Somai Shinji

[Peter Grilli]

Dear Aaron,

Thank you for your mature and thoughtful comments about the recent stream of
commentary on the Kine-Japan
list about the terrorist disasters in New York and Washington earlier this
week.  I'm glad that the list has subsided
into what I hope is quiet meditation about the significance of these events.

Thank you especially for your comments on the untimely death of Somai
Shinji.  I'm sure he is being mourned by
everyone interested in Japanese film and by all serious members of
Kine-Japan.  A superb artist and filmmaker, with
much good work left to do.   I'm glad you remarked on Somai's "magnificent
camera movements."  His camera was
"moving" in both the dynamic and the emotional sense.  I hope that Takenaka
Naoto does manage to produce Somai's
intended autobiographical film, and perhaps also work with Kurita Toyomichi,
the fine cinematographer for "Ohikkoshi."

Peter Grilli

-----Original Message-----
From: grilli at us-japan.org [mailto:grilli at us-japan.org]On Behalf Of Aaron
Gerow
Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2001 8:22 PM
To: grilli at attglobal.net
Subject: Re: Somai Shinji


There was a lot of rather heated discussion about the tragedies that
occurred in the United States, some of which was bordering on exceeding
the rules of manner that exist on this non-moderated list.  Things were
not so bad that I had to step in as co-owner of the list, and I want to
thank members for agreeing to calm down in the end.  There are important
things to discuss about the incident, even in relation to Japanese cinema
and media, but perhaps we should wait a few days before doing that.

Unfortunately, in all the discussion, one bit of news that Dick
Stegewerns kindly forwarded was largely ignored: the death of Somai
Shinji.  At 53, having just released one film (Kazahana) and preparing
another, Somai was far too young to die.  His death was significantly
reported here because of his stature in Japan, a fame that unfortunately
has not spread abroad.

In my mind (and in the minds of many others), Somai was the best and most
influential Japanese director of the 1980s. This is arguable, but not
only did he produce masterpieces like Taifu kurabu, Shonben raida, and
Ohikkoshi, his long shot long take style had, through several variations,
a profound influence on film in the 1990s.  Perhaps because his early
work was for Kadokawa and in the genre of idol movies, his films were
mostly not sent abroad, unlike Morita or Itami, who came to represent
Japanese cinema's 1980s for most foreign viewers.

Somai's films were all, in some ways, about death, his magnificent camera
movements themselves gaining energy from the tense feeling that when the
camera stops, death will occur. He was apparently planning an
autobiographical film when he died, to star Takenaka Naoto as Somai.
Takenaka reportedly promised Somai before he died that he will film that
movie. Perhaps, then, Somai's perpetually moving camera has stopped with
his death, but his immense influence will continue in the still-running
cameras of others.

Aaron Gerow
Yokohama National University
KineJapan list owner
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