Yojimbo (1961)

Sword of the Beast / Kedamono no ken (1965, Hideo Gosha)

獣の剣　（五社英雄）

6/5/23

Mitsuko Mito, Chiyo Nobu, and Eijiro Tono in Jubilation Street (Keisuke Kinoshita, 1944) Cast: Ken Uehara, Mitsuko Mito, Chiyo Nobu, Eijiro Tono, Makoto Kobori, Choko Iida. Screenplay: Kaoru Morimoto. Cinematography: Hiroshi Kusuda. There's a kind of quiet desperation in the patriotism on display in Keisuke Kinoshita's Jubilation Street. Kinoshita could not have ignored the censors' demands for the flag-waving ending and the vows to revenge the death of one of the central characters, but maybe it's only postwar hindsight that makes me feel that his heart wasn't in it. Or maybe he was more interested in his characters than in manipulating them to serve the war effort. The titular street is condemned to be torn up by the military for unspecified wartime purposes, but the longtime residents are at first not thrilled by being dislocated to serve their country. The film depicts their struggle to hold on as long as they can, some out of stubbornness, like the bathhouse owner who doesn't want to leave a place where he has run his business for so long -- though he has to admit, when someone reminds him, that he won't have any customers after all the other neighbors leave. And some, like Kiyo Furukawa (Chiyo Nobu), want to remain for more deeply personal reasons: She's afraid that if the husband who left her and their son, Shingo (Ken Uehara), so many years ago suddenly decides to return he won't be able to find them. Shingo is already doing his part in the war as a test pilot, but he has also fallen in love with the pretty Takako (Mitsuko Mito), whose family wants her to enter into an arranged marriage. They are afraid that separation will prove fatal to their love. The plot then takes a predictable turn: Shingo's father (Eijiro Tono) returns, though Kiyo has misgivings about resuming their marriage when she learns how many varied jobs he has held over the years, an indicator that the instability that caused him to leave is still a problem. But then an event -- one that most filmgoers will have predicted on their own -- alters everything. Good performances aren't enough to lift this early Kinoshita film above routine, but the director's characteristic humanity (and equally characteristic sentimentality) gives it a warmth that even the ham-fisted propaganda can't quite obliterate.

Not Made In The USA Month :Yojimbo

During Not Made In the USA month I shall view the cinema of various countries ,barring the USA

Today we shall look at a classic of Japanese cinema by legendary director Akira Kurosawa that was later remade as Fistful of Dollars in Italy

This 1961 film follows A nameless samurai (Toshiro Mifune) decides to pit two warring gangs against eachother to free a small town

This movie rocks .Its a great action flick and a highly influential film,this premise has been made into film a bunch after this (Most notably with a Fistful of Dollars which launched the career of Clint Eastwood ),However I do think it is the besttelling of the tale of a loner taking down two gangs I have seen,and part of that is due to the fact it stars Toshiro Mifune ,an actor who ooozes badass vibes ,his performance as the samurai is spectacular.I also appreciate the film is funny ,the tongue in cheek humor really made it a fun watch .The supporting cast is all top notch,I really like all the odd characters we meet.It interesting to see legendary Takashi Shimura play a dirty old man ,Daisuke Kato is fun as one of the bad guys ,Isuzu Yamada is wonderfully mean as a gangsters wife ,Eijiro Tono has a great dynamic with our hero as his old man friend , and the stand out really is Tatsuya Nakadai as the main heavy ,a gun toting gangster

Overall I loved this movie ,highly reccomended.It might be my favorite Kurosawa film at the moment

@ariel-seagull-wings @metropolitan-mutant-of-ark @the-blue-fairie @storytellergirl @marquisedemasque @filmcityworld1 @princesssarisa @angelixgutz @amalthea9

ShinKami Month 2022 Día 1 de julio: primera cita.

Operación Primera Cita

Denki por fin se había animado a pedirle una cita a Hitoshi y él había accedido. El rubio se contuvo de mostrar su felicidad, no quería espantarlo haciendo un baile raro.

Sin embargo, ahora tenía un nuevo problema. ¿A dónde debía llevar a su enamorado?

Era momento de convocar al escuadrón gay. Escuadrón que no existía, pero él iba a conformarlo en ese mismo instante. Armó un grupo de chat con las dos parejas homosexuales que conocía y él, por supuesto.

Enseguida envió un mensaje: “Chicos necesito su ayuda. Veámonos en el cuarto de Sero”.

💛💜💛💜

—¿Puedo saber por qué de repente mi habitación fue invadida?

—Porque es la más linda. Sin ofender Todoroki, la tuya también es linda.

—Estoy seguro de que la mía es mejor —acotó Bakugo con un bufido.

—¿Para qué querías vernos Kaminari? —preguntó Kirishima— ¿Y qué es eso de escuadrón gay?

—Ok, doy por iniciada la primera reunión de este honorable grupo —anunció Denki elevando los brazos—. Los reuní porque se me dio con Shinso.

—¡Buenísimo! —animó Eijiro.

—¡Sí, genial! ¿Cómo fue? —Quiso saber Hanta.

Shoto aplaudió para demostrar su apoyo. Denki agradeció a sus amigos y prometió contar luego los detalles.

—Necesito que me ayuden con una idea para la cita. No sé a dónde llevarlo.

—Invitalo a comer —propuso Kirishima.

—No me alcanza para eso.

—Llevalo al cine —dijo Sero

—No, ahí no vamos a poder hablar.

—Shinso parece una persona simple —mencionó Todoroki con su tono de voz tranquilo de siempre—. ¿Por qué no lo invitás a caminar por el parque?

Todos lo miraron un momento. No era una mala idea, en el parque había varias cosas que podían hacer, como alquilar un botecito o pasear en bicicleta.

—No, no me parece —respondió Denki—. Tengo que impresionarlo.

—No, Kaminari…

—No seas idiota —habló Bakugo. Todos lo miraron con asombro. Aunque sonaba molesto, se veía tranquilo—. Dijiste que se te dio. ¿Y qué hiciste para que te diga que sí? Solamente tenés que ser vos mismo.

—Oh —Los ojos de Denki brillaron como si hubiese tenido una gran idea—. ¡Muy bien! —exclamó levantándose del lugar donde estaba sentado—. Voy a invitar a Shinso a ver películas de los noventa a mi cuarto. Y voy a comprar sus snacks favoritos.

—¡Así se habla! —animó Sero.

Todoroki volvió a aplaudir.

Un momento después, Kaminari se fue entusiasmado con la idea de preparar la lista de películas para mirar con su enamorado.

💜💛💜💛

Llegó el sábado, el día tan esperado. Hitoshi entró a la habitación de Denki, vestía casual, pero muy bonito. Cuando el rubio le propuso ver películas de los noventa aceptó con gustó. Y para disfrutar más del momento, llevó dos pares de lentes 3D con plásticos azules y rojos, típicos de esa época.

—Espero que estés preparado para ver las mejores películas de fantasía del siglo pasado —comentó Denki.

—Y yo espero que hayas preparado buenas películas como Jumanji o Los locos Adams —respondió Hitoshi.

—Los locos Adams no es de fantasía, pero tenemos otras joyas para ver. Ponete cómodo. Compré muchos snacks y varias gaseosas. Tengo estos vasos que según mi tía también son de los noventa —Le mostró un par de vasos grandes con un logo antiguo de Pepsi—. Se ven viejos, pero están en buen estado.

Kaminari había acomodado su cuarto de modo que pudieran sentarse en el piso y apoyar la espalda en el borde de la cama. El monitor de la computadora estaba apoyado sobre unas cajas, un poco más abajo de lo que estaría normalmente.

La mesita ratona, ubicada entre la cama y el escritorio, estaba repleta de platitos con frituras y golosinas.

Shinso estaba muy feliz al ver la dedicación de Kaminari para preparar su primera cita, podría solo haber preparado un par de películas, pero no. Él fue por el paquete completo.

El rubio ya se había sentado, buscaba algo en su celular. Hitoshi se sentó a su lado y acercándose un poco de más le dijo:

—Ya que tenemos tantas joyas para ver, otro día podemos ver las que no alcemos a ver hoy.

—Sí, podemos —dijo Denki con la cara muy roja. Hitoshi sonrió ante esa imagen tan linda.

Esta historia continuará (el 7 de julio).

@shinkami-events 💜💛

¡Muchas gracias por leer!

𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐈𝐑𝐎𝐒 𝐌𝐎𝐒𝐓 𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐃 .

hello? has this message reached you? if you have seen this, then there is somebody in the dream world who is calling out to you ; they are wishing to meet you once again.

PARADOX OF LUCIDITY is a 18+ multifandom role-play group based on Discord. P.O.L focuses on the aspects of having fun while writing with a world built around your characters. Our rules are more laid back and emphasizes the joy of writing with others exploring your characters in a new situation. Won’t you join us?

rules | masterlist | discord invite

( ACE ATTORNEY . ) - ,ema skye , miles edgeworth , klavier gavin , justine courtney , any characters from ace attorney series .

( AVATAR THE LAST AIRBENDER . ) - any characters from avatar the last airbender .

( BALDUR'S GATE . ) - any characters from baldur's gate series, any characters from baldur's gate 3 .

( BANG DREAM . ) - takamatsu tomori , kaname raana , shiina taki , any characters from bang dream .

( BOKU NO HERO ACADEMIA . ) - izuku midoriya , toshinori yagi , todoroki shoto , eijiro kirishima , hanta sero , any characters from class 1-a .

( BUNGO NO STRAY DOGS . ) - doppo kunikida , akutagawa gin , fyodor dostoyevsky , nikolai gogol , braum stoker , sigma , any characters from bungo no stray dogs .

( CHAINSAW MAN . ) - power , aki hayakawa , any characters from chainsaw man .

( DEATH NOTE. ) - any characters from death note .

( DEVIL MAY CRY. ) - any characters from devil may cry .

( ELSWORD . ) - any characters from elsword .

( ENSEMBLE STARS. ) - hokuto hidaka , suburu akehoshi , makoto yuuki , izumi sena , hiiro amagi , kaoru hakaze , any characters from ensemble stars .

( FAIRY TAIL . ) - any characters from fairy tail .

( FINAL FANTASY . ) - zenos yae galvus , any final fantasy characters , any scions of the seventh dawn

( GENSHIN IMPACT. ) - tartaglia , xiao , any fontaine characters , any characters from genshin impact .

( HONKAI STAR RAIL . ) - any honkai star rail characters .

( HORIMIYA . ) - tooru ishikawa , any horimiya characters .

( HYPNOSIS MICROPHONE. ) - rei amayado , rio mason busujima , samatoki aohitsugi , any characters from hypnosis microphone .

( IDENTITY V. ) - any survivors from identity v .

( IRIS . ) - father tyrant .

( KISEKI / TRAILS . ) - elie macdowell , randy orlando , tio plato , noel seeker , wazy hemisphere , any special support section members .

( LEAGUE OF LEGENDS . ) - kayn , jinx , ekko , talon , lux , soraka , diana , leona , samira , jayce tails , zed , sona , heartsteel members , any characters from league of legends .

( MYSTIC MESSENGER . ) - saeran choi , any characters from mystic messenger .

( ORIGINAL CHARACTERS. ) - any original characters .

( PARADOX LIVE. ) - allen sugasano , hajun yeon , naoakira saimon , yohei kanbayashi , shiki ando .

( PERSONA . ) - zen , makoto niijima , haru okumura , sumeru yoshizawa , morgana , any phantom thief/persona 5 characters , any s.e.e.s/persona 3 characters .

( PROJECT SEKAI : COLORFUL STAGE. ) - kohane azusawa , hanasato minori , kiritani haruka , hinomori shizuku , kagamine len , kagamine rin , arata tono , taiga kotaki, rui kamishiro , any 25nightcode vocaloids .

( REVUE STARLIGHT. ) - karen aijou , mahiru tsuyuzaki , tendou maya , claudine saijo, junna hoshimi , nana daiba , kaoruko hanayagi , futuba isuragi .

( SHIN MEGAMI TENSEI. ) - yuko takao , isamu nitta , chiaki tachibana , any shin megami tensei characters .

( TALES OF . ) - any tales of berseria characters .

( TOUKEN RANBU . ) - tomoegata naginata , taikogane sadamune , monoyoshi sadamune , any touken ranbu characters .

( TOWER OF GOD. ) - any tower of god characters .

( TWISTED WONDERLAND . ) - sebek zigvolt .

We travel back in time to watch KYUKETSU-GA (1956) from Japanese director Nobuo Nakagawa! Moths? Vampires?! Werewolves?!! Just what is in store in this adaptation of Seishi Yokomizo's Kosuke Kindaichi detective stories?

The film stars Ryō Ikebe as the detective Kindaichi, with Asami Kuji, Eijirō Tōno and Kyoko Anzai in supporting roles.

Context setting 00:00; Synopsis 18:28; Discussion 33:58; Ranking 40:11

Tokyo Story (Yasujiro Ozu, 1953)

Sanma no aji (1962)

An Autumn Afternoon / Sanma no aji (1962, Yasujirō Ozu)

秋刀魚の味　（小津安二郎）

11/1/20

Takashi Shimura in Seven Samurai (Akira Kurosawa,1954)

Cast: Toshiro Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Yoshio Inaba, Daisuke Kato, Seigi Miyaguchi, Minoru Chiaki, Isao Kimura, Yoshio Tsuchiya, Bokuzen Hidari, Yukiko Shimazaki, Kamatari Fujiwara, Keiko Tsushima, Kokuten Kodo, Yoshio Kosugi. Shinpei Takagi, Eijiro Tono, Tatsuya Nakadai. Screenplay: Akira Kurosawa, Shinobu Hashimoto, Hideo Oguni. Cinematography: Asakazu Nakai. Production design: Takashi Matsuyama. Film editing: Akira Kurosawa. Music: Fumio Hayasaka. 

It's a truism that silent movies and talkies constitute two distinct artistic media, and to judge the one by the standards of the other is an error. But it's almost impossible to watch films made by older directors, especially those who came of age when silent films were being made, without noticing the efforts they make to tell their stories without speech. It's true of John Ford, Alfred Hitchcock, and Howard Hawks, even though they, especially Hawks, became masters of dialogue in their films. And it's true of Kurosawa, who although he didn't begin his career in films until 1936 and directed his first one in 1943, was born in 1910 and grew up with silent movies. I think it helped him learn the universals of storytelling that are independent of language, so that he became the most popular of all Japanese filmmakers. Others rank the work of Ozu or Mizoguchi more highly, but Kurosawa's films manage to transcend the limitations of subtitles more easily. Of none of his films is this more true than Seven Samurai, which is also generally regarded, even by those with reservations about Kurosawa's work, as his masterpiece. That's not a word I use lightly, but having sat enthralled through the uncut version, three hours and 27 minutes long, last night, I'm willing to endorse it. It's an exhilarating film, with none of the longueurs that epics -- I'm thinking of Gone With the Wind (Victor Fleming, 1939) and Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean, 1962) -- so easily fall into. I don't know of any action film with as many vividly drawn characters, and that's largely because Kurosawa takes the time to delineate each one. It's also a film about its milieu, 16th-century Japan, although as its American imitation, The Magnificent Seven (John Sturges, 1960), shows, there's a universality about the antagonism between fighters and farmers. Kurosawa captures this particularly well in the character of Kikuchiyo (Toshiro Mifune), the would-be samurai who reveals in mid-film that he was raised as a farmer and carried both a kind of self-hate for his class along with a hatred for the arrogant treatment of farmers by samurai. Mifune's show-off performance is terrific, but the film really belongs to Takashi Shimura, who radiates stillness and wisdom as Kambei Shimada, the leader of the seven. There are clichés to be found, such as the fated romance of the young samurai trainee Katsushiro (Isao Kimura) and the farmer's daughter Shino (Keiko Tsushima), but like the best clichés, they ring true. Seven Samurai earned two Oscar nominations, for Takashi Matsuyama's art direction and Kohei Ezaki's costumes, but won neither. Overlooking Kurosawa's direction, Shimura's performance, and Asakazu Nakai's cinematography is unforgivable, if exactly what one expects from the Academy.

Tokyo Story (東京物語 Tōkyō Monogatari) (1953) Dir: Yasujirō Ozu DOP: Yūharu Atsuta “Children don't live up to their parents' expectations. Let's just be happy that they're better than most.”

MARZO 23, 1910

NACE EL CINEASTA JAPONÉS AKIRA KUROSAWA

  Yojimbo Yôjinbô Dir. Akira Kurosawa Japón 1961