Tomu Uchida
Encyclopedia
was a Japan
ese film director. Tomu Uchida, whose name translates to “spit out dreams” is considered one of the less well known masters of Japanese cinema in the West, whose films are rarely screened and not widely available on DVD. He started out at the Taikatsu studio in the early 1920s, but came to prominence in the 1930s at Nikkatsu
, adapting literary works with the screenwriter Yasutarō Yagi
in a realist style. Many of his 1930s films featured the actor Isamu Kosugi
. His work from the 1920 and 1930s possess a leftist social commentary, while his post-war movies reveal a strong genre stylist with no immediately discernible themes, much like many golden-age Hollywood directors. In 1941 he quit the Nikkatsu
studio, and after failing to start his own production company, in 1943 he began to work with the Manchukuo Film Association
, although he never completed a film there. In 1945 he was taken prisoner and held in Manchuria until 1954, when he returned to Japan. Upon he return, he joined the Toei
studio. Uchida effortlessly directed chamber dramas, comedies, and samurai epics, often in color, and with a forward-looking dose of irony. Uchida died in 1970 of cancer. In April 2008 the cinemateque at the Brooklyn Academy of Music
presented the first comprehensive retrospective of the long overlooked Japanese director in the United States.
“…a tremendously stylish gangster movie about the love-hate relationship between a cop and a criminal, once childhood friends.”—Senses of Cinema on Policeman.
Uchida’s only surviving complete silent film is a masterpiece of Japanese silent cinema. With a muscular energy that predates Akira Kurosawa
, Uchida borrows from Hollywood gangster films and expressionist techniques in a gripping story of a young policeman tracking down an old friend who is now a criminal.
Uchida returned to Japan after a long hiatus with this light-hearted adventure about a samurai and his servants on a trip to Edo. In a sly bit of subversion, the peasants are more intelligent than the drunken samurai. The final battle in a courtyard amidst punctured sake barrels is an Uchida career highlight. “Both progressive and nostalgic, humanistic and nationalistic, peaceful and violent, Blood Spear, Mt. Fuji, like the Japanese experience in Manchuria, is an aggressive conglomeration of extremes."—Bright Lights Film Journal
Kinema Junpo
1955 8th best.
Dealing with post-war fears in a lighter tone than A Hole of My Own Making, Uchida views a cross-section of Japanese life over the course of one night in a tavern. Dancers take the stage, a singing contest is held, and old soldiers reminisce. At the corner of the bar is an artist drowning himself in drink, who acts as the film’s narrator (and Uchida’s alter ego) in this gently humorous film. “Resembling a poetic-realist version of Casablanca (1942), the film is a naturalistic tour de force.” —Cinema-scope
One of Uchida’s most socially conscious films, The Outsiders looks at the Ainu
, an indigenous people who live on the island of Hokkaido
and were often portrayed as vicious savages (much like Native Americans in Westerns). As the hero of the film challenges an owner to prove his own Ainu heritage, the film raises questions about the necessity of preserving a culture. “Bold, beautiful, and packing a powerful dramatic punch, there is little else quite like it.” — Midnight Eye
Incorporating kabuki and bunraku puppets, this drama follows a young man who falls in love with a prostitute, vowing to rescue her from the brothel. Not content to adapt the play, Uchida makes playwright Chikamatsu a character in the drama who moves from observer to narrator to participant as the tragedy unfolds in postmodern fashion. Kinema Junpo
1959 7th best.
A wealthy businessman with a disfigured face seems unable to find love until he meets a conniving prostitute out to win his fortune. This dark melodrama’s sudden and violent end in a shower of cherry blossoms is one of the most impressive scenes in Uchida’s canon. “The violent climax is, once again, directed with breathtaking assurance; it is, in fact, perhaps the single most brilliant scene in Uchida’s oeuvre.”—Senses of Cinema
When a shogun kills himself, rituals dictate that his samurai must also commit seppuku; however one young ronin refuses to follow this code and retreats to the country, only to be lured back into the service of the spear. Uchida gently tweaks audience expectations, as a character bemoans a crowd’s bloodlust, only to reward them with a magnificently violent ending.
A full-on avant-garde classic that mixes kabuki and animation with location and studio work. A man tormented by the death of his wife meets her twin sister and a fox spirit who takes the form of his beloved. The story is just an excuse for Uchida to challenge the form and function of cinema in a gorgeous tribute to Japanese folk tales.
"...one of the weirdest films in any language….torture, murder and possible bestiality—is only the beginning of this hallucinatory fairy tale’s trippy charm.”—Now Magazine (Toronto)
After the novel Kiga Kaikyo (1962) by Tsutomu Minakami. An epic masterpiece often compared to Kurosawa’s High and Low (1963), this grim examination of criminal life in post-war Japan is split into three sections: the criminal on the run, an interlude with a prostitute, and the final confrontation with police. The grainy widescreen
cinematography results from Uchida’s unusual choice to shoot in 16mm and blow up to 35mm. “the director’s masterpiece without doubt.”—Positif. It was voted the 6th greatest Japanese film ever made by Kinema Jumpo in 1995, and the 3rd greatest Japanese film in the same magazine in 1999.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese film director. Tomu Uchida, whose name translates to “spit out dreams” is considered one of the less well known masters of Japanese cinema in the West, whose films are rarely screened and not widely available on DVD. He started out at the Taikatsu studio in the early 1920s, but came to prominence in the 1930s at Nikkatsu
Nikkatsu
is a Japanese entertainment company well known for its film and television productions. It is Japan's oldest major movie studio. The name Nikkatsu is an abbreviation of Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally "Japan Cinematograph Company".-History:...
, adapting literary works with the screenwriter Yasutarō Yagi
Yasutarō Yagi
was a Japanese screenwriter, mostly famous for his adaptations of literary works for the director Tomu Uchida in the 1930s, such as Jinsei gekijō and Kagirinaki zenshin, and for his collaborations with leftist filmmakers such as Kaneto Shindō and Tadashi Imai in the postwar...
in a realist style. Many of his 1930s films featured the actor Isamu Kosugi
Isamu Kosugi
was a Japanese actor and film director.-Career:Born in Ishinomaki in Miyagi Prefecture, Kosugi first studied at the Nihon Eiga Haiyū Gakkō before joining the Nikkatsu studio in 1925...
. His work from the 1920 and 1930s possess a leftist social commentary, while his post-war movies reveal a strong genre stylist with no immediately discernible themes, much like many golden-age Hollywood directors. In 1941 he quit the Nikkatsu
Nikkatsu
is a Japanese entertainment company well known for its film and television productions. It is Japan's oldest major movie studio. The name Nikkatsu is an abbreviation of Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally "Japan Cinematograph Company".-History:...
studio, and after failing to start his own production company, in 1943 he began to work with the Manchukuo Film Association
Manchukuo Film Association
, also known as the "Manchuria Film Production", was a Japanese film production company in Manchukuo in the 1930s and 40s.-Early history:...
, although he never completed a film there. In 1945 he was taken prisoner and held in Manchuria until 1954, when he returned to Japan. Upon he return, he joined the Toei
Toei Company
is a Japanese film, television production, and distribution corporation. Based in Tokyo, Toei owns and operates thirty-four movie theaters across Japan, a modest vertically-integrated studio system by the standards of the 1930s United States; operates studios at Tokyo and Kyoto; and is a...
studio. Uchida effortlessly directed chamber dramas, comedies, and samurai epics, often in color, and with a forward-looking dose of irony. Uchida died in 1970 of cancer. In April 2008 the cinemateque at the Brooklyn Academy of Music
Brooklyn Academy of Music
Brooklyn Academy of Music is a major performing arts venue in Brooklyn, a borough of New York City, United States, known as a center for progressive and avant garde performance....
presented the first comprehensive retrospective of the long overlooked Japanese director in the United States.
1898 - 1943
- History of Crab Temple (Kanimanji engi) (1924)
“…a tremendously stylish gangster movie about the love-hate relationship between a cop and a criminal, once childhood friends.”—Senses of Cinema on Policeman.
- A Living Puppet (Ikeru Ningyo) (1929). Kinema JunpoKinema Junpo, commonly called , is a Japanese film magazine which began publication in July 1919. The magazine was founded by a group of four students, including Saburō Tanaka, at the Tokyo Institute of Technology . In that first month, it was published three times on days with a "1" in them. These first three...
1929 4th best.
- Policeman (Keisatsukan) (1933)
Uchida’s only surviving complete silent film is a masterpiece of Japanese silent cinema. With a muscular energy that predates Akira Kurosawa
Akira Kurosawa
was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...
, Uchida borrows from Hollywood gangster films and expressionist techniques in a gripping story of a young policeman tracking down an old friend who is now a criminal.
- Jinsei Gekijo (1936). Kinema JunpoKinema Junpo, commonly called , is a Japanese film magazine which began publication in July 1919. The magazine was founded by a group of four students, including Saburō Tanaka, at the Tokyo Institute of Technology . In that first month, it was published three times on days with a "1" in them. These first three...
1936 2nd best.
- Karininaki Zenshin (1937). Kinema JunpoKinema Junpo, commonly called , is a Japanese film magazine which began publication in July 1919. The magazine was founded by a group of four students, including Saburō Tanaka, at the Tokyo Institute of Technology . In that first month, it was published three times on days with a "1" in them. These first three...
1937 Best of the Year.
- Hadaka no Machi (1937). Kinema JunpoKinema Junpo, commonly called , is a Japanese film magazine which began publication in July 1919. The magazine was founded by a group of four students, including Saburō Tanaka, at the Tokyo Institute of Technology . In that first month, it was published three times on days with a "1" in them. These first three...
1937 5th best.
- TsuchiTsuchiTsuchi may refer to*Zhuxi Earth Castle group*地, Japanese character for Earth...
(1939). Kinema JunpoKinema Junpo, commonly called , is a Japanese film magazine which began publication in July 1919. The magazine was founded by a group of four students, including Saburō Tanaka, at the Tokyo Institute of Technology . In that first month, it was published three times on days with a "1" in them. These first three...
1939 Best of the Year. Praised for its realistic depiction of the lives of poor Meiji-period tenant farmers.
1954 - 1960
- A Hole of My Own MakingA Hole of My Own Makingis a 1955 black and white Japanese film directed by Tomu Uchida.- Cast :* Rentaro Mikuni as Shonosuke Ihura* Yumeji Tsukioka as Nobuko Shiga* Mie Kitahara as Tamiko * Jûkichi Uno as Tetsutaro Komatsu...
(Jibun No Ana No Naka De) (1955)
- Bloody Spear at Mount FujiBloody Spear at Mount Fujiis a 1955 black-and-white Japanese film directed by Tomu Uchida.It is a "gruelling cruel tale" from the Edo period.Daisuke Katō won the 1956 Blue Ribbon Award for best supporting actor.- Cast :* Chiezō Kataoka* Ryunosuke Tsukigata* Chizuru Kitagawa...
(Chiyari Fuji) (1955)
Uchida returned to Japan after a long hiatus with this light-hearted adventure about a samurai and his servants on a trip to Edo. In a sly bit of subversion, the peasants are more intelligent than the drunken samurai. The final battle in a courtyard amidst punctured sake barrels is an Uchida career highlight. “Both progressive and nostalgic, humanistic and nationalistic, peaceful and violent, Blood Spear, Mt. Fuji, like the Japanese experience in Manchuria, is an aggressive conglomeration of extremes."—Bright Lights Film Journal
Kinema Junpo
Kinema Junpo
, commonly called , is a Japanese film magazine which began publication in July 1919. The magazine was founded by a group of four students, including Saburō Tanaka, at the Tokyo Institute of Technology . In that first month, it was published three times on days with a "1" in them. These first three...
1955 8th best.
- Twilight Saloon (Tasogare Sakaba) (1955)
Dealing with post-war fears in a lighter tone than A Hole of My Own Making, Uchida views a cross-section of Japanese life over the course of one night in a tavern. Dancers take the stage, a singing contest is held, and old soldiers reminisce. At the corner of the bar is an artist drowning himself in drink, who acts as the film’s narrator (and Uchida’s alter ego) in this gently humorous film. “Resembling a poetic-realist version of Casablanca (1942), the film is a naturalistic tour de force.” —Cinema-scope
- The Outsiders (Mori to Mizuumi no Matsuri) (1958)
One of Uchida’s most socially conscious films, The Outsiders looks at the Ainu
Ainu people
The , also called Aynu, Aino , and in historical texts Ezo , are indigenous people or groups in Japan and Russia. Historically they spoke the Ainu language and related varieties and lived in Hokkaidō, the Kuril Islands, and much of Sakhalin...
, an indigenous people who live on the island of Hokkaido
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
and were often portrayed as vicious savages (much like Native Americans in Westerns). As the hero of the film challenges an owner to prove his own Ainu heritage, the film raises questions about the necessity of preserving a culture. “Bold, beautiful, and packing a powerful dramatic punch, there is little else quite like it.” — Midnight Eye
- Chikamatsu’s Love in Osaka (Naniwa No Koi No Monogatari) (1959)
Incorporating kabuki and bunraku puppets, this drama follows a young man who falls in love with a prostitute, vowing to rescue her from the brothel. Not content to adapt the play, Uchida makes playwright Chikamatsu a character in the drama who moves from observer to narrator to participant as the tragedy unfolds in postmodern fashion. Kinema Junpo
Kinema Junpo
, commonly called , is a Japanese film magazine which began publication in July 1919. The magazine was founded by a group of four students, including Saburō Tanaka, at the Tokyo Institute of Technology . In that first month, it was published three times on days with a "1" in them. These first three...
1959 7th best.
- Hero of the Red-Light District, a.k.a. Yoshiwara: The Pleasure Quarter (Yoto Monogatari: Hana No Yoshiwara Hyakunin Giri) (1960)
A wealthy businessman with a disfigured face seems unable to find love until he meets a conniving prostitute out to win his fortune. This dark melodrama’s sudden and violent end in a shower of cherry blossoms is one of the most impressive scenes in Uchida’s canon. “The violent climax is, once again, directed with breathtaking assurance; it is, in fact, perhaps the single most brilliant scene in Uchida’s oeuvre.”—Senses of Cinema
- The Master Spearman (Sake To Onna To Yari) (1960)
When a shogun kills himself, rituals dictate that his samurai must also commit seppuku; however one young ronin refuses to follow this code and retreats to the country, only to be lured back into the service of the spear. Uchida gently tweaks audience expectations, as a character bemoans a crowd’s bloodlust, only to reward them with a magnificently violent ending.
1961 - 1970
- The Mad Fox (Koi Ya Koi Nasuna Koi) (1962)
A full-on avant-garde classic that mixes kabuki and animation with location and studio work. A man tormented by the death of his wife meets her twin sister and a fox spirit who takes the form of his beloved. The story is just an excuse for Uchida to challenge the form and function of cinema in a gorgeous tribute to Japanese folk tales.
"...one of the weirdest films in any language….torture, murder and possible bestiality—is only the beginning of this hallucinatory fairy tale’s trippy charm.”—Now Magazine (Toronto)
- A Fugitive From the Past (Kiga Kaikyo) (1965)
After the novel Kiga Kaikyo (1962) by Tsutomu Minakami. An epic masterpiece often compared to Kurosawa’s High and Low (1963), this grim examination of criminal life in post-war Japan is split into three sections: the criminal on the run, an interlude with a prostitute, and the final confrontation with police. The grainy widescreen
Widescreen
Widescreen images are a variety of aspect ratios used in film, television and computer screens. In film, a widescreen film is any film image with a width-to-height aspect ratio greater than the standard 1.37:1 Academy aspect ratio provided by 35mm film....
cinematography results from Uchida’s unusual choice to shoot in 16mm and blow up to 35mm. “the director’s masterpiece without doubt.”—Positif. It was voted the 6th greatest Japanese film ever made by Kinema Jumpo in 1995, and the 3rd greatest Japanese film in the same magazine in 1999.