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<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Although I've written a number of articles on early Japanese cinema, I
value the expertise of others on the subject, including those here who have made
a particular study in this field. I'm currently writing an analysis of Mark
Cousins' documentary series, "The Story of Film." Those who are familiar with it
will recall that Cousins places the Japanese cinema of the 1920s and 1930s in
the forefront of what has been described as a radical reinterpretation of world
film history. He appears to believe that Japanese cinema surpassed all others in
those years in terms of artistic maturity. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>While for many years I have sought to bring greater recognition to the
once-neglected field of early Japanese cinema, often in the face of considerable
indifference on the part of the film history establishment, I never did so with
an eye to diminishing the pioneering cinematic achievements of other countries
or regions. Some of Mark Cousins' reading of Japanese film history thus arouses
questions in my mind, particularly in comparison to those of other countries.
Did Japanese directors of the '20s, '30s and '40s enjoy as much creative freedom
as he states, seemingly unhampered by the kind of commercial and political
constraints that filmmakers elsewhere experienced in those years? I recall that
toward the end of his life, Daisuke Ito stated in an interview that the
political censorship the Japanese government then imposed on filmmakers was
terrible. Also, due to less-than-supportive studio executives at Shochiku, Mikio
Naruse in the mid-1930s left the company and went to Toho. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I believe the proper appreciation and understanding of Japanese cinema can
be best served, not by indulging in dubious theories of cultural superiority as
I think some writers have done with respect to Japan, whether consciously or
not, but by viewing it within the context of world film history. Hence, I'd be
interested in the views of others here concerning the degree to which Japanese
filmmakers did or did not work under conditions similar to cinema artists
elsewhere in the world in those years.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>William M. Drew</DIV></FONT></FONT></FONT></BODY></HTML>