Mikio Naruse

[Tomas]

I'm looking for a good book about Naruse. All that I know about him is from Audie Bock's book - Japanese Film Directors - and some internet articles + the book from MoC box-set. Please help me.

[Michael Kerpan]

Can you read French at all? If yes, check out Narboni's book (published by Cahiers du cinema). If not, the Naruse chapter in Bock's book and the book from MOC's set are the most comprehensive materials available now.

Catherine Russell's book was due to be published this fall -- but I saw no sign that it is actually going to come out any time soon when I last looked at the Duke University Press website. I sent Prof. Russell an e-mail a while back, but have not yet gotten a response.

[Tomas]

Thank you for your reply. I guess I'll have to wait. I don't understand French good enough to read a book. I can read Italian (it's not my mother-tongue) and I started taking lessons in Japanese; but it will take some years before I can read some books. I thought maybe Phillip Lopate wrote a book or someone else.

Hmm, learning French seems a reasonable thing to do, since some books about Mizoguchi and Ozu are also in French.

[the dancing kid]

Bock also wrote a full-length book on Naruse (in addition to the chapter from 'Directors'). I've only been able to find it in French, but I believe it has been published in English as well. It's alright. It's done in the same format as Bordwell's book on Ozu, although a lot less insightful in my opinion. To be fair she didn't have the archive to draw upon that he did, but I don't think she produces that many interesting readings of his films either.

There have also been a lot of articles written about Naruse's films recently, so if you have access to academic journals that's another place you could look. Russell has been publishing practically non-stop over the past decade (her website lists her publishing history). Russell's work is good, but I have some reservations about the way she interprets Naruse's films through, for lack of a better word, contemporary "Western" philosophy. I think she's more critical of the material than most (see her recent spat with Robin Wood over Ozu), but in general I wish she would say "I don't like this" more often, rather than try to re-interpret it until it fits.

Naruse has, unfortunately, been hijacked for the pet causes of a lot of critics and scholars who try to read their particular philosophies into his work. The auteurists are desperate for another "Japanese Master" and attempt to produce a filmographic consistency that doesn't exist, feminists try to cite his films as examples of changing social structures, and East Asian studies folks look to his films for confirmation of the political project of the Occupation. There is merit to all of those arguments, but I think a lot of people are valuing their pet projects over the actual films. For me, Naruse's films usually demonstrate a sense of ambivalence that resists a lot of the readings that have been applied to them.

[Jack Phillips]

Naruse has, unfortunately, been hijacked for the pet causes of a lot of critics and scholars who try to read their particular philosophies into his work. The auteurists are desperate for another "Japanese Master" and attempt to produce a filmographic consistency that doesn't exist, feminists try to cite his films as examples of changing social structures, and East Asian studies folks look to his films for confirmation of the political project of the Occupation. There is merit to all of those arguments, but I think a lot of people are valuing their pet projects over the actual films. For me, Naruse's films usually demonstrate a sense of ambivalence that resists a lot of the readings that have been applied to them.

Great, great point.

[Michael Kerpan]

I thought maybe Phillip Lopate wrote a book or someone else.

Hmm, learning French seems a reasonable thing to do, since some books about Mizoguchi and Ozu are also in French.

Lopate has a chapter on Naruse in one of his books (Totally, Tenderly, Tragically). Not sure offhand as to whether it covers more territory from his more recent essay in the MOC set book.

I hadn't used my French for decades (beyond listening to Bizet's Carmen, etc.) -- until I developed Ozu mania. Because of this, I tackled Hasumi's French version of his Ozu book. Then I tackled Frappat's book on Rivette. (I also read the Vienna Festival's German book on Rivette). I won't claim facility in reading French -- but I come out (mostly) alive at the end of my struggles.

BTW -- I 've never been able to find a copy of Bock's Naruse book -- even though it was published in the town where I reside. Not sure whether the English book was a full length study though.

My problem with Russell is that she seems to find it necessary to kick Ozu around in order to build up Naruse (viz. the CineAction article that provoked a dust-up with Robin Wood) .

My sense is that Naruse's work is pretty complex -- and not reducible to any simple principle or principles. But I do think he presents an almost uniquely woman's eye view in many of his films -- throughout his career.

And I do think there are some arguably important elements of visual consistency through long stretches of his career. ;~}

[ltfontaine]

It's certainly true that Naruse has always had his supporters, the issue is that many of them damn him with faint praise and most have historically ranked him below Kurosawa, Ozu, and Mizoguchi, for his lack of stylistic (and thematic) uniqueness. Richie says nice things about Naruse in many of his books, but it is obvious from each of those books that he doesn't value him as highly as Ozu or Kurosawa (he never felt the need to write "The Films of Mikio Naruse"). The point is that, historically, critical wisdom has held that Naruse is an interesting, but somewhat minor filmmaker, at least when compared to the formally rigorous masters of Japanese cinema, hence Freiberg's comment.

Traveling on business over the weekend, I've brought along Burch's To the Distant Observer and am finding more to appreciate the second time around, chiefly by suspending skepticism about some of his more dubious theoretical premises. Regarding Naruse, it seems that ptmd is pretty much on the money about Burch, at least, damning the director with faint praise. While Burch does group Naruse with Ozu, Mizoguchi and Shimizu as the four directors who produced masterpieces in the Thirties and Forties, he cites Wife! Be Like a Rose! as the director's only film of such stature, primarily on the basis of its “singular stylistic authority.â€

[fred]

I 've never been able to find a copy of Bock's Naruse book -- even though it was published in the town where I reside. Not sure whether the English book was a full length study though.

It's not. Mikio Naruse: A Master of the Japanese Cinema is a 32 page pamphlet that was published in conjunction with the Naruse retrospective at the Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1984. Bock's essay is about 5 pages long. There are also two short articles she translated from Japanese (by Takamine and Okamoto), totalling 6 pages. The rest of the booklet is notes/summaries of the films shown, a filmography and a bibliography.

The Locarno catalog that the dancing kid referred to was somewhat confusingly published under the title Mikio Naruse, un maître du cinéma japonais. I've never seen it, but it appears to be about 270 pages long. I'm fairly certain it's never been published in English.

Also, I had a conversation with David Bordwell during the recent Naruse retrospective and while it's true that he admires Naruse, he values the silent films much more than the sound ones. I think he considers the films of the 50s to be overly mannered and somewhat inert by comparison.

[ltfontaine]

Also, I had a conversation with David Bordwell during the recent Naruse retrospective and while it's true that he admires Naruse, he values the silent films much more than the sound ones. I think he considers the films of the 50s to be overly mannered and somewhat inert by comparison.

Given that some of the silents are anything but inert--the camera and editing are downright antic at times--it would be interesting to hear more of Bordwell's thoughts on them.

Watching a lot of Naruse these days and reading about him, I continue to come across enlightening references to the evolution of the director's critical reputation. Writing about Naruse and Ozu in a Cahiers essay from 1980 entitled “For the Revival of the Home—Essays on Home Dramas,â€

[Michael Kerpan]

The Sato extract reflects the fact that Naruse underwent a critical re-evaluation upwards in Japan quite a while back -- but I don't think this translated into a great deal of public awareness -- just increased appreciation among film specialists (and students in elite film programs). This presumably filtered into the wider East Asian film making (and studying) world. France seems to have been the one Western film bastion that has taken Naruse seriously for decades.

The retrospective shepherded by Audie Bock in the mid-80s in the US could have increased awareness here, but (for some reason) didn't. It garnered a fair number of enthusiastic reviews -- and then almost everyone promptly forgot about him again. The fact that this touring retrospective was completely missed by Rosenbaum (despite the fact that Chicago was one of its major venues)., tells one something about the deep-seated lack of interest in "yet another old Japanese master" that must have been prevalent then. At least Dave Kehr paid some attention. I must confess I too was in Chicago then -- but since my discovery of Japanese cinema would not take place until 15 or so years later, I never noticed a thing.

[ltfontaine]

The retrospective shepherded by Audie Bock in the mid-80s in the US could have increased awareness here, but (for some reason) didn't.

That very retrospective served as my introduction to Naruse when four films of it, at least, played the Detroit Institute of Arts, where I was employed at the time. The Detroit Film Theatre auditorium, which often sold out for showings of Japanese films in those days, was almost empty for the Naruse films. Only Rivette's amazing Le Pont du Nord, which played the DFT around the same time, drew a smaller audience. Thereafter, when someone suggested booking an overly obscure film at the DFT, the answer among regulars was invariably that it would surely be scheduled right after the forthcoming "Naruse festival."

[Michael Kerpan]

Sad (but interesting) story. The concept that there could be LOTS of extraordinary Japanese directors seems to have been one that even "art film" fans were simply not ready to accept at that point. Ironically, Pont du Nord is my very favorite Rivette film. ;~{

[lazier than a toad]

Was anyone else here very dissapointed by "Floating Clouds"? When I saw a series of Naruse's films in the BFI's recent retrospective I found it to be one of the least rewarding, in fact least rewarding except "The Whole Family Works" and "The Song Lantern". I watched a lot of Naruse films (13 or so) in a short period of time, so it is a little hard to recall why exactly I felt this way, but remember the narrative and characters just being much less engaging than "Sound of the Mountain", "Repast" and the silents I saw, for example. It didn't even grow on me after some careful after-thought. However, I was not the only one who was massively dissapiointed - everyone I know who saw it screened at the retrospective or already has the BFI box feels the same way.

Nevertheless, I am going to get my hands on the BFI box and re-watch it ASAP and think some more about

[Michael Kerpan]

I must confess that "Floating Clouds" did not register with me on my first viewing -- or even my second (and maybe even my third). But when the (unsubbed) Japanese DVD came out -- and shortly afterwards the film was screened here in Boston (with subs), it finally clicked. A tremendously complex film -- and one of Naruse's most visually compelling ones.

It is now firmly settled into a spot in my (ever more lengthy) list of top Naruse favorites.

[sidehacker]

It's probably his most melodramatic film, at least from what I've seen. BUT seeing a dysfunctional romance falling apart through Naruse's eyes is automatically compelling to me. I love that scene where Masayuki Mori is getting ready to take a bath and Mariko Okada volunteers to join him. Then, Hadeko Takamine decides to join along too and Okada, in an almost mechanical reaction, decides not to go. Alright, I'm terrible at describing the scene but the people who have seen that it know what I'm talking about. Naruse is actually a lot funnier than people give him credit for. I think that bleak outlook sometimes gives his films a deadpan feeling.

[Saarijas]

It's odd to read that Floating Clouds didn't effect people on the first viewing. Really it's my favorite (or damned close) Naruse film, something about how miserable their romance is, yet how they struggle to keep it alive that I find so utterly compelling.

[Michael Kerpan]

Naruse is actually a lot funnier than people give him credit for. I think that bleak outlook sometimes gives his films a deadpan feeling.

I think you are correct -- whatever he was like in person -- the cinematic Naruse was full of humor. Even this bleakest of Naruse films has remarkable flashes of humor. The sequence in which Takamine works for the (fake) cult is especially notable in this respect -- though one is not quite sure how to respond to the humor there -- as it is rather droll and off-kilter.

In his early "Morning's Tree-Lined Streets", Naruse pulls off one of the most outrageous cinematic pranks I've ever encountered. To describe it, however, would really spoil the fun.

"Lightning" might have Naruse's most perfect blend of comedy and drama. I hope someone releases a good subbed version sooner rather thna later.

[lazier than a toad]

And the silent film style opening to Wife! Be Like a Rose is a pretty clear indication that he had a lot of time for humor in his films, even outside of their characters and narratives

[Michael Kerpan]

I certainly hope someone gets around to releasing the marvelous Wife! Be Like a Rose! (lots of humor, both funny and bittersweet)

[lazier than a toad]

I certainly hope someone gets around to releasing the marvelous Wife! Be Like a Rose! (lots of humor, both funny and bittersweet)

As the centre peice of an Early Naruse box with Apart From You, Nightly Dreams, Three Sisters with Maiden Hearts and (perhaps) The Whole Family Works would be better than great. And not impossible, after all there are prints good enough to be shown in the cinema of them all.

[Michael Kerpan]

As the centre peice of an Early Naruse box with Apart From You, Nightly Dreams, Three Sisters with Maiden Hearts and (perhaps) The Whole Family Works would be better than great. And not impossible, after all there are prints good enough to be shown in the cinema of them all.

That would be an excellent set.

But I hope people someday get a chance to see some of the even rarer gems -- like Morning's Tree Lined Street.

[sidehacker]

Would a kind soul guide me through the lesser-known Naruse works. I got DVD-Rs of old TV broadcasts for the following: Flunky Work Hard, Wife! Be Like a Rose, Every Night Dreams, Street Without End, Sudden Rain, Yearning, and Hideko the Bus Conductor. - All with english subs, too.

For reference, if I had to rank the 13 Naruse films I've seen so far, I'd do so like this...

- A Wanderer's Notebook (1962)
- Flowing (1956)
- Bangiku (1954)
- Floating Clouds (1955)
- When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (1960)
- Lightning (1952)
- Daughters, Wives, and a Mother (1960)
- Repast (1951)
- The Sound of the Mountain (1953)
- Older Brother, Younger Sister (1953)
- Scattered Clouds (1967)
- Ginza Gesho (1950)
- Okasan (1952)

I suppose I like him best when he reaches that perfect blend of comedy and pathos, even though the relentlessly bleak A Wanderer's Notebook is in my top tier. I'll see all of the ones I mentioned at the beginning of the post eventually, but I just want to know which ones should be the highest priority.

[Michael Kerpan]

Every Night Dreams - masterpiece
Wife! Be Like a Rose -- close to a masterpiece
Yearning -- a little uneven, but ultimately close to a masterpiece
Sudden Rain -- Hara's edgiest performance for Naruse -- in an episodic series of vignettes about a couple whose marriage is a bit rocky
Hideko the Bus Conductor -- a seemingly lighthearted comedy that has a jaw dropping conclusion
Flunky Work Hard -- interesting (if a bit undisciplined) early working class home drama
Street Without End -- memories are a bit vague, good but probably not great (lowest priority -- but worth seeing)

[ltfontaine]

Sudden Rain is a fascinating film, not least for what sidehacker describes as a “perfect blend of comedy and pathos,” although the comedy here is so muted and deadpan, and the sense of estrangement between the central couple so bleak, that the humor tends toward the dark side. (I do remember laughing aloud once, during a neighborhood grievance meeting that rings too true.) Michael rightly cites the performance by Hara as “edgy,” but I would extend that descriptor to the entire film. The narrative is so willfully discursive and inconclusive, the relationships between the various characters so tense and forcedly civil, and the spatial environments so oppressive, that the overriding effect is one of unease and unhappiness.

Hara and Sano are both superb as the young couple, but Hara’s performance is heartbreaking, an exquisitely nuanced portrayal of domestic loneliness. The passages in which she window shops alone in the street markets without ever buying anything, and on one occasion has her pocketbook picked, are prime examples of Hara’s and Naruse’s shared gift for conveying complex emotional states through mundane gestures. The score by Saitô Ichirô, too, is often set against the grain of the action, sometimes dark and moody, but at other times bright and almost childlike during scenes of emotional stress—prefiguring the film’s abrupt ending, which is bizarre, but moving.

Sidehacker, I’d rate both Ginza Gesho and especially Okaasan much higher than the bottom of the list among Naruse’s films. Michael, do you really rate Wife! Be Like a Rose as less than a masterpiece? Among the early films, I’d say it is equivalent in value to Every Night Dreams, those two films being the best of the silents, although I am also strongly partial to Not Blood Relations--despite or because of the startlingly kinetic camerawork, I’m not sure which.

And I’d someday love to see a decent subtitled print of Hideko the Bus Conductress, a wonderful film smack dab in the middle of Naruse’s supposed “slump.”

[Michael Kerpan]

Well, Apart From You is now my favorite early Naruse -- but that may be due to cognitive dissonance (since I spent so much time studying it).

When I say "close to a masterpiece" I mean "it's so close to being a masterpiece that it hardly matters what you call it -- and, for Heaven's sake, don't miss any chance of seeing this". ;~}

Wonderful remarks on "Sudden Rain". Yes -- the whole film is indeed edgy -- but there are other Naruse films with this quality -- while it may well be the only case where one can see Hara in this particular mode.

The neighborhood meeting scene is hilarious.

The solo piano score often came across almost like an accompaniment to a silent film (a good score, mind you).

I initially discounted Okaasan a bit -- but my affection for it has grown with each re-visit. A magnificent film overall.

Some of the wonderful films during Naruse's fabled (but non-existent) 15 year slump

1936 - Morning's Tree-Lined Street (contains Naruse's most audacious cinematic prank ever)
1937 - I liked Kafuku -- which was a fascinating potboiler (at a minimum)
1938 - Tsuruhachi Tsurujiro (very good)
1939 - The Whole Family Works (mostly excellent)
1940 - Travelling Actors (little masterpiece)
1941 - Hideko the Bus Conductress (excellent)
1942 - nothing seen
1943 - Song Lantern (little masterpiece)
1944 - This Happy Life and Way of Drama are both rather interesting but neither is really a major work
1945 - A Tale of Archery at the Sanjusangendo (unusual, with some very good elements)
1946 - Descendents of Taro Urashima and (what I call) You and Me, Pal -- the first is almost proto-Bunuel-ish (prefiguring Simon of the Desert), the latter is an enjoyable, feisty film about friendship and standing up for one's dignity as a worker.
1947 - Spring Awakens (little masterpiece -- possibly the first film ever to show teen age life from an essentially teen's-eye view)
1948 - no film (labor problems at Toho?)
1949 - Delinquent Girl (starring Yoshiko Kuga) was apparently quite popular -- but made for a minor studio -- and now lost
1950 - 4 films, two unseen (one of which featured Mifune). Of those seen, one is a dud (War of the Roses), the other (White Beast) is an interesting and reasonably sensitive treatment of youthful prostitutes in a reform school setting -- with some almost surrealist touches.