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Why I Hate 110th Anniversary of Yasujiro Ozu

This is 110th anniversary of Yasujiro Ozu. Not so many artists receive recognition at the centenary of their birth, even less do at the 110th. But it is good to know that there will be a new generation of audience who will discover his works for the first time in this occasion. During the past months, I saw many books published, magazines running special issues, his prints newly restored, theaters holding Ozu festivals, and Blurays released. But somehow, my interests have faded away. Maybe it is a temporary thing, but I am fed up with this hype. Then I started …

 
GERMAN FILMS / JAPANESE FILMS

About the Meal Prepared by the Cultural Elites and its Nutritional Merits

While UNTERNEHMEN MICHAEL (1938) was released after Japanese censorship had butchered it, another Karl Ritter’s film, URLAUB AUF EHRENWORT (1938) was banned in its entirety. According to Akira Iwasaki, the official reason given was that film depicted the officer’s insubordination to the orders. However, by the time its ban was announced, this film had already been screened to directors, producers, writers and critics in film industries, and some magazines published their reviews and discussions on their pages even. These insiders praised URLAUB AUF EHRENWORT unanimously, some calling it a masterpiece. Around the same time, Marlene Dietrich’s DESTRY RIDES AGAIN (1939) …

 
JAPANESE FILMS

Foreign Films during the War Years

Japan had been one of the largest market for European and Hollywood films in the Eastern hemisphere until its totalitarian regime attacked the Pearl Harbor on December 8, 1941. Though the government was hostile toward the Allies, Japanese film exhibitors were still importing and marketing Hollywood films even in 1941. Here are the pages from the magazine called “Nihon Eiga (Japanese Film)”, July 1941. Two Hollywood films were featured in the special section: THE RAINS CAME (1939) and THE UNDER-PUP (1939). THE RAINS CAME was the 20th Century Fox production directed by the seasoned professional, Clearance Brown, and featured Myrna …