missing, presumed dead during the war. She also maintains the same expression almost the whole time, her's a face that always smiles politely even when she is dying inside.



She is genuinely tragic, maintaining a strangely optimistic acceptance that her life is already over.

I suppose I’d recommend Tokyo Story, but I won’t be seeking out any of Ozu’s other work any time soon. That said, as one of the giants of Japanese cinema, his influence presides over a lot Japanese film I’ve seen. Even violent and horrific Japanese films have moments of utter calm and tranquillity than can perhaps be traced back to him. He is an observer. His camera gives us the view of a silent character in his film sat on the floor like everyone else. There is no escape in his films.

Memories of Matsuko by contrast is pure escapism (is this contrast to Ozu’s style evidence of his influence?). In fact it’s the Japanese Amélie.



This film is basically a pantomime, a film that want’s to be a pop video. To me this films appears to have been made by westerners trying to make a Japanese style film. Some scenes are actualy pop videos intentionally, but all the quirky stuff detracts from the drama, so by the end it’s straining to strike an emotional chord. Some bits are very funny but they come at the expense of the drama...like it’s worried about taking itself too seriously.

Memories of Matsuko is very imaginative and the director has clearly brought his vision to life with a relatively small budget, however...

This film is basically ‘Japanese Bullshit’. If you surf the web a lot you’ll be familiar with Japanese Bullshit and probably have your own interpretation of what is bullshit and what isn’t. I’m often the first to defend a lot of films that might be considered bullshit. And a lot of Japanese stuff isn’t Bullshit in my opinion, but increasingly, there things that come out of Japan that are held up as examples of excellent art/film/whatever that are, in fact, bullshit. I strive to keep my blog free of my cynical and ill-conceived opinions on modern culture, so I’ll stop ranting now, but I will point you in the direction of this slideshow on the overrated Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara.

As the guy says on slide 8 ‘‘It's one thing to be inspired by something, another thing to channel its energy authentically.’’ This comment sums up MOM perfectly in my opinion, and helps me explain why I’m not crazy about films that I should like, namely Amélie and Run Lola, Run. Original, ground breaking films so rarely receive the attention they deserve, so when one does achieve success, audiences accept uniqueness and individuality as enough to wow them and are too easily bowled over. But ‘new’ and ‘different’ aren’t enough.

Tokyo Sonata is a film that is exactly what I expected, yet still entertaining.
This film is about the interesting phenomenon of Japanese salary-men who are laid off but don’t tell their families. The leave home every day as if they were going to work. ‘Sonata’ is about one such guy who can’t bear to tell his family the truth, yet is infuriated by the lies his wife and children tell.

Just as slow as Story but the fact the camera actually moves makes it more interesting. In this sense the film serves as a critique of Ozu’s style, there can be such a thing as too much stillness, particularly when so many scenes take place in a domestic setting. The lead actor (who has a small role in MOM) is really good. In fact the whole cast are good. This film contrast very well with Tokyo Story (they would make two halves of an excruciating double feature) showing the difference between Japan today and of 50 years ago. No one will ever call it a masterpiece, but it looks good and the camerawork compliments the pace of the story. The humour comes across better in this one, probably because it’s more contemporary and less confusing.

Tokyo Sonata is a film about deceit within a family. Tokyo Story is a film about a family growing apart. Both are good.

Memories of Matsuko, Amélie and Run Lola, Run are films about Love. But love stories have been done more than any other, so it’s important to try something different, and each of these films should be commended for their originality, but not to the extent that their flaws are ignored.

Sci-Fi Adaptation

I recently watched Charly (1968, Ralph Nelson) which is an adaptation of the little known sci-fi novel Flowers for Algernon.

It’s not Space Opera, and it was set during the time of writing, but it qualifies as sci-fi through the use of fictional medical techniques. Reading the synopsis of the novel you’d think it sounded like a strange one to adapt into a film; retarded man undergoes a medical experiment that makes him incredibly intelligent, but emotionally detached from the rest of the world, the results are only temporary and he finally lapses back into a child like state of mind.

But then I found out the driving force behind the film was Cliff Robertson, the lead actor whose portrayal of the titular Charly won him the best actor Oscar in 1968. I’m not absolutely sure but maybe this was the fist example of Oscar success attained through playing a retard (without, of course, going ‘Full Retard’). Cliff is more recognisable as Peter Parker’s uncle Ben in the Spiderman films (I always thought it was that guy from Highway to Heaven).



Charly has the same kind of vibe to it as a film called Bigger Than Life in that it’s well made on a modest but not tiny budget, and without attempting to cause too much controversy, it deliberately questions the state of contemporary American society. Charly plays it completely straight throughout, although the following ‘drug-fuelled-bender’ sequence from the middle of the film is very out of place;



A clear example of a director stepping out if his depth.

There have in fact been eight adaptations of Flowers for Algernon and according to Wikipedia there is one in the works with Will Smith in the lead role (you’ll win that Oscar yet Big Wille).

This got me thinking about a few sci-fi novels I’ve read that would make good films;

Galaxies Like Grains of Sand, 1960 by Brian Aldiss
This is a collection of short stories, a lot of sci fi novels, including Flower For Algernon started out as shorts published in science fiction periodicals. Each story is set farther into the future than the last, following the evolution of mankind, much like Olaf Stapledon’s First and Last Men, only GLGOF doesn’t make the mistake of trying to predict the near future and getting it very wrong.

I think this particular collection would suit the ‘Animatrix’ style treatment that has become slightly popular. A series of short animated films set in a particular universe is a medium that worked well for Batman and Halo....speaking of which....

Ringworld , 1970 by Larry Niven
If you’ve played any of the Halo games you’ll be familiar with the concept of a Ringworld; an artificial ring so vast that the surface area of the inner face is a million times greater that of the surface of the Earth, at the centre of the ring is a star. The titular constructions from the Halo series are the same idea but on a smaller scale without a central sun. The best sci-fi novels are the ones which have the most imaginative ideas and Niven’s most famous work is full of them. Science fiction writing is often categorised (somewhat unfortunately) as ‘Hard’ or ‘Soft’ depending upon how closely the laws of physics are adhered to and how accurate the use of known technological constraints are. In the wake of Avatar, the sci-fi epic is in vogue again, but I don’t thing Ringworld will likely be adapted anytime soon for the reason expressed in the following equation:

(Ringworld + Warhammer 40,000 + Aliens) – Star Trek = Halo

If someone wants to adapt an ambitious story about large artificial ring shaped orbital bodies, they’re probably going to pick the far more recent and popular property.

The Forever War, 1974 by Joe Halderman
Joe Halderman was drafted and served in Vietnam, while he was there he may have read Starship Troopers. When he returned to the States he wrote The Forever War based upon his experience of returning as a veteran of an unpopular war. In the novel, the protagonist boards a star ship to fly off and engage an alien enemy light-years from earth, then makes the return trip. Though only a few months have passed from his perspective, due to relativity and all that jazz, 10 years have passed on earth and nothing is the same as it was when he left. This one was apparently close to being made by Ridely Scott, but he’s working on the Alien prequels now.

Neuromancer, 1984 by William Gibson
I recommend this novel the most, and would most like to see it faithfully adapted. A lot of this one has already made to the big screen in a round-about way. Neuromancer is set in a future Earth known as The Sprawl, Gibson wrote a three novels and a collection of short stories set there. One of the shorts ‘Jonny Mnemonic’ became a 1995 film staring Keanu Reeves (the character Jonny is referenced in Neuromancer). A few years later the Wachowski brothers wrote The Matrix, which for all its originality ‘borrowed’ extensively from various sci-fi sources (in Neuromancer the central character is a guy who plugs his brain into a huge computer network called ‘The Matrix’). The whole cyberpunk thing started with Gibson.

The Forge of God, 1987 by Greg Bear
I mentioned this one in my last post. The Forge of God is good, if slightly depressing story about the destruction of the Earth by robots from outer space. ‘Knowing’ and ‘2012’ have pretty much covered the whole destruction of the earth theme, so a similar film probably won’t be made in a while which is a shame as ‘Forge’ would have made a far better film than either of them. I didn’t care much for the sequel novel ‘Anvil of Stars’ though.

Ten Short Film Reviews 8

Felon – 2008, Ric Roman Waugh
What was the last prison drama that didn’t go straight to DVD? Probably the one staring Robert Redford and James Gandolfini. Oh, and A Prophet. And that Brazilian one...
OK, so a lot of prison dramas do get a cinema release, but for each one of those there must be at least ten prison dramas starring JCVD or Steven Seagal or Ving Rhames that are destined straight for Blockbuster Video. ‘Felon’ is better than the typical straight to DVD prison romp. Very well made considering the tight budget and featuring good performances from Val Kilmer and, surprisingly, Mr Bad Boyfriend himself Stephen Dorff.

Over The Top – 1987, Menahem Golan
Mr Golan directed a whole load of films, including everyone’s favourite Chuck Norris film The Delta Force (which is well worth checking out, B-Movie fans). Over The Top is basically Rocky with Arm wrestling. There’s less focus on training, more on trucking and the relationship Sylvester Stallone’s character has with his son. Sly’s character is very understated in this one, kind of like the big softy John Rambo might have been if only General Troutman hadn’t chipped away at that special stone in order to reveal the ultimate killing machine within.

Run Lola Run – 1998, Tom Tykwer
I should like it but I don’t. It’s a good idea, and it’s always good when a film is bold and mixes it up like this film does, but...I just can’t put my finger on what I don’t like about this film. It’s got a dated German-nes about it that is best summed up by Moritz Bleibtreu’s face:



Knowing – 2009, Alex Proyas
This film is packed full of clichés (spooky little girl, protagonist’s wife has died, man loses faith in life etc) and the plot is as lazy as the performances, but it managed to hold my attention because it’s not at all predictable. Stuff happens, tension builds, the world is going to end...and it’s there are no hints as to why it’s happening until the end when it is revealed... the paedophiles from space did it!
OK, so they aren’t really paedophiles, just aliens who know the Earth is doomed, and it’s an annoying ending. Something else that annoys me is that ‘the world coming to an end and the survivors are flying off into space’ plot was used twice in films made in 2009 (this and ‘2012’). This means that the big screen adaptation of Greg Bear’s novel Forge of God is probably out of the question for another ten years.

Unbreakable – 2000, M. Night Shyamalam
My favourite M. Night Shalamawhatever film. It’s very predictable, in fact if finishes so abruptly after the twist at the end it seems like he knew it was so predictable and it would be better not to dawdle. But I still like everything about it. The whole ‘tell a story about comic book heroes but in a realistic way’ has gotton old over the last ten years which is a shame. Maybe when everyone grows bored of the Iron Man/Avengers movies that are surely going to peak over the next couple of years, there will be another film like Unbreakable.

Capricorn One – 1978, Peter Hymas
Josh Brolin’s dad James plays the lead in this thriller about a faked mission to land men on Mars and the effort to cover it up. The story is good, but the film could have been so much better. The plot seems very underwritten and it gets a bit confusing towards the end due to bad editing; it’s hard to tell if some events that tale place are supposed to be occurring concurrently. The pacing of the final act is a bit off as well, Hymas’ later film Outland suffers in the same way. Nice little turn by Telly Savalas though. O J Simpson was a strange casting choice.

Idiocracy – 2006, Mike Judge
As you may already know, Mike Judge is the guy behind ‘Beavis and Butthead’ and ‘King of The Hill’. He also made the very popular (but in my opinion overrated) ‘Office Space’, and more recently a film called ‘Extract’ starring the almost-ubiquitous Jason Bateman. The films and TV shows that Judge makes tend to divide people. I’ve never been a massive fan of anything he’s been involved in, but I am very keen on Idiocracy. This film was criminally under promoted by a studio that got cold feet. This film isn’t really very profound or controversial, but its’ intelligent critique of the dumbing down of society was enough worry the wrong people, and it was all but shelved. It’s original and funny and thoughtful at the same time, I highly recommend it.



Days of Heaven – 1976 Terrence Malick
OK, I get it now. Terrence is an excellent director. His films are massively self indulgent, and yet they turn out well. I’ve watched my share of worthy-ass-films and I’d say that Days Of Heaven just about beats them all insofar as it has a loose plot that appears to have come together during the edit (a-la Wong Kar Wai) is beautifully shot in an amazing location (Wim Wenders) and has a dream like quality without being a fantasy (Peter Weir). I suppose being American meant Malick got a lot more recognition that the others...shame he doesn’t make more films.

Conan The Destroyer – 1984, Richard Fliescher
Not a patch on the first one, although this one does have a tongue in cheek tone that is far more suited to the whole crazy violent fantasy that takes place. It makes Conan The Barbarian appear to take itself too seriously, but I still think ‘Barbarian’ hits the nail on the head. This one is far more Swords and Sorcery with a bigger ensemble cast of misfit fantasy types; Virginal Princess, Amazonian Warrior Woman, Comic Relief Sidekick and Really Tall Dude (NBE legend Wilt Chamberlain) who’s a good guy, but obviously going to have a fight with Arnie at some point. I think Schwarzenegger spends more time with his shirt off in this film that any other. The Conan tradition of abusing animals continues.



Basic Instinct – 1992, Paul Verhoeven
Paul Verhoeven is an excellent director and worthy of a lot more credit than he gets. Paul is all about excess, mainly excess violence; Robocop, Total Recall, Starship Troopers. But in Basic Instinct he’s all about excess drama. This film basically screams ‘I AM AN EROTIC THRILLER Y’ALL’ at the top of it’s lungs for 127 minutes. I watched it for the first time and I was surprised at how much I liked it. If ever a film was dragged down by brief flash of minge, this is it. It may never have been as successful without it, but it has detracted from the films legacy, even though it doesn’t detract from the film itself. It’s testament to Verheoven’s skill as a director that he can make a film where a bird showing her clunge doesn’t seem out of place. I wonder if there’s a special edition somewhere that has a freeze frame so you don’t have to bother pausing it?

Barefoot Gen

Barefoot Gen – 1983, Mori Masaki



Yep, it’s Hiroshima the cartoon.



Actually it’s Hiroshima the comic book. Barefoot Gen was written by Keiji Nakazawa who was born in Hiroshima in 1939 and survived the atomic bomb. He wrote Barefoot Gen which was published in Japan between 1973 and 1985 and was based upon his experiences of growing up in wartime, the atomic bomb, radiation poisoning and post-war Japan.

Lots of Japanese manga comics are adapted into feature length animated films. They tend to be as good as the source material, the best ones receiving international cinema release, or at the very least an English dub video release. This can be used as a barometer of which manga are the best and which are the most culturally important in Japan, where comics are more widely read that anywhere else. The importance of Barefoot Gen is demonstrated by the number of adaptations; at least one TV drama, three live action films and two animated films based on the various volumes of the manga.

The first animated film is probably the most widely seen internationally, deservingly so. It starts off as a happy tale about Gen and his family living during The War; rationing, air raids, mucking in and getting by reminiscent of the fondly remembered wartime spirit that arose during The Blitz. There’s lots of fun and japes with most of the humour derived from the fact that Gen and his younger brother are so hungry all the time. The proud Japanese work ethic is espoused through Gen’s hardworking parents.

When the bomb is dropped the tone changes dramatically. The second half of the film makes for grim, almost difficult watching, but it’s incredibly compelling. After he is left alone to care for his pregnant mother, Gen remembers his father’s words and works tirelessly for her, coming up against all the horrors that came in the aftermath of ‘Little Boy’.

Barefoot Gen is an important story about an important subject. The cultural impact that two atomic bombs will have on a nation is a topic too significant for any mere blogger to attempt to cover or even summarise in a single post. The same goes for the subject of how comics can help a society express its shared but unspoken thoughts and emotions.

I will however muse upon the effect of nuclear war on a certain niche of Japanese comics and animated films. Barefoot Gen is explicitly about the bombing of Hiroshima, but another famous and successful amine is certainly inspired by the Japanese post-war experience; Akira.

Akira is a film about change. In the film there is political unrest in Japan, the government is almost powerless, and mankind itself may be on the verge of some kind of evolution. The film’s climax is the mutation of Tetsuo into a huge mass of pulsating flesh (famously parodied in a certain South Park episode).

But on a deeper level Akira is about the change each generation notices in the next. The generation born in Japan in the 40s and 50s were malnourished and downtrodden, but they worked hard after the war and were able to see their children live in much better times. The difference physically between the two generations was remarkable. Imagine if almost every child born in a generation grew to be considerably bigger and stronger than their parents. Daunting to say the least, and this has had an effect on Japan culturally, the best evidence of this (in my opinion) is Akira.

A lot of Japanese animation is worthless guff about lesbian schoolgirls, but the good stuff is really worth checking out. It’s a shame that it’s so easy to dismiss due to the bad first impression it often makes; there’s a lot more to Ghost In The Shell than just a naked bird with big tits running around shooting people, but I’ve given up trying to explain that to people at parties.