Movie Viewing Record 100 June 9, 2024 Kenji Mizoguchi's 'Sisters of the Gion'

I watched Kenji Mizoguchi's 'Sisters of the Gion' on Amazon Prime Video.

Watching Kenji Mizoguchi's films makes it clear how the French New Wave, especially Godard and Truffaut, were influenced by him.

This film is, above all, about Omocha, played by Isuzu Yamada. Omocha's first appearance in the film is in her underwear, yawning. The young French filmmakers must have been absolutely stunned by this entrance.

Kenji Mizoguchi is making a film. More than that, he is creating 'reality'.

Even so, it is terrifying that in 1936, a time when Tatsukichi Minobe, who advocated the Emperor Organ Theory, was attacked by right-wingers, the duo of Kenji Mizoguchi and Yoshikata Yoda depicted a female character like Omocha, played by Isuzu Yamada, who rebels against men.

And the scenery of the alleys, the night views, the lateral tracking shots, the scenery flowing past the windows of the taxi, and the cinematography that conveys the movement of the car by tracking across the landscape—Minoru Miki's cinematography is magnificent.

It is an incredible work.