*in search of ozaki midori* showing in tokyo

[Anne McKnight]

Hello,
I wanted to put in a plug for a new film playing in Tokyo on December 15
& 18, that picks up on several threads that have been batted around in
our discussions from time to time:  which is to say, the film-literature
connection, pink films, the naturalized dearth of women in the film
"community" (critical, academic, & especially directorial-production)
and films that try to be about non-realist subjects (imagination,
madness) while still-and-all using the mimetic medium of film.  

The film is *In Search of Ozaki Midori* ?????????, directed by
Hamano Sachi.  ISOOM is about the Taisho-Showa novelist Ozaki, who was
in the modernist limelight with Hayashi Fumiko and other to-be-famous
women writers.  After she started publishing at the age of 23 (in
Shincho), she released a series of short stories (a few things on film)
and the thing that is most pertinent to the film, the installment novel
*Wandering in the Worlds of 7 Senses* ?????????????.  It's
a feature, starring Yu Ai Ri, who was in 2/Duo (or maybe vice versa...?)
last year, and as I'm sure she is tired of hearing, is younger sister of
novelist Yu Mi Ri (Kazoku shinema, etc) , as the young Midori.  It's a
genre somewhere between realism and "fanta" (fantastic) and has a lot of
the kind of doppelganger themes & representational styles we have come
to know & love of Taisho modernism/modernity -- briefly here, 5 senses
not being adequate, a subplot about the chemistry or sexology of love
featuring, uh, moss, more...

At 35, Midori (according to the more 'bio-pic' aspects of the film, as
well as bios I have read) started having problems with psycho-physical
reactions to migraine medications, & was hauled back home to Toride-ken
by a relative.  From what I have read, she stayed there & definitively
left the bundan, considering that part of her life over.  (Her stuff
began to be re-evaluated thorugh comparison to uther authors, e.g. Abe
Kobo, in the late 60s.)  The film is set in Tokyo & in Toride, is made
up of the "bio-pic" elements, some dramatizations of text, and what I
thought were a couple of pretty clever ways of montaging audiences
together--which is to say, playing to both groups of second-wave
feminists & "post"feminist audiences.  Some people might find a few too
many "NHK" touches for their taste, in terms of staging key narrative
episodes, the outbreak of "madness" after which she left Tokyo.  As BG,
much of the (low) budget was put together by Hamano with contributions
from Toride residents, women's groups, and feminist groups.  Other than
the 2 leads (Ozaki), I think most of the actresses were former Nikkatsu
roman poruno stars.  I saw it at the three day long women's film week at
the Tokyo film fest, and the place was packed -- hell, I think half of
Toride-ken was there.  In contrast to Hamano's 300+ other movies (pink),
the audience was mostly female.  Hamano herself is another interesting
story, and has said a lot of interesting Mulvey-like things about trying
to make "pink" movies that play to both a "male" and a "female" gaze. 

It's a tall order to make an interesting film about an author,
especially one who seemingly had no interest in engaging the critical
apparatus, but I thought the film did a good job of railroading right
over a lot of the dreary cliches and narratives of ressentiment a film
about a long-neglected female author could bring up. Anyway for anyone
interested, it's at Kinokuniya hall in Shinjuku on 12/15 & 12/18 at
1p.m.  with introduction by Hamano, which should be extremely humorous,
if the live gig is anything like the film fest version.  Anybody else
see it, or read the book?
Anne McKnight
UC Berkeley/Tokyo University