Naked Island (1960) Hadaka no shima

Directed by Kaneto Shind (Onibaba, Kuroneko)

Starring Nobuko Otowa, Taiji Tonoyama, Shinji Tanaka, Masanori Horimoto

Visual poetry from start to finish, Following the struggle for survival of man against nature as a family eke out an existence on a small Island off the coast of Japan.

The island is home and/or prison for the family, a desolate dust trap lacking the most basic of amenities including the most important, fresh water. The day is filled with a continuous and endless to-ing and fro-ing to the mainland to collect fresh water which then has to be carried up the steep face of the island to provide water for drinking, bathing and for the crops. 

Water is without a doubt the most precious and essential of commodities.

A harsh existence indeed, almost medieval in feel though the fact that they are in a continuous battle against nature rather than working with it does place it firmly in the present. 

Silence is golden (so they say) and there is a complete lack of speech throughout the film, for the majority of the story this works perfectly, there is no need for speech as the parents go through the endless routine of fetching, carrying and watering the crops but when one of their sons falls ill the silence feels false, you want to here the worry and anguish as they search desperately for a doctor, but the silence continues, the father finds the doctor but the film cuts before he utters a word.

The story at first gives the sense of a community totally dependent on each other and with everyone on an equal footing, given the directors political leanings its almost a communist allegory but this isnt a fable. The truth is this is a very patriarchal society as noted by A or dictatorship which is revealed when the mother loses her footing whilst carrying two precious buckets of water, one spills emptying its contents into the soil. Her husband approaches with the feel that he will give her some aid and maybe commiserate, but as he reaches her he slaps her so hard she falls to the ground. 

There are other pointers that you cant help but notice after this incident that show that the wife/mother is regarded as the lowest ranking of the family, most of the fetching and carrying is done by her including taking her son to the mainland for school while collecting more water at the same time, meanwhile her husband slowly, carefully waters the crops. When it comes to bathing the woman comes last as well, the sons, followed by the father have their bath while she prepares the food, only once everyone and everything else has been dealt with can she finally have a much deserved soak. 

The film takes an almost documentary approach to illustrate the meagre existence by which some people choose to live, it is difficult for families to give up a way of living no matter how tough it is when its the way their families have eked out an existence for many generations. 

Rhythmically visually poetical, a look into a harsh form of existence that asks no questions and provides no answers. The final shot takes an aerial view of the island, circling slowly, it's only then that you realise just how small and all encompassing the family's world is.

A definite recommendation and vastly different from anything else I've seen from Shindo, quite Bressonesque in its own way. 

Cheers Trev.

R2 dvd released by Eureka MoC, beautiful transfer and very good extras including:

Full feaure length commentry from Kaneto Shindo and composer Hikaru Hayashi.

Introduction by Alex Cox

Stills gallery

and a 24 page booklet of essays and interviews.