AW: Lost Japanese Films

Fri Dec 12 04:53:34 EST 2008

Wow, what a great little mini-retrospective! Thanks for the info Martin, i think I am going to try and track these films down now.BestJasper Midnight Eye
www.midnighteye.com> Date: Thu, 11 Dec 2008 19:02:47 +0100> From: eigagogo at free.fr> To: KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu> Subject: RE: AW: Lost Japanese Films> > i saw  these two movies in a french retrospective end of '05 (if i'm correct,> Tom was also here!).> Arima neko features surprising  fight scenes (and KK reference), Mysterious> Shamisen has a great experimental final> http://www.mcjp.asso.fr/psept2005/cine/pgm_matou.html> > These movies were provided by Japan Fondation, their print copy was quite good> (at least, far better than their Somai's Love Hotel!).> I am pretty sure these movie are available on vHS> > http://www.mcjp.asso.fr/psept2005/cine/pgm_matou.html> > Selon Jasper Sharp <jasper_sharp at hotmail.com>:> >>>> Roland,Thanks for this fascinating information about the film, and especially>> about Zensho Kinema.I would be interested to find out what the different>> versions of the films were - I just assumed they were two parts of a larger>> whole.Also, what films by Zensho still survive?It's so depressing that such>> huge swathes of Japanese film history have vanished!Martin, that's very>> interesting, and quite a coincidence - I just came across this Shinko Kinema>> tile earlier today. The director's name seems to have been transliterated in>> a number of ways: I've seen it as Kito Shigeru and Kifuji Shigeru in Western>> sources, but as Mokutou Shigeru in Japanese. Does anyone know which one it is>> for sure? He seems to have been fairly prolific.I am also really interested>> where you saw the film. I know Matsuda Productions in Japan have both a>> poster of this film (http://www.matsudafilm.com/matsuda/f_pages/f_6e.html),>> which seems to have been revived in Japan in the 1960s, and also it appears a>> print (http://www.matsudafilm.com/matsuda/e_pages/e_d_2e.html), along with a>> another of Shinko's bakeneko films with Takako Irie, The Ghost Cat and the>> Mysterious Shamisen from 1938. Did you see the film screened, or was it on>> DVD. thanks,JasperMidnight Eye>> www.midnighteye.com> Date: Thu, 11 Dec 2008 17:50:53 +0100> From:>> eigagogo at free.fr> To: KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu> Subject: Re: AW:>> Lost Japanese Films>> Just to point out that 'Arima neko' (KITO Shigeru,>> 1937) have a final 'tower'> sequence that is an obvious reference to King>> Kong.>>>> Selon Roland Domenig <roland.domenig at univie.ac.at>:>>> Hi>> Jasper,>>>> actually there were two Edo ni arawareta Kingu Kongu films made:>> Edo ni>> arawareta Kingu Kongu Henka no maki (released March 18, 1939) and>> Edo ni>> arawareta Kingu Kongu Ogon no maki (released April 5, 1938). Both>> were>> directed by Kumagai Soya at Zensho Kinema's Ayameike Studio in Nara.>> The>> studio was established by Ichikawa Utaemon, one of the jidaigeki stars>> of the>> prewar era, who in 1927 left Makino Production and founded his own>> production>> company Ichikawa Utaemon Production aka Uta Puro. He rented a>> parcel of land>> of the Awameike Amusement Park and build a film studio>> there. Uta Puro>> continued to make films until 1936 when Utaemon joint>> Shochiku. Uta Puro was>> absorbed by Shochiku; their last film was Akutaro>> shishi by Nakagawa Nobuo>> who had made his directorial debut with Uta Puro>> in 1934. A few month after>> the closing of the studio Utaemon's elder>> brother, Yamaguchi Tenryu, founded>> the production company Zensho Kinema and>> reopened the Ayameike Studio. Zensho>> Kinema lasted until 1941. In 1940 it>> had come under the control of Shochiku>> which eventually absorbed Zensho>> Kinema. In January 1941 the Ayameike Studio>> closed its doors and fell into>> oblivion. The last of the about 170 films>> produced by Zensho Kinema (and>> almost all lost) was directed by Kumagai Soya,>> the director of the King>> Kong films.>> As Alex Jacoby already mentioned, Saito Torajiro made a>> Japanese King Kong>> version (Wasei Kingu Kongu) for the Shochiku Kamata>> Studios as early as 1933,>> only a few months after the release of the>> original King Kong film.>>>> Roland Domenig>> Vienna University>>>>>>>> ________________________________________>> Von:>> owner-KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu>>>> [owner-KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu] im Auftrag von Jasper Sharp>>>> [jasper_sharp at hotmail.com]>> Gesendet: Mittwoch, 10. Dezember 2008 18:29>>>> An: kinejapan>> Betreff: RE: Lost Japanese Films>>>> Talking of lost films,>> something that keeps coming up in conversations>> recently has been the>> following title:>>>>>> King Kong Appears in Edo (Edo ni arawareta Kingu>> Kongu,>> ????????????????????????????????????, Kumaga S??ya, 1938)>>>> It's>> listed in the jmdb simply as ??????????????????>>>> Can anyone confirm it>> ever existed? It seems to good to be true.>> There's some information on the>> web, namely>> http://www.tcat.ne.jp/~oguchi/Ape%20Movie%201900-1939.html>>>>>> It appears it only screened for one week only at most then disappeared, but>>>> I've never even heard of its production company Zenshou Kinema (Zenkatsu>>>> Kinema?) before - it makes me realise just how much weird stuff in the>> prewar>> period there was. So sad its all vanished!>>>> Jasper>>>> Midnight>> Eye www.midnighteye.com>>>>>>>> ________________________________>> Date: Wed,>> 3 Dec 2008 13:39:06 +0000>> From: macyroger at yahoo..co.uk>> To:>> KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu>> Subject: Re: Lost Japanese Films>>>>>> Dear Christiane Gruen,>> You ask ->> "Therefore we ask if anybody knows of>> any Japanese films, which are believed>> lost, that they please post to the>> list or get in touch with me at the email>> address listed below.">> Alas,>> for Japan, the question is overwhelming, if not mocking, since most>>>> Japanese films are lost.  Of the many thousands of films made before 1940>>>> (such as to be found on the JMDb website) all but a few hundred, I believe,>>>> are lost.  And plenty after this date are also lost - for example, Jasper>>>> Sharp points out, in his new book that most pink films have not been>>>> preserved.>> So, for practical reasons, our focus is on what films are>> preserved.  We have>> had recent threads on this list as to the availability>> of information on>> which films are preserved - see 'Film archive catalogues'>> and 'Japanese>> governmental agencies/film culture promotional policies'.>> Due to the lack of>> easy availability of preservation information, Professor>> High's pointer to>> his book is particularly useful.>>>> The discussion on>> your website as to what might constitute a 'lost film' is>> valuable.  But>> whilst we have your attention, may I ask one question and make>> one>> suggestion, please?>>>> Question: (Assuming the Deutsche Kinemathek is the>> institution in Germany>> that holds information on films preserved in>> Germany,)  Is it one of those>> institutions that puts on line the listing of>> those films it has preserved?>> If so, what is the link, please.  If not, a>> listing of any East Asian films>> up to 1945 that are held would interest>> scholars, particularly as there are a>> few films that may have reached>> Berlin via Moscow.>>>> Suggestion: There is another category of found films>> that are hidden, in so>> far as there is no budget to produce projection>> copies.  Publicity for these>> might produce the positive result of procuring>> sponsorship for their>> projection and distribution.  For example, the only>> copy of a 1923 film by>> Conrad Wiene, DIE MACHT DER FINSTERNIS, (with>> Russian actors and, presumably,>> a Russian script) exists at Waseda>> University, Tokyo with English titles ->> see the report by Dr. Uli Jung in>> Filmblatt, Summer, 2003.  Perhaps your>> institution could find the budget to>> combine the revival of this hidden>> German film with that of a Japanese film>> in a similar state?>>>> sincerely,>> Roger Macy>>>> ----- Original Message>> ----->> From: "Christiane Gruen">>>> <Christiane.Gruen at gmx.de<mailto:Christiane.Gruen at gmx.de>>>> To:>>>>>> <kinejapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu<mailto:kinejapan at lists.acs..ohio-state.edu>>>>>> Sent: Tuesday, December 02, 2008 3:52 PM>>>> <http://www.gmx.net/de/go/multimessenger>>>>>>> ________________________________>> Great search results, great prizes.>> BigSnapSearch.com Search>>>> now<http://clk.atdmt.com/UKM/go/117442309/direct/01/>>>>>>> _________________________________________________________________>>  Live Search presents Big Snap II - win John Lewis vouchers>> http://clk.atdmt.com/UKM/go/117442309/direct/01/> > 
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