The films of the great Japanese directors 

Three names synonymous with classic Japanese cinema, all very different from each other with their own style yet each in their own way masters of cinema and highly influential. 

Mizoguchi, an extremely humanist director especially where the suffering of women was concerned. He created films of subtlety, simplicity but with so much depth, a large number of his films are set during Japans feudal period and deal with peasants, geishas and prostitutes rather than the grand scale epics that Kurosawa is renowned for. Seen by some as the greatest Japanese director of all time. 

Ozu, famous for his static camera work, minimalist approach to plot and films about life and the family, also showing the changing face of post-war Japan, its only in recent years that his name and films have become better known in the West as the films were seen as being too Japanese for a Western audience. Thankfully more of his films are at last seeing the light of day. 

Kurosawa, probably the most well known Japanese director in the world, from the Samurai epics like Seven Samurai through to Ran to the smaller scale of Ikiru and Dersu Uzula, Akira Kurosawa was lauded on the world stage far more than he was in Japan where he often had great difficulty raising the money for his next project. 

Please feel free to add your own comments, reviews and criticisms to this thread. 

INDEX 

Mizoguchi 

Insight to Mizoguchi by Johndav 

Sansho the Bailiff (1954) - Review by wpqx 

Sansho the Bailiff (1954) - further notes by Johndav 

Ozu 

Late Spring (1949) 

Early Summer (1951) 

Tokyo Story (1953) 

The Only Son (1936) - Review by johndav. 

Good Morning (1959) - Review by wpqx 

End of Summer/Early Autumn (1961) - Review by wpqx 

Kurosawa 

The Seven Samurai (1954) - Review by wpqx 

Throne of Blood (1957) - Review by wpqx 

Ikiru (1952) - Review by wpqx 

Rashomon (1950) - Review by wpqx 

Rhapsody in August (1991) - Review by wpqx 

Rhapsody in August (1991) - Review by Howard Schumann 

Still to come. 


For other sections of Japanese Journals, please use the links 

1.General 

2. Kurosawa, Ozu & Mizoguchi - The Classics 

3. Kitano, Tsukamoto & Miike - The Modern Cult Directors 

4. Anime 

5. Horror & Ghost Stories 

6. Jidaigeki (Chambara) 

Cheers Trev