[KineJapan] NHK doc about Kawase Naomi’s Olympic doc

[Markus Nornes]

Aaron wrote:


>  Given her unconscious use of the national “we”, many worry that Kawase’s
> documentary will essentially stand on the side of the organizers—though
> camouflaged as standing on the side of the athletes—and ignore the real
> critique of such national and media spectacles.


I haven't been paying attention to the media conversation about this, but
I've heard that Leni Reifenstahl's name is often invoked in connection with
this project. It's probably safe to assume the starting point of the
comparison is gender, but as with all things Leni it's complicated. Back in
1991 when I programmed a huge event on the 50th anniversary of Pearl Harbor
for Yamagata, LR's autobiography had just come out in translation. She kept
popping up in on and off stage conversations, then and for the next decade
or so as a slew of books came out. I recall argument after argument over
beers pivoting around the usual question: great artist or Nazi? The number
of smart people that blithely sidestep LR's contributions to fascism always
amazed me (it reminds me of recent conversations with Japanese friends
about Clint Eastwood—lol).

If anyone is tuned into these comparisons, I'd love to hear more. Has
Kawase ever talked about LR???

As for Kawase, I look forward to seeing the final film and how she
navigates this.

Markus
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