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A Man Vanishes



It is difficult to summarise Shōhei Imamura’s legendary 1967 film, the first picture produced by Japan’s countercultural Art Theatre Guild (ATG). Is it a documentary that turns into a fiction? A narrative film from beginning to end? A record of improvisation populated with actors or non-actors (and in what proportion)? Is it the investigation into a true disappearance, or a work merely inspired by actual events? Even at the conclusion of its final movement, A Man Vanishes [Ningen jōhatsu, or The Unexplained Disappearance of a Human Being] mirrors its subject in deflecting inquiries into the precise nature of its own being.

A middle-class salaryman has gone missing — possibly of his own accord — and a film crew has set out to assemble a record of the man and the events surrounding his disappearance. As the crew meticulously builds a cachet of interviews with the man’s family and lovers, their subject and his motivations become progressively more elusive — until the impossibility of the endeavour seems to transform the very film itself.

Long unavailable anywhere on home video, Imamura’s A Man Vanishes remains a unique and crucial entry in a provocative filmmaker’s body of work, daring as it does to ask the big questions: what is reality, and what is a man? The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present A Man Vanishes for the first time on DVD in the UK, in an impressive new restoration.

SPECIAL DVD EDITION

• New high-definition restoration of the film
• New and improved English subtitle translation
• Exclusive new 18-minute video interview with scholar Tony Rayns
• 9-minute video interview with Imamura conducted by his son, filmmaker Daisuke Tengan
• 36-page booklet featuring writing by Imamura in 2004 about directing the film; remarks from 1975 by filmmaker Kirirô Urayama, who assisted in the editing of the film; Japanese magazine clippings from 1967 pertaining to the phenomenon of “jôhatsu” and the production of Imamura’s film; a critique of the film by Nagisa Ôshima; and rare archival stills.

This is an astonishing film. I can't wait to revisit it (and re-re-revisit it). I'm curious as to why no Blu -- a rights issue?

Be still my heart. Just having it is a bit of a miracle.

Incredible! This release is actually more exciting to me than The Ballad of Narayama on Blu.

Imamura is hit and miss for me, but this sounds fascinating. Definitely my most anticipated of the new titles. And I'm always up for Tony Rayns.

It's hard to upstage that Touch of Evil announcement, but this is how you do it. One of the greatest films of the 60s, way, way overdue.

So I take it the packaging of Imamura's first features with his later ones has been abandoned? (Or were we just assuming this was going to happen after Pigs and Battleships?)

Oh my! After having read so much about it, I never actually thought I would ever get the chance to see this. With this and Narayama you guys are certainly doing Imamura proud!

I'm going to try to convince everyone I know to pick this up, but god is it hard to sell Japanese movies without monsters or samurai. I think I managed to sell a copy of your Pigs and Battleships though (which I actually still need to pick up for the second film).

We don't want to put anything on Blu-ray unless it knocks us out technically.

The biggest surprise I got when I upgraded to a large full HD tv was the increase in picture quality of an upscaled dvd. Not all, of course, but for the most part, I noticed a significant difference, and haven't upgraded a significant number of titles based on the quality of the upscaling.

As for A Man Vanishes, I have the custom-subbed version most here have seen. The MOC dvd will no doubt blow this out of the water, what with the supplements and all. For those who haven't seen it, this is a great film; perhaps Imamura's finest. This was the film that convinced me that Imamura is one of THE great filmmakers, from any country, in any era.

I jumped on the net straight after watching to find out more about the film, and the people involved.

Nick, I know it is early days, but will you be including anything about the people involved, especially in the time since it was made. I would love to read comments in the Japanese media from the time the film was released.

Brilliant film, and an important release.

Pre-ordered when you offer it on your monthly email.

Fine then.

Perkins Cobb wrote:Utterly unique in the way it blurs the line between documentary and fiction.

Fixed.

I'm very happy that this finally gets a proper English subbed release. And even though I agree that it is one of Imamura's finest, it's not everyones cup of tea. Hopefully Tony Rayns video piece will be sufficient to contextualize this for the blind buyers.

feckless boy wrote:

Perkins Cobb wrote:Unique in the way it blurs the line between documentary and fiction.

Fixed.

No, now it's fixed

Oshima analyzes the film for a bit in the book collecting his writings 'Cinema, Censorship and the State'. I might try typing it here if that's not infringing any copyright...

An interesting movie for sure, though as a documentary fanatic I much preferred History of Postwar Japan As Told By A Bar Hostess to the docu-fiction of A Man Vanishes. I wonder if History will ever come out on DVD (there was a French VHS but that's it I think). Anyone here ever see Karayuki-san? Is that the extent of his documentary production?

Peacock wrote:The problem with that then is that this film deserves plenty of contextual information, which doesn't happen often when the film is a bonus feature.

Actually, Stolen Desire is pretty well catered for in that department, even though it's notionally the supporting feature in the Pigs and Battleships package.

I'm debating whether I should buy the CC Imamura box on DVD. I only buy DVD when there's no BR possibility in the air, but PIGS AND BATTLESHIPS is already out from MoC. I believe Nick said they'll probably do THE INSECT WOMAN too but had to pass on INTENTIONS OF MURDER due to materials issues. I guess my question is: is there any possibility that MoC might release a DVD edition of INTENTIONS OF MURDER if they can't do the HD upgrade?

At the moment, THE INSECT WOMAN Dual Format is moving along nicely, but we have no intention of releasing INTENTIONS OF MURDER on DVD or Blu-ray because the available materials that Nikkatsu have aren't up to scratch.

Thanks a lot for the answer. I guess I'll just rent 'Intentions' and live without it then.

Perkins Cobb wrote:Fine then.

What did you write?

I've always considered this to have an outsized reputation (built on its rarity). Like most "blurring of documentary and fiction" films, I never found it as a profound an experience as everyone else seems to (see also: Close-Up). But of course I'm buying it: it's still an Imamura. But considering the other films he was knocking out this decade, I have a hard time seeing this as his best.

I'm still hoping someone releases Zegen though (his true best film of the 80s). Pair it up with Making of a Prostitute, and you have yourself a nice little package. Group it up with Insect Woman and ...Bar Hostess, and you'll have a "prostitution" box-set worth double-dipping against the Criterion with.

Still hoping for a nice looking Eejanaika to replace the nediocre Panorama (HK) release.

Special features and booklet contents now updated on the MoC Catalogue page.

Still, I'd like to know: PAL or NTSC?

The majority of our DVDs are NTSC these days. Recently, only COLOSSAL YOUTH was PAL, because that was the film's native format.

Great extras there! (Even if the father/son interview is available online), especially excited about the booklet and Rayns piece.... And very glad you're including the Oshima critique too; sometimes negative reviews can be pretty interesting...

It's a negative review? Could you say the gist of it?