Mikio Naruse Collection details
| Format: | 12 DVD |
|---|---|
| Starring: | Hideko Takamine, Ken Uehara, Masayuki Mori, Haruko Sugimura, Mariko Okada |
| Director: | Mikio Naruse |
| Genres: | Drama, World Cinema - Japanese |
| Studio: | BFI VIDEO |
| Name | Discs | |
|---|---|---|
Mikio Naruse Collection - When A Woman Ascends The Stairs |
12 Disc 1 | |
Mikio Naruse Collection - Floating Clouds |
12 Disc 2 | |
Mikio Naruse Collection - Late Chrysantemums |
12 Disc 3 |
DVD Information
| Run time: | 5 hours 21 minutes |
|---|---|
| Rental release: | 26 Nov 2007 |
| Main languages: | Japanese |
| Subtitles: | English |
| Hearing impaired subtitles: | English |
Write your own review
Most helpful review
An outstanding collection
By Savage (632 reviews) from London, England , 16 Apr 2008[Highly rated reviewer]
Excellent work by James Quandt at the Canadian Film Institute means that Mikio Naruse can now take his place alongside the other Japanese masters with whom we are familiar in the west. This collection of his films is actually even better than those being offered by Eureka, with the film usually considered his masterpiece, 'Floating clouds' (a woman struggles to exist in post-war Japan), a superb late soap, 'When a woman ascends the stairs' (a bar-manager wonders what she's going to do as she gets too old to continue with the work); and a characteristically austere mid-period drama, 'Late chrysanthemums' (a quartet of ex-geishas struggle without the regular income their work provided them).
Naruse is most similar to Ozu in style, although he lacks that master's impish sense of humour, although his concentration on women's place in society is bound also to remind us of Mizoguchi, although he lacks that master's absolute fluency. Most of his dramas (certainly these three) are concerned with contemporary issues, and are played out without recourse to melodrama or artificial effects. Meditations on a very recognizable world, they are whole-heartedly recommended to anyone prepared to share in their slow, careful rhythms.- Was this review helpful to you?
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(4)Men Over Women Japanese Style
By Cato (705 reviews) from Lydbury North , 30 Jul 2012Rather a sad indictment of the inequality of the sexes in Japan. This sort of custom presumably still goes on in a country which has always seemed to me to have a strong macho society, if its films are to be believed. The acting and direction were first rate but I found little sympathy for the women nor admiration for the men.- Was this review helpful to you?
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review of When a Women ...
By itstinks (681 reviews) from North of Reading , 03 Mar 2011The trials and tribulations of a bar hostess who needs to keep the business going despite the heavy competition and high rents.
Does she give in to compromise in her beliefs of how she should behave and the way the bars should be run ? Should she provide companionship to her clients outside the bar ?
These dilemmas push the film towards a womans movie but everyone has to face a similar type of decision making in their life at times so we can all appreciate her concerns.
There are various other personal problems as well and although it does veer into heavy-handedness at times it is still watchable.- Was this review helpful to you?
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women's films but not chick flicks
By a customer from london , 27 Jul 2008Although not normally a fan of 'woman's film' Naruse's trio are absolutely spellbinding. All are from the female perspective and narrated with total honesty but also sympathy - their aspirations, infatuations, achievements and failures (success often coinciding with failure and so on).
It's also refreshing to see realistic portrayals of men who are often shown up to be weak or inconsistent (traditionally stereotypic female behaviour).
The plots all deal with individual, emotional and social breakdown in post war Japan and how challenges are different for each generation. There's a sly humour running through all three films but also some really gut wrenching irony too.
Although generally described in comparisons with contemporary directors as having no particular style Naruse has a great feeling for rhythm and a unique ability to convey complex scenarios in a straightforward way.- Was this review helpful to you?
- (1) Yes |
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An outstanding collection
By Savage (632 reviews) from London, England , 16 Apr 2008Excellent work by James Quandt at the Canadian Film Institute means that Mikio Naruse can now take his place alongside the other Japanese masters with whom we are familiar in the west. This collection of his films is actually even better than those being offered by Eureka, with the film usually considered his masterpiece, 'Floating clouds' (a woman struggles to exist in post-war Japan), a superb late soap, 'When a woman ascends the stairs' (a bar-manager wonders what she's going to do as she gets too old to continue with the work); and a characteristically austere mid-period drama, 'Late chrysanthemums' (a quartet of ex-geishas struggle without the regular income their work provided them).
Naruse is most similar to Ozu in style, although he lacks that master's impish sense of humour, although his concentration on women's place in society is bound also to remind us of Mizoguchi, although he lacks that master's absolute fluency. Most of his dramas (certainly these three) are concerned with contemporary issues, and are played out without recourse to melodrama or artificial effects. Meditations on a very recognizable world, they are whole-heartedly recommended to anyone prepared to share in their slow, careful rhythms.- Was this review helpful to you?
- (5) Yes |
- No (0)
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